Comparing The Passionate Shepherd to His Love and Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd

Comparing The Passionate Shepherd to His Love and Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd

and the stark contrast of the treatment of an identical theme, that of

love within the framework of pastoral life. I intend to look at each

poem separately to give my interpretation of the poet's intentions and

then discuss their techniques and how the chosen techniques affect the

portal of an identical theme.

The poem The Passionate Shepherd to His Love appears to be about the

Elizabethan courtly ideal of living with the barest necessities, like

a shepherd, in the country.

"We will all the pleasures prove that hills and valleys, dales and

fields' Or woods or steppy mountains yields."

Why Marlowe writes this poem is difficult to fully understand. Perhaps

it is a reaction against the life he has lived so far ,in the courts

of London. Maybe it is a genuine love poem to his mistress, a sort of

offer of a way of life. Both concepts, though, underline the

simplistic romanticism of the poem.

" Come live with me and be my love"

Written in any stanza of a poem would suggest that the poem was about

love, but here Marlowe chooses to start and end the poem with the same

line. This suggests two things that this indeed was the reason for

writing the poem, to woo his love. Or maybe is the line was not meant

to be taken literally just really to prove that what he says really

does mean something and to emphasize the subject and the romanticism

of the poem

I intend to discuss the concept if the love poem first. Marlowe paints

a picture of the romantic dream of love. The scene is pastoral and

idyllic, of the simple shepherd surrounded by his sheep in a b...

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...only last a certain

amount of time because we know nothing can last forever as life as not

eternal.

The poem The Nymphs Reply to the Shepard is set out in six stanzas

each composed of four lines of similar length. This is a mimic of the

layout used by Marlowe, here this gives prominence to the similarity

of the two poems. Added to this both poems have a similar rhyme scheme

and rhythm: " Come live with me and be my love " and the rhyme scheme

of AABB running through both poems and effecting the readers opinion

and interpretation.

I enjoyed reading both poems which were interesting in the contrasting

views of both poets. Whilst Raleigh's view of love is , I would guess

, the more realistic, as a young girl I feel that Marlowe's poem is

much more romantic and exciting. Perhaps old age will change my

opinion..