Exploration of the Different Aspects of Love in Poetry

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Exploration of the Different Aspects of Love in Poetry

In the Victorian and Elizabethan times there were many poems, which

explored the aspect of love. The metaphysical group of poets explored

the whole experience of man, which was usually romantic or sensual.

The poems I will talk about are "The Flea" by John Donne (1572-1631),

"To His Coy Mistress" by Andrew Marvell (1621-78), "The Sick Rose" by

William Blake (1757-1827), "A Woman To Her Lover" by Christina Walsh

in the Victorian era and "Upon Julia's Clothes" by Robert Herrick

(1591-1674). These poems cover lust, an aspect of love, and this was

very controversial in the Victorian and Elizabethan times. Lust was

very controversial in those times as it went against social codes and

religion. Lust and desires are known for being part of the seven

deadly sins.

The subject of sex was a taboo and was not an overt subject of

conversation. Poems such as "The Ruined Maid" also include the subject

of a woman's virginity was deemed as precious and a woman was

considered 'soiled' if they had sex before marriage. The poets used

romance as a 'cover' for deeper issues such as politics. The poets

explore these different aspects of love through a variety of poetic

forms like as a sonnet, ballad, dramatic monologues or metaphysical

poems. Metaphysical poems are lyric poems. They are brief,

characterized by striking use of wit, irony and wordplay. Beneath the

formal structure is the underlying structure of the poem's argument.

The range of speakers are usually men persuading a woman to have sex,

or women demanding equality and women's views about losing their

virginity. In the poems with the ...

... middle of paper ...

...ith his great

love and lust; the flea links to their sexual relationship. Walsh's

poem, 'A Woman to Her Lover' explores a woman's view of a marriage and

her relationship with her lover. This poem reinforces that in those

times men wanted their lovers to please them and made them act like

slaves. It also portrays that women were extremely religious and it is

evident that they are reluctant to have sex before marriage. 'The Sick

Rose' shows the dangers that having sex before marriage will turn the

woman into an outcast and this again shows that these were the

problems the society had in those times. It reveals the darker side of

love/lust which was portrayed to be good by Marvell, Herrick and Donne

in their poems. So these poems using many literary devices show what

love was depicted by both men and women in those times.

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