Metaphysical Poetry
“Metaphysical Poetry" is a term coined by poet & critic Samuel Johnson, who describes a loose group of English lyric poets of the 17th century, whose work was characterised by the use of conceits, guess & speculation about topics such as love, religion etc.
Johnson used this term while writing about the life of Abraham Cowley in his biographical work with the title 'The Lives of the English Poets'.Dr.Johnson wanted to criticise the poetry of Donne and his followers by using the term 'Metaphysical Poetry' .But with the passing of time the same term became the term of appraisal for their poetry.Dr.Johnson has passed one remarkable comment stating that "the poetry of metaphysical poets stood a trial of their finger but failed in total of the ears".That Dr.J Johnson wants to state that there is no music and rhythm in their poetry.
💠What Does Metaphysical Mean?
The word 'meta' means 'after,' so the literal translation of 'metaphysical' is 'after the physical.' Basically, metaphysics deals with questions that can't be explained by science. It questions the nature of reality in a philosophical way.
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💠Characteristics Of Metaphysical Poetry:
1.Themes:
Metaphysical poetry is spiritual & has often religious themes. Moreover, it focuses on love, as the union of soul.
2.Metaphysical Conceits/Far Faced Conceits:
A significant feature of metaphysical poetry is the use of metaphysical conceits. It is the unique quality of metaphysical poetry. They tried to avoid using images from those fields which were thickly associated with the theme of their poetry.
3.Originality:
Originality is the hallmark of metaphysical poets. All the metaphysical poets were unique & original in their ideas & thoughts. They didn’t follow the path of their contemporary poets. They stood against their contemporaries & followed their own way of writing poetry.
4.Wit:
Metaphysical wit is also a noteworthy feature of metaphysical poetry. Metaphysical wit is the expression of one’s idea & thoughts, using aptly & technically, the words & various figures of speech in such a manner as to provide pleasure to the readers. John Donne is called the “Monarch of Wit” in the history of metaphysical poetry.
5.Platonic Love:
Platonic love is another feature of metaphysical poetry. Platonic love means, spiritual love, which is free from elements of physical love.
6.Short Poems:
Metaphysical poetry is considered to be brief & concise. Every line conveys a lot of meanings in a few words. Every word is adjusted in every line like a brick in a wall & conveys the message of the author. Hence there is no wastage of words.
7.Literary Devices:
In order to express either love or their faith in Christianity they brought their from different Fields just like biology,architecture,engineering,agricultur, geometry, geography,and even political science.This gave unique identity to their poetry a number of examples can be given about how they brought images from distant and remote fields.
8.Conscious Attempt:
The metaphysical-John Donne,George Herbert,Richard Crashaw and Andrew Marvell made a conscious attempt to differ from others and particularly from the previous poets.So that their poetry may be noticed by the reader.One critic Helen C.White mentions that "it was the demand of time for the metaphysicals to differ from the poets of the previous age."
Had they continued writing poetry in the same manner just like the former Poets,their would have been rejected by the reader.Due to new learning and Reformation of the Elizabethan age ,the intellectual leval of the readers had gone upward and so the metaphysical poets tried to be intellectual in the writing of their poetry.
💠Critics Viesw on metaphysical Poetry:
Helen Gardner explain that,
'Argument and persuasion, and the use of the conceit as their instrument, are the elements or body of a metaphysical poem.'
John Dryden says about the metaphysical Poetry,
'He affects the metaphysics, not only in his satires, but in his amorous verses, where nature only shouldreign; and perplexes the minds of the fair sex with nice speculations of philosophy, when he should engage their hearts, and entertain them with the softnesses of love.'
Samuel Johnson says that,
"The metaphysical poets were men of learning, and, to show their learning was their whole endeavour; but,unluckily resolving to show it in rhyme, instead of writing poetry, they only wrote verses, and, very often,such verses as stood the trial of the finger better than of the ear; for the modulation was so imperfect, that they were only found to be verses by counting the syllables."
💠Five Famous Metaphysical Poems:
1.'Death,be not Proud' by John Donne
2.'The Flea by John' Donne
3.'The Sun Rising' by John Donne
4."The Collar' by George Herbert
5."To His Coy Mistress' by Andrew Marvell
🔷'Death,be not Proud'.
🔶Summary of the poem:
'Death,be not Proud'is a well known holy Sonnet by John Donne.This poem is addressed by the piet to death itself.The aim of the piet behind writing this Sonnet is to nullify the fear of death.The poet uas presented altogether a different picture of death in the present Sonnet.
The Sonnet opens with the Poet's instction to death that there is no need for death to be proud of anything.Of course there are people who consider death mighty and dangerous.But the piet believes that death is neither mighty nor dangerous.It has no capacity to kill anybody.
The poet gives one example to nullify fear of death.Even the best human beings have gone with the death soonest.One can give a number of examples to prove that the best of people go with death without getting disturbed.We can give the examples of Keats and Kalapi who left this world very soon.
According to poet death is slave of four elements.Those elements are fate,chance,kings and man in distress.The meaning is death comes to a person only when death is decided by these four elements.There are three residential places for death to live.Those places are poison,war and sickness.The meaning is that who ever invites sickness or poison or war,such a person invites death.
The poet concludes this poem saying that death is nothing more than a short sleep.we get up eternally and this statement of John Donne indicates that Donne believed in the theory of rebirth.
🔷."The Flea"
🔶Summary of the poem:
'The Flea' by John Donne is a metaphysical poem in a real sense of the term.The poet uses a biological image of the flea in order to express his love for his beloved.
The poem is addressed by the piet the lover to his beloved . The poet ask his beloved to see that flea which has sucked his blood and now it is sucking the blood of his beloved.The poet wants to convey that whatever was denied by the Poet's beloved,that was already happened.Their bloods have become one and yet it has not caused any sin or shame,it has not even caused the loss of honour and her maidenhood.
Listening to such an argument of the lover,his beloved makes an attempt to kill that insect.The lover request her not to kill that insect because killing insect would be as good as killing three lives.Since their bloods are in that flea.The lover believes that her parents and she herself grudge unnecessarily.But the beloved does not follow the request of her lover.She kills that insects and purple her nails with the blood of the flea.
'The Flea' becomes a metaphysical poem as in the present poem the poet depends upon the image of flea to deal with the theme of love.It is through the image of this insect-the flea that the love of protagonist is expressed.The poet does not find it essential to bring the image of the rose or the honeybee or the butterfly.Simply with the help of the image of the flea the piet remains successful in the expression of the theme of love.
🔷'The Sun Rising'
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🔶Summary of the poem:
'The Sun Rising'by John Donne is an ideal example of the use of the metaphysical image to deal with the theme of love.John Donne employees the image of the rising sun for dealing with the theme of love.The rising sun is an image which is generally used for the expression of a new hope and optimism.
The poem opens with the lovers address to the rising sun in which he criticise the sun calling'busy,old fool ,unruly sun'.According t the lover the dunia always busy because every morning the sun rises and every evening it sets.
The lover has some more remarks to pass on the raising sun.The sun should never think and believe that it's raise are very powerful.T he piet says that he has previous things in his bedroom in a form of his beloved.
Extending his adress to the rising sun,the lover informs the sun that his beloved is the centre of the universe.She is all states,all princes,and all kings.Since his beloved is the centre of the universe.T he lover goes up to the extent of saying that the sun is not half so happy as the lover and his beloved are happy.Since his beloved is center of shine there,to give light there and to give warmth there.It would be as good as giving light,shine and warmth everywhere.He wants the rising sun to believe and accept that the bed is the sun's centre and four walls of that room is the sphere for the sun.
In the present poem the attempt made by John Donne is to universalize the noble emotion of love.If love is there in life all happened is there and all happiness is futile if there is no love.The Rising Sun is treated here in a negative tone here to sharpen the theme of love.
🔷'The Collar':
🔶Summary of the poem:
George Herbert is also one the member of the school of Donne,just like Andrew Marvell.The title of the collection of George Herbert's poetry is 'The Temple's.He wrote his poems to serve Christianity and 'The Collar'is an example of it.
The poem is addressed by a sinner ans two selves of that sinner are at war with each other.The poems sounds like a monologue as the sinner speaks on behalf of his heart and also on behalf of his desire to live life freely.The word 'Collar'stands for a yoke.So far the yoke of the sinner was banned towards the life of material pleasures.But now it is shifting toward Christianity.The sinner has come across the board -an after and that is enough to inspire him to leave the life of the material pleasure.
The sinner is now no more willing to live the life of sigh and suffering.He feels that he is free to take any path given to him by his consciousness.His desire is to restore himself in the heart of God almighty.
When the heart of the sinner speaks in this manner,it is responded by his free will.The will of the sinner is not ready to be bound by anything.The request of the heart is responded negatively by the desire for free life.His free will warns the sinner to forget cold dispute about what is good and what is not good .The free will instigate the sinner to live life freely by neglecting the cage of what is good.The free will tells the sinner,'Be thy law'.
The sinner in the present poem is now firm as he would like listen to his lord and not to free will. The sinner now knows, 'he that forebears to suit and sure his need, deserves his load.' Simply experiences someone calling him, 'child'. The sinner gives a reply, ' My Lord ' , The final decision of sinner in the present poem is to surrender to god and part with the life of material pleasure.
🔷'To His Coy Mistress':
🔶Summary of the poem:
To His Coy Mistress' is a poem with metaphysical conceit and it proves Andrew Marvell real follower of the school of John Donne. Marvell has made here use of an image from the field of agriculture for the expression of love. The present poem deals with the theme of love but the image that he used here is from the field of agriculture.
The poem is addressed by a lover to his beloved. She is very coy and shy and lover tries to convince her that since they do not have enough time, She should not be shy. The lover considers her shyness a crime because within limited time and space they have to love each other. The lover gives an account of how he would have loved her, praised her, had he enough time and space but the lover knows that they have either enough time nor space to express love. It is within limited time of youth that they have to live and so he suggests her not to be coy.
The lover describes in detail how he would loved her had he enough time and space. He would have continued expressing his love for ten long years and he would have objected even if the lady would have said to his shyness. He would have spend in praising her each breast. For the remaining of her body, he would used thirty thousand years to praise. He believes that his beloved deserves this kind of honor.
The lover would like to pass time very peacefully in her company but the time is different. He hears every movement the winged chariot of the time approaching very fast towards them. It refers to death. The lover knows that none can escape from the clutch of time and so he request her beloved tp accept his love without being coy and shy.
Once they die, they will be mingle with dust and live in their grave. No doubt grave is a private and peaceful place but they go, they will never be able to express love. his song will never get effect of echo. At present his love is responded by her but once they go to grave, their will be no respond from her side.
The lover tries to convey her that the span of youth is as short as the life of a due drop on the petal of a flower right now when both are passing through prime time of youth, she should not be shy, coy and reject his love. Since they are passing through this of youth, they should utilize is before it is too late. The poem ends with a request of a lover that both should make their time a quality time by responding to love of each other. It is not possible for them to stop the movement of the sun but at least they can make their time a quality time.
Conclusion:
Metaphysical poetry is not intended to be read in passive way.It is use of paradox, imager, conceit,and wit is mean to awaken the reader.
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