Analysis of the Poem “The Flea” by John Donne Poets have often used symbols to convey deeper messages that they were either too afraid or felt that normal language lacked the power to express. Often when a symbol is used, the reader digs deeper into the issue more than if the message was simply shot out in the open. These symbols and metaphors can be used to portray beautiful things, or could be used to create a more compelling argument in a more subtle way. In the poem “The Flea” by John Donne, the speaker uses clever sexual innuendo and metaphors in an attempt to manipulate a certain girl into losing her virginity to him. The poem begins with the speaker explaining that a flea has bit both him and her, and now both of their blood mixes inside it. He continues to try and ...
All forms of literature consist of patterns that can be discovered through critical and analytical reading, observing and comparing. Many patterns are discussed in the novel, How to Read Literature like a Professor, by Thomas C. Foster. Among these patterns, he discusses the use of symbolism and the representation something can have for a different, underlying aspect of a piece of literature. These symbols tend to have multiple meanings and endless interpretations depending on who is reading and analyzing them. No matter
Symbols are secret messages that are embedded in the texts of literature. Some symbols are more well-known and better understood than others. Authors use symbols to tell how they are feeling (Overview). The symbols in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe are very different; however, they are still very important throughout both pieces of literature.
The symbols aren’t just inanimate objects but characters also. For example; Piggy an overweight asthmatic kid who cannot see without his glasses, represents mental strength and physical weakness. With his keen mental strength Piggy tries to enforce a governmental system. “What’s better--- To have rules and agreeing or to hunt and kill?” (164) Piggy tries one last time to knock some sense into the unruly boy’s right before Roger murders him. Piggy is a rational boy who tries to think about the way that adults would handle this situation. Piggy is the outsider of the group, and many o...
The symbols that are used in literature can have a large impact on the story and what the reader pulls out from the story. If there was no symbol used in To Kill a Mockingbird, people would miss a lot of the story going on and they may not see the more innocent side of the story. Although symbols are used in many different forms, the one used in To Kill a Mockingbird made the story what it was. The mockingbird gave the story a whole different approach. By using a symbol in the story, the author was able to make th...
Which as claimed by the speaker, represents his union with the maiden in matrimony, since the flea has taken blood from them both."It suck'd me first and now sucks thee/And in this flea our two bloods mingled be"(lines 3-4). And, since their bloods have already mingled together, intercourse with him wouldn't be a sin and no honor would be lost if she yields to him."Though know'st that this cannot be said/A sin nor shame nor loss of maidenhood:" (lines 5-6) Though however similar the gist of the poems might be, the art of seduction used by each speaker is quite different. The speaker in "To His Coy Mistress" seems to change his tone of persuasion rapidly from stanza to stanza. At first he is sweet, comming across as a gentleman and overstating how many ages he would spent on a single part of her anatomy "A hundred years should go to praise/Thine Eyes.
On the surface, John Donne’s poem “The Flea” dramatizes the conflict between two people on the issue of premarital sex, however, under the surface, the poem uses religious imagery to seduce the woman into having sex. The speaker in this poem is a man, who is strategically trying to convince a woman to have premarital sex with him through the conceit based on a flea, however, the coy lady has thus far yielded to his lustful desires. The speaker’s argument has the form of logic, which contradicts to its outrageous content.
John Donne's, "The Flea," is a persuasive poem in which the speaker is attempting to establish a sexual union with his significant other. However, based on the woman's rejection, the speaker twists his argument, making that which he requests seem insignificant. John Donne brings out and shapes this meaning through his collaborative use of conceit, rhythm, and rhyme scheme. In the beginning, Donne uses the flea as a conceit, to represent a sexual union with his significant other. For instance, in the first stanza a flea bites the speaker and woman. He responds to this incident by saying, "And in this flea our bloods mingled be."
8th grade, 8th grade from the opening day to the signing of the yearbooks. This is the year of memories, goodbyes, and regrets. 8th grade and I’m still realizing that there are people in the world that would die to go to a school like this. A school where every body knows everyone’s name, respects everyone, and where violence and fighting are about as common as the Yankees missing the playoffs. When I’m done with my homework and go to bed, as the days of 8th grade wind down, summer will come and go, and I will find myself in one of those giant, scary places called high school.
John Donne’s poem “The Flea” uses the extended metaphor of a flea as a way to support the speaker’s argument as to why a young woman should sleep with him. The speakers main argument is that the flea has bitten both of them resulting in the mixing of their blood together and intercourse between the both of them will be no worse of a sin. “The Flea” relies heavily on a theme of sexuality in order to coax a young woman into sleeping with him. Peter Rudnytsky states that Donne uses the metaphor “as a part of the larger Renaissance vogue for paradoxical encomia-witty praise of objects commonly thought to be worthless or undesirable” (Rudnytsky 188). Donne’s choice to use a wor...
The narrator in The Flea is a youthful man trying to convince a young woman to give her virginity to him. He tries to do this by comparing their relationship to a flea that is in the room. The flea bites them both and Donne explains to her that this is symbolic of both of their worlds combining into one. He says that the flea is now the realm of love, lust, and marriage. At first this poem seems to be just about love, commitment from a male to a female, who says no his lustful desires. However, a deeper look than just the superficial reveals that the male in this poem is actually revealing a valid point to his lady: that the loss of innocence, such as her virginity, does not constitute a loss of her honor.
Raynie, Stephen A. "The Womans Body and the Obstacle of Specious Honor in Donne's 'the Flea'" University of Colorado Dept. of English 38 (2001): 40. Literary Reference Center. EBSCO. Northeast Lakeview, San Antonio. 11 Apr. 2008. Keyword: John Donne’s ‘The Flea’
Can a flea truly be just a flea or is it something more? Can it be used to represent a bigger picture? Is the speaker really just trying to achieve the lady, or is there a secret behind it all? In “The Flea,” by John Donne, he purposes some of these questions. This essay will answer all of the previously stated questions through the use of figurative language, form of the poem, and the diction. The figurative language will be used to show how the flea is a metaphor. The form of the poem will connect the rhyme scheme to an ironic twist. The diction in the poem will express how the use of words can change the meaning of the poem entirely.
Symbols have been used often in the history of our planet. Cultures such as Egyptians used literal symbols in their writing to represent objects such as animals and water. However, symbols don’t always mean a written figure. Often the word symbol means a metaphorical representation of something using something completely unrelated in literature or in speech. In fact, almost any work that has lasted all these years contains major symbolism in some way or another. William Butler Yeats, a great writer of the early twentieth century, wrote many incredibly symbolic and meaningful literate works. The following five poems of William Butler Yeats all have important symbols in them that are crucial to the poems, whether the symbols are personal or cultural: When You Are Old has a small symbol of the night sky; The Lake Isle of Innisfree uses the symbol of a log cabin; The Wild Swans at Coole uses the obvious symbol of swans; The Second Coming uses a beast as a symbol; and Sailing to Byzantium uses sailing.
Symbolism is a literary technique that is used to clarify the author's intent. Sometimes it is used to great effect, while other times it only seems to muddle the meaning of a passage. In "Young Goodman Brown," Nathaniel Hawthorne uses objects and people as symbols to allegorically reveal his message to the reader.
...elps us to see just how determined Donne is. Another way in which Donne accentuates his meaning is through the poetic devices, rhythm and rhyme. The poem has irregular lines of iambic tetrameter and pentameter. Through the poem Donne varies the rhythm to highlight particular words or phrases, “mark but this flea, and mark in this” instead of opening with an unstressed syllable as in iambic form; Donne strains the word, “mark”. This is important in accentuating his argument. The poem follows the aabbbccddd rhyme scheme. This constant pattern mirrors the speaker’s persistence as he proceeds with his demands for intimacy throughout the poem. The dramatic movement and specific poetic devices in this poem successfully help to shape Donne’s meanings and altering arguments.