Study Guide to Whoso List to Hunt
By Sir Thomas Wyatt

About the Author:
Wyatt and the other men suspected of being Anne Boleyn’s lovers were
imprisoned by Henry VIII. Wyatt’s father secured his release.

Struggling Readers: Reading Archaic Language
Whoso is a pronoun meaning “whoever.” List means “desires.” Knowing
this, reword the title.

Elements of Literature: Metaphor
What do the hunter and the hind stand for in this extended metaphor?

Critical Thinking: Making Inferences
The words “fair neck,” of course, remind the reader that Boleyn’s neck was
severed by the very man who claimed her. What doest he diamond collar
suggest about the woman’s role in society?

Historical Connections
Considering that in 1536 Henry beheaded Boleyn on falsified charges of
infidelity, how are lines 13-14 ironic?