to his coy mistress analysis, Schemes and Mind Maps of Literature

Download to his coy mistress analysis and more Schemes and Mind Maps Literature in PDF only on Docsity!

To His Coy Mistress

By Andrew Marvell

To His Coy Mistress

What do we understand from the title of the poem?

AO3:

C17th – ‘To coy’

means ‘to stroke/

caress’

But at my back I always hear Time’s wingèd chariot hurrying near; And yonder all before us lie Deserts of vast eternity. Thy beauty shall no more be found; Nor, in thy marble vault, shall sound My echoing song; then worms shall try That long-preserved virginity, And your quaint honour turn to dust, And into ashes all my lust; The grave’s a fine and private place, But none, I think, do there embrace. Now therefore, while the youthful hue Sits on thy skin like morning dew, And while thy willing soul transpires At every pore with instant fires, Now let us sport us while we may, And now, like amorous birds of prey, Rather at once our time devour Than languish in his slow-chapped power. Let us roll all our strength and all Our sweetness up into one ball, And tear our pleasures with rough strife Through the iron gates of life: Thus, though we cannot make our sun Stand still, yet we will make him run.

AO3: Context

Marvell and Politics Marvell was a mysterious man. Although he lived through the English Civil War, the part he played in it and his affiliations are ambiguous. Some of his poems demonstrate a royalist attitude, however others portray Charles I as incompetent and celebrated Cromwell. He kept his true allegiances a well kept secret, managing to gain the favour of both parliamentarian and royalist causes, in an age when so many lost their lives for backing the wrong side at the wrong time. Despite working for Cromwell, he avoided any punishment when the monarchy was restored, retaining his seat as an MP for Hull under both governments. Many of his satirical works were seen as too controversial and dangerous to be published in his name until after his death. One such work saw the printer imprisoned and a reward offered for the identification of its author. Once again, he escaped punishment. In 1678, after 18 years in Parliament, Marvell died rather suddenly of a fever. Gossip of the time suggested that the Jesuits (a target of Marvell’s satire) had poisoned him. The epitaph on the monument erected to his memory pays tribute to his politics, not his poetry.

So what’s all this got to do with a ‘coy mistress’?

AO2: Language

Had we but world enough, and time ,

This coyness, lady, were no crime.

‘Coy’ - shyness, reserve, unwillingness – it was fashionable for women to behave in this way at the time – at least initially How does this pronoun help to persuade his mistress? (^) Theme is immediately introduced – brevity of human life and pursuits vs time – Carpe Diem : seize the day The speaker’s argument begins by posing a problem.

• What is the problem?
• What is he trying to achieve?
• What is the effect of the words ‘had we’? (i.e. what do they suggest straight away about the ideal world he is describing?) What does the use of the word ‘crime’ imply here?

Thou by the Indian Ganges' side

Shouldst rubies find; I by the tide

Of Humber would complain.

c.1650 – time of exploration and discovery – the British Empire had spread to India. How does the idea of conquest add to the poem? What is the effect and purpose of this comparison? Her: by the side of the River Ganges in India with rubies Him: by the side of the River Humber in Hull AO3: The Ganges is considered sacred and holy. At this time it was also seen as (and was!) pure and pristine. In this ideal world they are far apart. How does the speaker represent himself? [Note: A ‘complaint’ is another word for a love poem.]

I would

Love you ten years before the Flood;

And you should, if you please, refuse

Till the conversion of the Jews.

AO3: Biblical Flood / Noah’s Ark Over 4000 years ago. AO3: In Christian texts – just before the end of the world.

How

long?

What is the speaker suggesting about his love for his mistress? What is it she would be refusing? If this is hyperbole, do you think Marvell might be mocking love poems that use such grand language?

“My vegetable love” AO3: Aristotle suggested that there are different kinds of ‘soul’. One of these is the ‘vegetative soul’ which governs nutrition and the growth of living things. This is linked to the idea of ‘natural love’, linking the earth to the heavenly bodies. It is an ideal form of love, in contrast to the ‘sensible’ [i.e. of the senses] love of physical and sexual attraction. This suggests, then, that Marvell’s ‘vegetable love’ is a natural, organic love that grows without pressure or prompt. Their love will grow slowly, naturally, and in a pure, heavenly way.

It’s also a pun, referencing the penis.

“should grow/

Vaster than empires, and more slow”

AO4/5: An extract from Marvell’s poem The Garden , in which the narrator wanders

through a blooming paradise.

What wondrous life is this I lead

Ripe apples drop about my head ;

The luscious clusters of the vine

Upon my mouth do crush their wine ;

The nectarine and curious peach

Into my hands themselves do reach ;

Stumbling on melons as I pass,

Insnared with flowers, I fall on grass.

The garden is practically forcing its fruits on the poet, except that he’s so willing: the

tree fruits places themselves into his hands, the ground fruits trip him. This poem is

part of a collage of art and poetry that imagine Eden as bursting with fruits, not with

vegetables. Fruit is easy: if it’s ripe, it’s already ready to eat, already flavorful and

sweet, no cooking or seasoning necessary. Vegetables require labor, which surely no

paradise would require. So that’s a possibility: perhaps Marvell was contrasting this

vegetable love–slow-growing, requiring a lot of maintenace–to the ease with which

he wished she could be plucked.

(Words to Eat By, by Ina Lipkowitz),

For, lady, you deserve this state,

Nor would I love at lower rate.

He called her “Mistress” before. Why does he now call her “lady”? What is he saying here?

But at my back I always hear

Time's winged chariot hurrying near;

What is the significance of this ‘But’? How does it change the tone and pace of the poem? Contrast this line to the slow pace of stanza 1. How and why has it changed? Where have we seen such a personification of time before? What is the effect of this?