This volume investigates the historical reception and critical evolution of Sir Philip Sidney’s literary works from the sixteenth century through the modern era. Martin Garrett, an established scholar in Renaissance literature, compiles a comprehensive selection of contemporary and later commentaries to trace how Sidney’s reputation shifted across centuries. The work provides a structured framework for understanding the changing cultural values applied to Elizabethan poetry and prose, utilizing primary source excerpts to document the shifting tides of academic and popular opinion.

Scholars frequently cite this volume as a foundational reference for students of Renaissance reception history. The text is noted for its rigorous archival approach and its utility in tracking the long-term canonization of Sidney within English literature.