Poems to study

To His Coy Mistress (Marvell)To His Mistress Going to Bed (Donne)

The sun rising(Donne)

Questions on context• How do the poets use ideas to make their points?

Describe how the poets use ideas and concepts from their time to make their points.

America

New found lands

The court - royalty

Gems – rubies

Rivers

Biblical beliefs/times

Time: The future

Eternity• How do these references create a sense of the time in

which the poems were written?

Questions• How does Marvell use cleverness and complicated

conceits to put pressure on his mistress?

• Time• Death• Vaults - eternity• Vanity – ( the women’s)• Religion• Books-pictures - mythology

Questions

How do the poets express their passion for their mistresses?

• Tone • Temperature – Heat/cold• Physical description – comparison - simile - metaphor • Lasciviousness• Their own physical state• Wit• Pomp and ceremony - court and royalty• Time and space the whole wide world vs. the here and now

Questions

• How does the structure of the poems contribute to their meaning?

• How do the different stanzas change/contribute to the ‘story’ – construction of the poem?

• Try to connect the opening and closing lines of the poems

Poetic devices + effects• Use of shape – visual effects• Use of punctuation, enjambment – short end stopped

lines/phrases• Sound: alliteration, onomatopoeia, assonance, repetition• Verse structure• Chorus or refrain• Form – sonnet – monologue – epic -other• Figurative writing - similes - metaphors - personification• Analogy• Wit• Conceit• Emotion• Brevity

Over viewThink about how the poets establish the following:

•Mood

•Character

•Relationships

•Situations

•Attitudes

•Motives

Think about social, historical and cultural contexts

Move from the specific to the general – apply the detail micro analysis to the whole, macro analysis.

Andrew Marvell

Andrew Marvell, the son of a vicar, was born at Winestead-in-Holderness, in 1621. He was a close contemporary of Shakespeare. When he was a child the family moved to Hull and Marvell attended the local grammar school. In 1633 Marvell went to Trinity College, Cambridge.

• After leaving university Marvell toured Europe visiting Holland, France, Italy and Spain. Although he spent most of the Civil War out of the country he was a strong supporter of Parliament and in 1650 he wrote a poem praising Oliver Cromwell, Horatian Ode Upon

Cromwell's Return from Ireland. Oliver Cromwell was born into the Huntingdon Gentry. He was descended from a sister of Thomas Lord Cromwell, the unpopular Minister of King Henry VIII. His ancestor called Williams changed his name to benefit from a connection to the rising politician. the family subsequently lived as minor gentry. Cromwell, after marriage, entered Parliament in 1628. At this time the franchise (right to vote)  was open to very few so generally it was members of the aristocracy and gentry who formed the bulk of Members of Parliament. He was a Puritan in religion and politics in days when it was expected that the two would be part of the same thing. So as a Puritan he found himself standing firmly with the opposition to Charles I.

•Marvel also worked as tutor to the children of Sir Thomas Fairfax. His poem, Upon Appleton House, celebrated the retirement of Fairfax from the world of public affairs

With the help of his friend, John Milton, Marvell became Assistant Latin Secretary to the Council of State in 1657. Two years later he was elected to the House of Commons where he represented Hull.

John Milton – author – writer of Paradise Lost. Currently used as the title of the trilogy ‘His Dark Materials’ by Phillip Pullman.

Milton became blind and dictated the book, in iambic pentameter to an amanuensis.

The story is about the battle between God and the Devil, and the story of the fall of man.

MP and anti-royalist

After the Restoration Marvell was an outspoken critic of the government of Charles II. Marvell was especially opposed to its failure to promote religious toleration. During this period he spent much of his time living in Russia, Sweden and Denmark.

Andrew Marvell died of tertian ague in 1678. Three years later his book, Miscellaneous Poems, was published. This included Marvell's most famous work, the love poem To His Coy Mistress.

Facts •America was still a new found land – recently discovered•Marvell, like Milton, would have a good knowledge of the Bible, and Bible stories•The Flood was the flood in the Bible which ended with Noah building his ark•The River Humber – one of the largest in England•Ganges – the sacred river in India

•

The word ‘coy’ means shy, pure, unwilling…

‘Mistress’ means his girlfriend – the woman he hopes will become his mistress…

The poem is an attempt to persuade her to sleep with him…

It’s also meant for public consumption as a way of showing off, being clever, smart, and witty….

He’s trying to show all his knowledge of the big wide world…

John DonneJohn Donne was born to a prosperous London ironmonger (also named John Donne), in 1572. The Donne's were Catholic, and young John was educated by Jesuits. His father died when he was young, and he was raised by his mother, Elizabeth.At the age of 11, John Donne went to Hart Hall at Oxford University, where he studied for 3 years, and then proceeded to Cambridge University for another 3 years. Donne did not take a degree at either university, because as a Catholiche could not take the required Oath of Supremacy at graduation.After Cambridge, Donne studied law at Lincoln's Inn in London. His faith was badly shaken when his younger brother Henry died in prison, where he had been sent for sheltering a Catholic priest. Donne's first literary work, Satires, was written during this period. This was followed by Songs and Sonnets. a collection of love poems that enjoyed considerable success through private circulation.Donne gained a comfortable inheritance, which he proceeded to spend in profligate fashion on "wine, women, and song". He joined the Earl of Essex's raid on Cadiz in 1596, and an expedition to the Azores the following year. On his return Donne became private secretary to Sir Thomas Egerton, Lord Keeper of the Great Seal. His chances of career advancement were destroyed when he secretly married Anne More, daughter of Sir George More. Anne's enraged father had Donne thrown into Fleet Prison for several weeks, and Egerton dismissed him from his post.

Donne's marriage was a happy one, despite constant financial worries. With typical wry wit, Donne described his life with Anne as "John Donne, Anne Donne, Undone". Finally, in 1609, George More was induced to relent and pay his daughter's dowry. In the meantime Donne worked as a lawyer, and produced Divine Poems (1607).

Donne's final break with his Catholic past came with the publication of Pseudo-Martyr (1610) and Ignatius his Conclave. These works won him the favour of King James, who pressured him to take Anglican orders. Donne reluctantly agreed, and in 1615 he was appointed Royal Chaplain, and the following year he gained the post of Reader in Divinity at Lincoln's Inn. There his fierce wit and learning made Donne one of the popular preachers of his day.Then in 1617 Anne Donne died in giving birth to the couple's 12th child. Her death affected Donne greatly, though he continued to write, notably Holy Sonnets (1618). In 1621 Donne was appointed Dean of St. Paul's, a post he held for the remainder of his life. In his final years Donne's poems reflect an obsession with his own death, which came on March 31, 1631.John Donne is remembered for the wit and poignancy of his poetry, though in his own time he was known as much for his mesmerizing sermons and preaching style.

John Donne 1572 – 31 March 1631) was a Jacobean poet, preacher and a major representative of the metaphysical poets of the period. His works are notable for their realistic and sensual style and include sonnets, love poetry, religious poems, Latin translations, epigrams, elegies, songs, satires and sermons. His poetry is noted for its vibrancy of language and inventiveness of metaphor, especially as compared to those of his contemporaries.

He came from a Catholic family, but converted to the Anglican church.

Despite his great education and poetic talents he lived in poverty for several years, relying heavily on wealthy friends. In 1615 he became an Anglican priest and, in 1621, was appointed the Dean of St Paul's Cathedral in London.

Some scholars believe that Donne's literary works reflect these trends, with love poetry and satires from his youth, and religious sermons during his later years.

Compare the ways the poets write about love in the two poems you have studied.

• Either: Start with a statement – establish your case – ‘Donne is purely sexually motivated, Marvell is in love’ deal with each poem separately.

• Or: Launch straight in and write about both at the same time: ‘Whilst Donne starts his poem with an order, ’Come madam come’ Marvell starts with a conditional statement, ‘If we had world enough and time.’ Both poets are engaged with seduction, but their approach varies, whereas Marvell pleads, Donne demands…’

• Deal with:• Content/subject matter• Point of view/voice• Structure• Openings/endings• Moments of change• Imagery – similes, personification, metaphor• Language – sounds, onomatopoeia/alliteration/choice of words/phrases• Personal response• NB PEE

A possible structure

• Introduction – set out your case – what you think the similarities and differences are

• Deal with each poet separately – each poem making your points and supporting them with textual reference

• Write a conclusion – tie together all the points you have made