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To His Coy Mistress and Other Poems
Rich selection of poems by great metaphysical poet reveals the complexity and rigor of his verse, as well as its extraordinary beauty of language and imagery. In addition to the title poem, this collection contains "The Definition of Love," "The Garden," "A Dialogue Between the Soul and the Body," "An Horatian Ode Upon Cromwell€™s Return from Ireland" and many more. Note.
64 pages, Paperback
First published April 22, 1997
About the author
Andrew Marvell
312 books86 followersFrequently satirical work of English metaphysical poet Andrew Marvell includes "To His Coy Mistress" and "The Definition of Love," both published posthumously.
A clergyman fathered Andrew Marvell, a parliamentarian. John Donne and George Herbert associated him. He befriended John Milton, a colleague.
The family moved to Hull, where people appointed his father as lecturer at church of Holy Trinity, and where grammar school educated the young Marvell. A secondary school in the city is now named after him.
He most famously composed The Garden , An Horatian Ode upon Cromwell's Return from Ireland , and the Country House Poem , Upon Appleton House .
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_...
A clergyman fathered Andrew Marvell, a parliamentarian. John Donne and George Herbert associated him. He befriended John Milton, a colleague.
The family moved to Hull, where people appointed his father as lecturer at church of Holy Trinity, and where grammar school educated the young Marvell. A secondary school in the city is now named after him.
He most famously composed The Garden , An Horatian Ode upon Cromwell's Return from Ireland , and the Country House Poem , Upon Appleton House .
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_...
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 16, 2020
This collection includes much of the poetry from the posthumously published "Miscellaneous Poems" (1681), the first collected edition of Marvell's poetry. I had read "To His Coy Mistress" and "The Definition of Love" long before this book, so those two were re-readings.
Marvell is famous for being a Metaphysical poet and therefore used extended metaphors and "conceits", comparing two unlike things in a skillful, clever way in his poetry, which we can see in this collection. His usage of imagery is also excellent. Unrequited love, the inevitability of death and shortness of life, "carpe diem" idea, and soul vs. body are a recurrent themes in Marvell's poetry, as well as nature and pastoral elements. Some of the dialogic/dramatic poems, where the two parts of one body are in clash with each other, like "soul/mind" against "pleasure/body", recall the turmoil of the English Civil War, as well as the direct allusions to the war and Oliver Cromwell in some of the other poems. Persona in love with a reluctant and proud lady and gardens, the latter of which, in some poems, are also symbols of nature and the "lost paradise" idea, are typical Marvellian motifs.
"To His Coy Mistress" and "The Definiton of Love", considered as the masterpieces of metaphysical poetry by many, are my favourite poems from the collection. "The Garden", "The Coronet" and "Bermudas" are also other great poems worth mentioning, as well as the underrated gems like "Damon the Mower", "On a Drop of Dew", "The Mower's Song", "The Gallery", "The Match", "A Dialogue Between Soul and Body", the lines of which show the great usage of metaphysical conceit and imagery.
The longest poem in the collection is "Upon Appleton House", a topographical narrative poem about the features and history of an estate, consisting of 97 octaves and various episodes, some of which are full of Biblical and historical references, the meanings of which the reader should know better to understand the poem better.
Marvell is famous for being a Metaphysical poet and therefore used extended metaphors and "conceits", comparing two unlike things in a skillful, clever way in his poetry, which we can see in this collection. His usage of imagery is also excellent. Unrequited love, the inevitability of death and shortness of life, "carpe diem" idea, and soul vs. body are a recurrent themes in Marvell's poetry, as well as nature and pastoral elements. Some of the dialogic/dramatic poems, where the two parts of one body are in clash with each other, like "soul/mind" against "pleasure/body", recall the turmoil of the English Civil War, as well as the direct allusions to the war and Oliver Cromwell in some of the other poems. Persona in love with a reluctant and proud lady and gardens, the latter of which, in some poems, are also symbols of nature and the "lost paradise" idea, are typical Marvellian motifs.
"To His Coy Mistress" and "The Definiton of Love", considered as the masterpieces of metaphysical poetry by many, are my favourite poems from the collection. "The Garden", "The Coronet" and "Bermudas" are also other great poems worth mentioning, as well as the underrated gems like "Damon the Mower", "On a Drop of Dew", "The Mower's Song", "The Gallery", "The Match", "A Dialogue Between Soul and Body", the lines of which show the great usage of metaphysical conceit and imagery.
The longest poem in the collection is "Upon Appleton House", a topographical narrative poem about the features and history of an estate, consisting of 97 octaves and various episodes, some of which are full of Biblical and historical references, the meanings of which the reader should know better to understand the poem better.
October 27, 2008
to his coy mistress is one of my top 3 poems if not #1. I applaud any man who would woe a lady with the phrase "vegetable love."
October 3, 2023
To His Coy Mistress, The Coronet and Bermudas were the stand out poems in this collection for me.
February 15, 2009
Very good.
December 1, 2013
The opening of this poem is spectacularly fabulous. The rest is just as good.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews