Andrew Marvell’s – To His Coy Mistress

In Europe, the 17th century was a time that was c wholeed a part of the Renaissance ( dream uping rebirth), an geological era that was so called, because it was a time in which learning and development in every sphere of animation occurred. This was prompted in part by the general reawakening to the idea that since life is temporary, hotshot should make the approximately of ones life.This is why the carpe diem (seize the day in Latin) theme frequently occurs in the literature of the seventeenth century. This theme is of central importance in Andrew Marvells To His modest lady of pleasure as well as in Robert Herricks To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time, and other than this theme, both verse forms sh atomic number 18 a issue of similarities. However, there are also striking differences, which contri preciselye to the individual understanding of each poem.Carpe diem referred to all material entertainments, but theses two poems are similar in the way they approach this theme . Although seize the day could mean all worldly pleasures, both of these poems emphasize sexual pleasure. Thus in Marvells poem, the speaker unit addresses his modest mistress and tells her than in death, her long preserved virginity (Marvell line 28) will turn to dust (29). Similarly, Herricks poem is addressed also to the Virgins who are told to be not coy (Herrick line 13).Also, both poems emphasize the pleasure to be gotten in ones youth, as Herricks poem talks of Youth (10), and Marvells poem mentions the youthful hue (33). This shows that the speaker in both poems is intent on persuading these women that sexual pleasures are of most importance and are best when effed in youth, and thus to be coy is nothing but wasting time, since life is short.Some comparisons and images are also common to both poems. For example, the image of the sun is utilise in both poems that time is running outin lines 5-8 in To the Virgins, and lines 45-46 in To His Coy sporting lady. Time itself i s also personified in both poems in To the Virgins, time is referred to as Old Time (2), and To His Coy schoolmistress, the speaker tells his mistress of Times wingd chariot (22), and urges her to make the most of time, rather than languish in his slow-chapped powr (40).Such a use of personification makes it easier to examine time as a person, under whose forces are all people. Also, both poems compare the ladies to flowers and thus, again, emphasize their transience. In Herricks poem, in the first stanza, there is an indirect comparison of the virgins to the flower that Tomorrow will be dying (4). This is evident in line 3, where the flower is not said to be blooming, but smiling (2). In To His Coy Mistress, the youthful hue/Sits on the mistress like morning dew (33-34), as if she were a flower.Apart from these similarities, the two poems also have significant differences, which contribute to the individual effectiveness of each. For example, To His Coy Mistress is addressed to a single lady, and is very descriptive about why and how the speaker and the mistress should enjoy sexual pleasure. This is because the poem aims to persuade the lady into immediate action.On the other hand, To the Virgins, (as apparent by the title), addresses all Virgins and seeks to persuade them to go marry (14) and not delay marriage for later (not an immediate act). Thus, the poem has a song-like pure tone, brought out by the four short stanzas, as opposed to the long three sections of Marvells poem.This song-like quality in To the Virgins is also brought about by the a,b,a,b rhyme scheme, and the completeness of the lines. On the other hand, in To His Coy Mistress, there is and a,a,b,b,c,c rhyme scheme, but the lines are run-on. This lends a conversational air to the poem, which is in keeping with the speakers addressing a single lady.Andrew Marvell and Robert Herrick both have used certain similar devices in their poems to engender out themes that are mutual to them. Yet, t hey have also employed devices which are peculiar to their own poems, and in doing so, have made them works of literature unique and complete in themselves, instead of stereotypical representations of a certain theme.Works CitedHerrick, Robert. To the Virgins to Make Much of Time. 1648. Poems to Remember. Ed. E. F. Kingston. Toronto J. M. Dent & Sons. 1964. 22-23.Marvell, Andrew. To His Coy Mistress. 1681. The Norton Introduction to Literature. 8th ed. Ed. Jerome Be