Conceit

A comparison between 2 startlingly different things

Purposes of Conceit

• Surprise

• Emphasize the unity among all things in God’s creation---high and low; familiar and strange

• Taylor wrote conceits to emphasize the close relationship between God and the natural world.

John Donne

• Union of a man and a woman to a flea, having bitten them both, unites their blood within itself

George Herbert

• Humanity and God compared to a tenant and a rich landlord

Edward Taylor

• Poet and Preacher• Often wrote poetry called “Preparatory

Meditations”---poems written to unwind or express his emotions as he was preparing for a sermon.

• Spinning wool compared to salvation

Video to familiarize yourself with spinning wheel

Review of Puritan Values and Beliefs

1. God has “pre-determined” who is going to heaven and who is going to hell.

2. Everyone is a sinner, so all must repent and pray for God’s grace.

3. Only God can grant salvation and grace.4. God knows what is best, so there is no

questioning of things that happen to you5. God plays an active role in everyone’s

life.

Questions to answer

1. What is being compared in this conceit?

2. Who is the spinner and dyer?

3. Who is the wool?

4. As a summary, the man praying to God is asking God to do what 3 things: