Comparing Philosophies of Donne's To His Mistress and Herrick's Corrina Going A-Maying
The seventeenth century in England produced two varying schools of poetic philosophy which included the metaphysical and the cavalier. While the metaphysical poets, comprised of the artists who followed John Donne's use of the metaphysical conceit, tended to reinforce the traditional forms of love and devotion, the cavalier poets, led by Ben Johnson, intellectualized the themes of their poetry. Both metaphysical and cavalier poets such as John Donne and Robert Herrick experimented with poetry of seduction, dramatic verse from a male lover attempting to persuade his beloved. Although both poets attempt to incite their mistresses, the methods of persuasion in Donne's "To His Mistress Going to Bed" and Herrick's "Corrina's Going A-Maying" differ in accordance with their different schools of poetic thought. Whereas Donne employs a lustful attitude, derogatory diction, and metaphysical conceits to harshly command sexual activity; Herrick utilizes a more intellectual and sensitive argument with his religious undertones, persuasive and playful diction, and personification of nature.
The variation between metaphysical and cavalier poetry can be seen through differences in Donne's and Herrick's attitudes towards their mistresses represented by varying structure, diction, imagery, and religious language. Although both "To His Mistress Going to Bed" and "Corrina's Going A-Maying" contain many imperative sentences, their structural differences reflect Donne's feeling of superiority in spite of Herrick's admiration for his mistress. Donne's simple aabb rhyme scheme indicates his feeling that his mistress either cannot understand or does not des...
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...gently rebuking Corrina for her inactivity.
Although both Donne and Herrick employ imperative structures, sensual imagery, religious language and allusions to persuade their respective mistresses, Donne's superiority complex debases his mistress while Herrick's reverent attitude cajoles. Donne cares very little about his mistress evidenced by the lack of her name throughout the poem which resembles an urgent appeal. Conversely, Herrick's five stanzas and elaborate metrical structure indicate a planned appeal. Donne's lustful and solely physical approach contrasts sharply with Herrick's intellectual ploy in a complimenting and gently rebuking manner. The variance in the approaches of the poets is characteristic of their respective schools of poetic thought and illustrates the differences in approaches to poems of seduction by the metaphysical and cavalier writers.
When readers reflect on the poetry of the seventeenth century, poets such as John Donne and the
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In "Elegy XIX [To His Mistress Going to Bed]," we are confronted with one of Donne's personalities. The poem begins abruptly: Come, Madam, come! All rest my powers defy;/ Until I labour, I in l abour lie. The reader is immediately thrust into the middle of a private scene in which Donne attempts to convince his lover to undress and come to bed. There is only one speaker in this poem, Donne, we do not hear the voice or a description of the feelings of another person, but she is always present. If Samuel Johnson was correct when he made the statement that "the metaphysical poets were men of learning, and to show their learning was their whole endeavour.
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The Odyssey demonstrates how the gods favored certain men over others. When man had the gods "on his side," he was sure to complete whatever task was at hand.
The tone of “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” and “To His Coy Mistress” are different. In Herrick’s poem, his tone is relaxed. For instance when he writes, “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may, /Old times is still a-flying,” his word choice has a very relaxed and casual tone. His attitude reflects the relaxed tone in his poem. In Marvell’s poem, his tone is serious. Marvell’s purpose is to persuade his mistress to have sex with him. He tries to lure her in when saying, “Had we but World enough, and Time.” He starts out very seriously, in attempt to convince his mistress. The relaxed tone of “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” and serious tone of “To His Coy Mistress” point out the difference in the way the writers feel about their characters.
Grotpeter, J. K., & Crick, N. R. (1996). Relational aggression, overt aggression, and friendship. Child Development, 67, 2328-2338.
Love and religion are two of the most common topics of poetry. Many of Donne’s poems are on one of these two very different topics, his works are connected through the continuous use of devices such as allusion, metaphor, and pun; providing a bond for each poem, yet a different context for each one. “The Flea,” “Holy Sonnet VII,” and “A Hymn to God the Father” each have distinct themes, but find common ground by the use of common literary devices. “The Flea” is a carnal poem where the speaker tries to convince his lover to be inclined to him. “Holy Sonnet VII” and “A Hymn to God the Father” are religious poems that address apocalyptic visions and serve as a remembrance to God respectfully, while attending to mention the act of pardoning the speaker’s formerly committed wrongdoings
The Flea and To His Coy Mistress are two poems written by poets living during the Renaissance Period. To His Coy Mistress was written by Andrew Marvell and The Flea was written by John Donne. Both of these poets were well-educated 'metaphysical poets', and these poems illustrate metaphysical concerns, highly abstract and theoretical ideas, that the poets would have been interested in. Both poems are based around the same idea of trying to reason with a 'mistress' as to why they should give up their virginity to the poet.
On the other side, “Love Poem” is very different from the previous poem. This seven stanza poem is based on a man describing the imperfections of his lover. In this, the speaker uses stylistic devices, such as alliteration and personification to impact more on reader, for example as the speaker shows “your lipstick ginning on our coat,”(17) ...
In Donne’s poems, particularly his early love poems Donne explains how love involving the body aids the soul in gaining redemption from God. This perspective may be observed in Donne’s poem, To His Mistress Going to Bed, which is centered on the events leading up to a couple’s sexual union. More specifically, the speaker says, “unlace yourself, for that harmonious chime tells me from you, that now ‘tis your bed time” (10). In other words, the speaker aims to persuade his lover to join him in bed. Donne further conveys, through the speaker, that sexual union is the union of the souls, “as souls unbodied, bodies unclothed must be, to taste whole joys” (33). Though Donne too uses erotic, sexual language to describe love’s effect on an individual’s
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John Donne is known as being one of the most famous and influential metaphysical poets. The term “metaphysical," as applied to English and continental European poets of the seventeenth century, was used by Augustan poets John Dryden and Samuel Johnson to reprove those poets for their “unnaturalness.” As Johann Wolfgang von Goethe wrote, however, “The unnatural, that too is natural," and the metaphysical poets continue to be studied and revered for their intricacy and originality. Due to Donne’s personal experiences with spirituality and love, he is able to grasp the true meaning of metaphysical poetry (Brief Guide to Metaphysical Poets). Using all the aspects of metaphysical poetry, Donne creates a mysterious metaphoric poem titled, “The Flea.” Throughout this poem, the use of metaphors and breaks into the separate stanzas allow for the audiences to understand what The Flea is really about. At first glance, many read The Flea as a poem that compares sexual intimacy with an animal, but when broken down, it can be seen that the meaning is much deeper than intimacy, but it
John Donne lived in an era when the lyric was at its pinnacle. Poets were writing well-rounded, almost musical poetry on subjects that ranged from all kinds of love to enchantment with nature. Donne could not help but revolt against this excess of fluency and melody. John Donne's style stands in such sharp contrast to the accepted Elizabethan lyrical style that it becomes difficult to accept the fact that his works date from the same era. To highlight this statement, one has to compare a typical Elizabethan lyric to one of Donne's works.