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Plato's influence on western philosophy
How plato influence western society
Plato's influence on western philosophy
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Elements of Plato in John Donne's The Good Morrow
There are clear Platonic elements in Donne's "The Good Morrow." The idea that Donne and his lady are halves that complete each other is traceable to Plato's theory of love. Lines 7 and 8 of the poem refer to the Platonic World of Ideas: the lady is presented as the Idea of Beauty, of which all earthly beauty is but an imperfect reflection. My argument, however, is that Plato's cave allegory and his World of Ideas are integral to a full understanding of this highly complex poem.
The first reference to the Platonic cave comes in line 4 of the poem: "Or snorted we in the seven sleepers' den?" The seven sleepers are seven young Christians who were walled up in a cave in the year 249. Miraculously, they did not die but slept for 187 years. This miracle of early Christianity is negatively presented by Donne and the plight of the seven "snorters" may have a relationship to Plato's cave: there are fundamental similarities between Plato's cave-dwellers on the one hand, and the seven Christians (and the biblical myth of Exodus, for that matter) on the other hand, according to Downing. In both cases, there is a God who cares for the people involved, even though they are unaware of this fact; in the first case because they are asleep, in the second because they mistake shadows of shadows for reality. They are both trapped in a cave from which they apparently cannot escape. And they both dwell in darkness. In a poet of Donne's complexity, it is not far-fetched to argue that line 4 refers both to the seven Christians and to Plato's cave-dwellers, and that Donne wished us to read it in precisely this way. Such an argument is reinforced by the fact that the line is immediately followed by...
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...a Platonic Idea is, of course, a paradox, as the World of Ideas is not only deathless but supposedly has existed since the beginning of time.)
Alternatively, one can argue that Donne (or his poetic voice) experiences a transient relationship in this poem that may or may not develop into a Platonic Idea. Like Plato's cave-dwellers who came out into the light, however, he has learned a great deal and become capable, as a consequence, of achieving the Platonic Idea of sexual love in a possibly new, deathless encounter that is "mixed equally."
WORKS CITED
Donne, John. "The Good Morrow." The Oxford Anthology of English Literature. Vol. 1. Ed. Frank Kermode and John Hollander. New York: Oxford UP, 1974. 1024-25.
Downing, Christopher. "How Can We Hope and Not Dream? Exodus as Metaphor: A Study of the Biblical Imagination." Journal of Religion 48 (1968): 35-53.
In order to better understand Philip's critique of Donne within the lines of her poetry, a reading
In arguing against mourning and emotional confusion, Donne uses a series of bold and unexpected comparisons for the love between himself and his lady. Donne makes his first surprising analogy in the first stanza when he compares the approaching separation of the lovers to death. "he speaker compares his parting from his lover to the parting of the soul from a virtuous man at death. According to the speaker, "virtuous men pass mildly away" (line 1) because the virtue in their lives has assured them of glory and happiness in the afterlife; therefore, they die in peace without fear and emotion. By this he suggests that the separation of the lovers is parrallel to the separation caused by death.
In the contemporary art world, where artists bring interdisciplinary elements and combine them in a mixture of genius and creativity, three and two-dimensional pieces are by no means exclusive in nature. The Donni Tondo, Michelangelo Buonarroti's tempera on panel with oil flourishes, although characteristically High Renaissance, projects a legacy of exploration and growth that may appeal to contemporary artists whose artistic sensibilities favor the combination of artistic platforms. Michelangelo’s portrayal of The Holy Family embodies the essence of his artistic orientations, and provides us with a glimpse into the mind of such a multifaceted man. His genius and excellent craftsmanship seem to exhibit his artistic might and abilities in such a manner, as to demand respect and recognition in his young yet very successful career as a sculptor, as well as a painter. The Doni Madonna offers us insight into Michelangelo's artistic point of reference; not as the unapproachable and idealized genius, but as a growing artist.
Ever since day one, people have been developing and creating all sorts of new methods and machines to help better everyday life in one way or another. Who can forget the invention of the ever-wondrous telephone? And we can’t forget how innovative and life-changing computers have been. However, while all machines have their positive uses, there can also be many negatives depending on how one uses said machines, wiretapping in on phone conversations, using spyware to quietly survey every keystroke and click one makes, and many other methods of unwanted snooping have arisen. As a result, laws have been made to make sure these negative uses are not taken advantage of by anyone. But because of how often technology changes, how can it be known that the laws made so long ago can still uphold proper justice? With the laws that are in place now, it’s a constant struggle to balance security with privacy. Privacy laws should be revised completely in order to create a better happy medium between security and privacy. A common misconception of most is that a happy medium of privacy and security is impossible to achieve. However, as well-said by Daniel Solove, “Protecting privacy doesn’t need to mean scuttling a security measure. Most people concerned about the privacy implications of government surveillance aren’t arguing for no[sic] surveillance and absolute privacy. They’d be fine giving up some privacy as long as appropriate controls, limitations, oversight and accountability mechanisms were in place.”(“5 Myths about Privacy”)
The speaker in Donne's poetry is a theatrical character, constantly in different situations, and using different roles to suit the action. He can take on the role of the womanizer, as in "The Indifferent," or the faithful lover from "Lover's Infiniteness," but the speaker in each of these poems is always John Donne himself. Each poem contains a strong sense of Donne's own self-interest. According to Professor J. Crofts, Donne:
The first stanza shows a wide range of fantastical language with the intention of drawing the reader slowly and steadily into the hazy, dreamlike setting. Along with the words like ?fantasy?, ?fables? and ?dreams? come affectionate phrases that effectively show us that the poem is meant to be addressed to a lover, ?Dear love? being the most obvious example. Later on in the poem, the language shifts from drowsy and steady to more intense and complicated, yet less passionate and more doubtful. Donne?s choice in the last stanza to utilize fiery words like ?torches? and phrases ?light and put out? and ?thou cam?st to kindle? depict a sense of overwhelming passion, as uncontrollable as fire. Donne doubts that he can control his lover to continue loving him as fervently as in his dream, which is why his dream lover is ?an angel? while his lover in reality is compared to fire.
this poem by Plato, the world is an illusion. In many case this that falls true.
The poem opens with two lines that lay the groundwork for the analogy and that have a sexual implication. The word “digged'; and the image of “love’s mine';, obviously allow for the comparison between the Platonist’s and the alchemists. Donne explains that some have experienced more love than he has, and, in having done so, have penetrated “deeper'; into “love’s hidden mystery,'; that is, they have reached a point beyond sensual love where they have found it’s true “centric'; or essential happiness. This would be analogous to alchemists, who, after many attempts, have been able to extract gold from other metals. Due to the diction that Donne uses and the manner in which he expresses himself in these two lines, it is possible to extract their sexual meaning that serves to ridicule the claims and means of the Platonists as well as the alchemists. The words “digged love’s mine'; can be interpreted as...
The metaphysical era in poetry started in the 17th century when a number of poets extended the content of their poems to a more elaborate one which investigated the principles of nature and thought. John Donne was part of this literary movement and he explored the themes of love, death, and religion to such an extent, that he instilled his own beliefs and theories into his poems. His earlier works, such as The Flea and The Sunne Rising, exhibit his sexist views of women as he wrote more about the physical pleasures of being in a relationship with women. However, John Donne displays maturity and adulthood in his later works, The Canonization and A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning, in which his attitude transcends to a more grown up one. The content of his earlier works focused on pursuing women for his sexual desires, which contrasts heavily with his latter work. John Donne’s desire for physical pleasure subsides and he seeks to gain an emotional bond with women, as expressed in his later poetry.
113- The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 6th ed. of the book. Vol.
The Exodus of the Hebrew people out of Egypt as depicted in the Holy Bible is controversial. A literal, Biblical reading depicts inexplicable supernatural events suggesting the influence of the God of the Hebrews. There are three main theories about the Exodus Event. The first is that the event occurred exactly as accounted in the Bible, miraculous events included. Secondly, that the Exodus did occur, just not as the Bible describes. The last is that the event never occurred. The explanation of these theories will be presented in this paper.
Even something as simple as adding animation on top of recorded sound allowed a work to become remixed. Kota Ezawa added simple animation on top of the recording from the First OJ “Simpson Trial” and by doing so, he took something that was meant to be a recording solely for court records and turned it into a dramatic narrative that conveys many of the emotions displayed by the defense and prosecution when the final verdict was read.
One of Donne's famous poetic devices is diction. Again in line one and ten appear "Mark" and "Oh stay." These words are denotations of strong causative voice in order to obtain mistress' attention. In addition to diction, another outstanding part is his rhetoric skill. For example, "Me it sucked first, and now sucks thee," (line 3). His using different ...
In contrast, in the next two lines Donne describes the love he shares with his wife comparing it to moving planets “But trepidation of the spheres”. Using this metaphor he managed to grasp the true meaning of the kind of love they share, a love that is not of the earth like in those lovers who seek physical contact, but a love that is spiritual, heavenly, somewhat “out of this world”, a love close to God. As planets rotate around the Sun they cause great effects on people. We may not notice, hear or see them but they do happen, far away from the eyes of the beholder. And the love that Donne and his wife share is like the movement of the spheres, it is of great importance, silent and not visible to the naked eye, but it is there, in a spiritual form, a connection of souls. We can connect the movement of the spheres to the natural science of mathematics as we did with the previous text. The planets create circles as they rotate around the sun. Circles present perfection and infinity so the space that is created between the Sun and the spheres represents the love that the husband and ...
...ne exclusively on himself and his lover. By doing so he says the sun will be shining on the entire world. It is apparent in both poems the tone and language is dramatic, as this is typical of Donne’s writing style. His use of imagery and symbolism effectively present his experience of love. However it is the structure that builds up the emotion throughout the poems as Donne starts in each poem to refer to a seductive love, then in conclusion realises the importance of true love. ‘The Good Morrow’ clearly shows evidence of this when at the beginning Donne states he ‘suck’d on country pleasures childishly’ and in the end understands that a ‘Love so alike that none can slacken, none can die’.