John Donne's Unusual Conceits: Bizarre Imagery or Thoughtful Comparisons?
What exactly do a flea and the intense emotion of love have in common? Does the sun ever intrude upon you and your lover while in bed? To most people these questions would draw nothing but quizzical or blank stares followed by perhaps a referral to one psychologist or another. However, if one asked a certain young minister from seventeenth century London the same questions, he would have suddenly become inspired. This exceptional personality was the metaphysical poet John Donne.
Many people debate whether Donne's metaphysical style of verse is genuinely contemplative comparison or merely eccentric imagery. However, if one looks deep enough into the witty his witty works such as, "The Sun Rising," or "The Flea," they will find evidence to support both views. It has been said of Donne's love poetry that it was "losing itself at times in the fantastic and absurd" (Grierson 25). By using his unusual conceits, or far-fetched metaphors, John Donne utilizes his remarkable ability to draw a wistful sigh of love from any reader while shocking and twisting brain cells at the same time. It is this innovative method of combining such passion and great intellect that entices poets like T. S. Eliot to imitate him and others like Samuel Johnson to criticize him.
One example of John Donne's words coming off as a thoughtful and indeed intriguing comparison is presented in "The Sun Rising. " In this composition, Donne proclaims in a conceit, " She is all states, and all princes, I, Nothing else is" (Line 21-22). By this he is so boldly declaring that he and his own love are the center of the universe and all that is important (Carey 109). He goes on to tell the "unruly sun," "This bed thy center is, these walls, thy sphere" (Line 30). By these lines we can see that Donne is portraying love as an all-empowering emotion. He is telling us that being in love signifies a completeness, an obsession that makes all else negligible.
When the speaker asserts to the sun, "If her eyes have not blinded thine; Look, and tomorrow late, tell me, Whether both the Indias of spice and mine Be where thou leftst them, or lie here with me," (Line 15-18), he is masterfully showing both his loves' superiority and the sun's inferiority.
When readers reflect on the poetry of the seventeenth century, poets such as John Donne and the
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Ribes, P. (2007, July 16). John Donne: Holy Sonnet XIV or the Plenitude of Metaphor. Retrieved October 6, 2011, from Sederi: http://sederi.org/docs/yearbooks/07/7_16_ribes.pdf
With the death of a loved one, the birth of a child, a job promotion,
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.
John Donne’s early works viewed women as tools for sexual pleasure, as seen in The Flea and The Sunne Rising. He was very sexist and objectified women as sexual beings. However, when he meets Anne, his work becomes more concentrated on the spiritual and emotional aspects of love. He views Anne as an equal and considers his experiences with her to be more romantic in a non-sensual way.
He compares his relationship with his love as “stiff twin compasses” and other similar comparisons to describe their unity (Dunne 26). Like a compass, they always seem to be working cohesively as one unit. It could have the same theme as “The Passionate Shephard to His Love” by Christopher Marlowe, the theme of love conquering all. They both seem to have an idealistic view to the relationship as well, as the shephard in Marlowe’s poem insists that his love “will all the pleasures prove” if she were to go with him (Marlowe 2). Both poems aim for a perfect life with their love, and Donne’s poem manages to come up with a more realistic option out of the
It is quite feasible to state that poetry at its finest is a dazzling and expressive art of words. A poem not only can expose the diplomatic beliefs of societies, but can also articulate passions and sentiments of the author to whom the poem belongs. One of the many fine poems that have been prevalent among the study of literature that is irrefutably powerful is Meditation 17 by John Donne. This poetic essay exposes John Donne’s opinions and beliefs on humanity, and covers much cogitation from religion all the way to death. Of course, the poem has been written so profoundly that one may not grasp it completely at first glimpse, however John Donne does use explicit strategies to better convey his message to readers of all sorts. John Donne utilizes situation, structure, language, and musical devices to enhance the poem and to aid in delivering his message efficiently.
Stress is something that affects many people each and every day. Life is full of hassles, deadlines, frustrations, and demands. For some people stress is so common it is a way of life. Stress can be very harmful and or helpful. It could help motivate you to meet a deadline and perform a task under pressure. Stress can also be very harmful, such as memory problems, moodiness, aches and pains, and eating more or less.
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
shadow … It is a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury
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.
John Donne, an English poet and clergyman, was one of the greatest metaphysical poets. His poetry was marked by conceits and lush imagery. The Flea is an excellent example of how he was able to establish a parallel between two very different things. In this poem, the speaker tries to seduce a young woman by comparing the consequences of their lovemaking with those of an insignificant fleabite. He uses the flea as an argument to illustrate that the physical relationship he desires is not in itself a significant event, because a similar union has already taken place within the flea. However, if we look beneath the surface level of the poem, Donne uses the presence of the flea as a comparison to the presence of a baby, thus making the sub textual plot about aborting the baby.