Question

translated by thomas wentworth higginson
sweet air, that circlest round those radiant tresses,
and floatest, mingled with them, fold on fold,
deliciously, and scatterest that fine gold,
the twinest it again, my heart’s dear jesses;
though lingerest on those eyes, whose beauty presses
stings in my heart that all its life exhaust,
till i go wandering round my treasure lost,
like some scared creature whom the night distresses.
i seem to find her now, and now perceive
how far away she is; now rise, now fall;
now what i wish, now what is true, believe.
o happy air! since joys enrich thee all,
rest thee; and thou, o stream too bright to grieve!
why can i not float with thee at they call?

works cited
petrarca, francesco. \sonnet iii.\ fifteen sonnets of petrarch, translated by thomas wentworth higginson, houghton mifflin, 1900

○ a scared creature
○ a stream
○ the wind
○ fine gold

Explanation:

The poem opens by addressing "Sweet air" that interacts with the subject's hair, then later refers to this air directly. The question (implied to identify the poem's central addressed natural element) is answered by tracking the speaker's direct address to the air, which is framed as the wind. The other options are either metaphors, secondary elements, or comparisons in the poem.

Answer:

the wind