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Comparing Poems 'Ghazal And To His Coy Mistress'

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Both 'Ghazal' and 'To his coy mistress' explore intense feelings and attitudes towards love. In 'Ghazal', the narrator uses the word 'if' multiple times, as if they are thinking of different scenarios in their head about their lover. This suggests that the narrator feels as if they have endless time to spend with their partner; they think that love is timeless, and they have plenty of time to try out new ideas and scenarios with their love. The anaphora of the word 'if' suggests that their partner is constantly on their mind, and that they continuously think about them, showing that the narrator's love is passionate and consuming. The idea of timeless love is also reinforced through the natural imagery in the poem such as 'breeze', 'grass' …show more content…

Unlike 'Ghazal', where natural imagery is the main theme of the poem, 'To his coy mistress' uses words like 'rubies' to suggest artificial luxuries and preciousness, suggesting that the poet was trying to woo their lover with promises of riches and jewellery. In this sense, their love seems more artificial than the love is 'Ghazal'. They don't see their love as a slow, timeless, and natural thing, and that it should be rushed before death comes, showing how the narrator does not believe their love will carry on after death, and that they only have the short time that they spend on the world to embrace each …show more content…

'While we may' suggests that the narrator thinks that their love is running out of time, and that they should act upon it now before it's too late, and that they should make the most of it whilst they can. This is further reinforced when the narrator writes 'rather at once time devour', showing that the narrator sees time as the enemy, and that it may 'devour' their lover before they can fully express their love to each other. The first stanza in 'his coy mistress' is written in tetrameter, suggesting that the narrator is controlled and calm, trying to put forth their suggestions and persuade their lover to fulfill their

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