Analysis of Holy Sonnet XIV
Throughout history, many people have endeavoured to convey their
interpretations, or experiences, of the relationship between God and
mankind. Many interpretations are positive - Psalm 139 of the Bible,
for example, portrays the relationship between man and God as a
personal and intimate one - yet just as many are decidedly negative.
One such interpretation is Holy Sonnet XIV, an intensely personal poem
by John Donne which explores the feelings of a man torn between
physical desire and spiritual longing. In this essay I aim to study
the poem in more depth, analysing what Donne says and how he says it.
Holy Sonnet XIV was written at a time of crisis and confusion in
Donne's life; a time when he was torn between spiritual longing for
religion and holiness, and physical passion. The poem conveys a
feeling of utmost ambivalence - at one point, Donne expresses his
feelings toward God in the line "Yet dearly I love you", yet this
profession comes just one line after his description of Jesus as
"weak" and "untrue". In fact, the poem is addressed to God Himself,
with Donne commanding Him to "batter" his heart, take control of every
aspect of his life and reform him from deep within.
The poem begins with Donne commanding God to "Batter my heart".
Instantly, Donne is telling God (described as "three person'd" an
allusion to the Trinity) to break into his life. The word "batter" is
very harsh, emphasising the brutality of the action which Donne is
commanding God to perform. This brutality is further emphasised by the
fact that Donne asks God to batter his heart, something which is seen
as very fragile and tend...
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...17th Century Persephone. The two stories do seem to run almost
parallel - his initial bond with Satan akin to her fateful eating of
the pomegranate; his imprisonment under Satan similar to her
relationship with Hades; them both becoming shadows of their former
selves (until Donne asks for God's help and until Persephone's yearly
reuniting with her parents); their not dissimilar desires and longings
(Donne's longing for spiritual fulfilment and a life with God;
Persephone's longing for life with her parents - both longings for
tranquillity and goodness). This comparison - between an ancient Greek
myth and a poem written in the 17th Century - goes to show that Holy
Sonnet XIV is a remarkable achievement: a poem that manages to be both
intensely personal yet has the ability to be read and interpreted on a
universal level.
In order to better understand Philip's critique of Donne within the lines of her poetry, a reading
"Poetry is the revelation of a feeling that the poet believes to be interior and personal [but] which the reader recognizes as his own." (Salvatore Quasimodo). There is something about the human spirit that causes us to rejoice in shared experience. We can connect on a deep level with our fellow man when we believe that somehow someone else understands us as they relate their own joys and hardships; and perhaps nowhere better is this relationship expressed than in that of the poet and his reader. For the current assignment I had the privilege (and challenge) of writing an imitation of William Shakespeare’s "Sonnet 87". This poem touched a place in my heart because I have actually given this sonnet to someone before as it then communicated my thoughts and feelings far better than I could. For this reason, Sonnet 87 was an easy choice for this project, although not quite so easy an undertaking as I endeavored to match Shakespeare’s structure and bring out his themes through similar word choice.
During the first four lines of the poem the speaker feels like God has been very generous to him, he feels that God is almost too friendly and that he has been too caring. Donne feels that in orde...
Donne, John. “Holy Sonnet 5, Holy Sonnet 6, Holy Sonnet 10.” John Donne’s Poetry: A Norton Critical Edition. Ed. Donald R. Dickson. W.W. Norton & Company. New York, London. 2004. (Handout)
The sonnet opens with a seemingly joyous and innocent tribute to the young friend who is vital to the poet's emotional well being. However, the poet quickly establishes the negative aspect of his dependence on his beloved, and the complimentary metaphor that the friend is food for his soul decays into ugly imagery of the poet alternating between starving and gorging himself on that food. The poet is disgusted and frightened by his dependence on the young friend. He is consumed by guilt over his passion. Words with implicit sexual meanings permeate the sonnet -- "enjoyer", "treasure", "pursuing", "possessing", "had" -- as do allusions to five of the seven "deadly" sins -- avarice (4), gluttony (9, 14), pride (5), lust (12), and envy (6).
...e speaker admits she is worried and confused when she says, “The sonnet is the story of a woman’s struggle to make choices regarding love.” (14) Her mind is disturbed from the trials of love.
This is an enjoyable sonnet that uses nature imagery, found extensively in Petrarca, that Shakespeare uses to get his point across. Not much explication is needed, aside the sustained images of nature, to fully understand its intent, but I would like to point out a peculiar allusion. When reading line 3, "the violet past prime" has made me think of Venus and Adonis. In the end, Adonis melts into the earth and a violet sprouts where his body was, which Venus then places in her heart, signifying the love she has for him. Reading this into the poem makes the few following lines more significant. Having Adonis portrayed as the handsome youth, Shakespeare is alluding to the death of youth (in general and to the young man) through the sonnet. In the next line, it is not certain if "sable" is an adjective or a noun and if "curls" is a noun, referring to hair (which is plausible) or a verb modifying "sable." Invoking the allusion to Adonis here, Shakespeare portends that if Adonis did live longer, he too would have greying hair; thus, Shakespeare sees ["behold"] an Adonis figure, the young man, past his youth.
John Donne uses poetry to explore his own identity, express his feelings, and most of all, he uses it to deal with the personal experiences occurring in his life. Donne's poetry is a confrontation or struggle to find a place in this world, or rather, a role to play in a society from which he often finds himself detached or withdrawn. This essay will discuss Donne's states of mind, his views on love, women, religion, his relationship with God; and finally how the use of poetic form plays a part in his exploration for an identity and salvation.
...) This is one of the most important claims that Donne makes because he indirectly inducts himself and Anne into the canon of saints, thus making them sacred. The poem ends with Donne calling upon all those who have suffered from similar criticisms; this further dignifies Donne as a saint-like figure. Therefore, both of Donne’s latter poems expose the transformation that Donne acquires when he meets Anne. His sexist attitude and views transcend to a more spiritual and emotional one.
Shakespeare’s Sonnet 130, while it employs Petrarchan imagery and form, undermines it as well. Although, in the end, Shakespeare embraces the overall Petrarchan theme of total and consuming love.
has the gentle heart of a woman but is not inconsistent as is the way
Sonnet 73 by William Shakespeare is widely read and studied. But what is Shakespeare trying to say? Though it seems there will not be a simple answer, for a better understanding of Shakespeare's Sonnet 73, this essay offers an explication of the sonnet from The Norton Anthology of English Literature:
In “Sonnet XVII,” the text begins by expressing the ways in which the narrator does not love, superficially. The narrator is captivated by his object of affection, and her inner beauty is of the upmost significance. The poem shows the narrator’s utter helplessness and vulnerability because it is characterized by raw emotions rather than logic. It then sculpts the image that the love created is so personal that the narrator is alone in his enchantment. Therefore, he is ultimately isolated because no one can fathom the love he is encountering. The narrator unveils his private thoughts, leaving him exposed and susceptible to ridicule and speculation. However, as the sonnet advances toward an end, it displays the true heartfelt description of love and finally shows how two people unite as one in an overwhelming intimacy.
William Shakespeare was an excellent writer, who throughout his life created well written pieces of literatures which are valued and learned about in modern times. One of his many works are 154 Sonnets, within these Sonnets there are several people Shakespeare “writes to”, such as fair youth, dark lady and rival poet. Sonnet 20 is written to fair youth, or in other words a young man. The idea of homosexuality appears in Sonnet 20 after the speaker admits his love towards the young man.
Milton returned to England about 1641 when the political and religious affairs were very disturbing to many. He started to apply his work in practice for that one great work like Paradise Lost when penning the Sonnets. Not every sonnet is identical but they can be difficult in interpretation, styles, word use, and so forth. The purpose of this paper is to analyze Milton’s Sonnet 8 (ca 1642), “Captain or Colonel.” This will be done by explaining the type of theme and then separating the sonnet into three sections: lines 1-4, 5-8, and 9-14 for a better understanding of how Milton used the development of ongoing events to present problems with a mystical resolution.