To The Virgins

fate of the lovers will be, as well as the state of his own feelings

One of Andrew Marvell’s techniques was metaphysical poetry, e.g. ‘vegetable love should grow’ and things contrasting between the physical and spiritual.

     I really like this poem because it makes me want to get out of bed in the morning or turn off the television and do something productive like read a book, or go to the gym. It perfectly reveals the true meaning of carpe diem. The very first sentence alone tells me to get things done while I can. Now when I think of “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time”, it will remind me of carpe diem, which will make me want to make every minute of my day account for something good whether it be reading a chapter

In the poem “Carpe Diem,” as well as in “To the Virgins,” the authors utilize symbolism in different ways to express a similar meaning. The quote “Whether thou liv’st more winters, or thy last…Whilst we are talking, envious time doth slide:” from “Carpe Diem” conveys the message that dwelling on one’s destiny

5. The image of the sun appears in both “To the Virgins” (line 5) and “To His Coy Mistress” (line 45). How does each poet use the reference to the sun? How would you paraphrase the last two lines of Marvell’s “To His Coy Mistress”?

When paraphrased, the stanza above states that if the speaker is certain that she and her lover can be reunited again after death, she would enthusiastically take her own life knowing that her lover is waiting on the other side. By saying so, the speaker is considering life worthless if she cannot meet her lover. What many people call the “most valuable gift” is considered to be of no value in the eyes of the speaker if she cannot spend it with the one she loves. In addition to that statement, the author writes in stanza 3:

Ultimately the poem’s tone turns from resentment or regret for her own age, to pride and optimism because as her youth slips out of grasp, her daughter develops into a young woman. Olds writes: “As my skin shows / its dry pitting, she opens like a moist / precise flower on the tip of a cactus” (8-10). Using natural images to enhance the metaphor of reproduction, Olds’ acceptance of her changing role as a woman suggests that it is natural and therefore tradition. EXPAND. While literally illustrating the younger Olds woman as a delicate flower budding from the dry cactus of her mother, someone who once had the youthfulness and potential of a moist flower, the simile also indicates that her daughter is on the cusp of reproductive ability. EXPAND (ultimate replacement: reproduction) The reproductive metaphor continues as Olds writes “Her full purse of eggs, round and / firm as hard-boiled yolks, is about to snap its clasp” (13-15), perhaps finally recognizing her daughter’s ability to reproduce based on the urgency of the clasp soon ‘snapping.’ However Olds’ jealousy is clear again when this line is contrasted with the speaker’s preceding description: “as my last chances to bear a child / are falling through my body, the duds among them…” It is clear that Olds is realizing now that her daughter’s mature life was to soon begin while her own life was now dedicated to the development of her

The title "To His Coy Mistress" implies a certain falseness as the word coy is almost an insincere form of modest, it indicates that this mistress were indeed not coy rather falsely coy in order to gain assurance of his feelings towards her for her own validation. The first line "Had we but world enough, and time, This coyness lady were no crime." introduces the theme of time and lack of a crucial theme in the poem, the lover also accuses this coyness of being criminal by saying "HAD we but world enough and time, this coyness lady were no crime" implying that they do not have time therefore this coyness is a crime, this is clever use of irony which is also a constant theme throughout the poem. Marvell also uses soft alliteration such as "long loves" to lull the reader into believing his intentions honourable, he uses flattery all throughout the first section of the poem though he changes his tactics throughout the poem. The lover tries to create the image of himself as a committed patient lover with promises of waiting for her if she should travel to the "Indian Ganges" without complaint and

attention of this mistress so that he can scare her and rush her into making a

In the second stanza he says that he doesn’t want to wait anymore. He says that life is too short to wait. He wants to start sleeping with his wife sooner rather than later. “Had we but world enough, and time, this

The speaker in this poem seems frustrated; he delicately tries to inform his coy mistress that their death is near, and they still have not had sexual intercourse. In lines 17-33 the poem seems to lose the exaggeration sense and suddenly becomes serious. He (the speaker) reinsures his coy mistress that ³you deserve this state?(state of praise and high acknowledgment), ³But at my back I always hear, Time¹s winged chariot hurrying near? Andrew Marvell uses and interesting image in line 22 (the line mentioned above) when suggesting to his coy mistress that death is near. He substitutes the word ³death?for a more gentle, delicate term of ³Time¹s winged chariot? This term was probably used to prevent from frightening such a coy mistress. Marvell continues to involve the reader¹s imagination through unimaginable images. What do ³Deserts of vast eternity?look like? In fact, Marvell probably used such abstract images to suggest to his coy mistress that their future is indeterminable, and ³Thy beauty shall no more be found? Perhaps, beauty is what the coy mistress is so concerned with and the speaker in this case is trying to frighten her to have sex with him quicker. He continues to use intense imagery when describing to his coy mistress that even after death the ³worms shall try That long preserved virginity? The speaker now abstractly describes that holding on to your virginity for

In the first stage of the poem he uses time, as he flatters the Coy

Marvell introduces his main theme that time is constantly plunging forward, as well as the narrator’s irritation with his mistress’s hesitancy, within the first few lines of the poem. Introducing his impatience with his mistress, the narrator declares, “Had we but world enough, and time, / This coyness, lady, were no crime” (1-2). These lines encompass the narrator’s “Carpe Diem”, seize the day, attitude while also proving his exasperation with his mistress, who would rather be cautious and not have sex with him at this moment in the poem. Interestingly, Marvell chose to use “coyness” instead of “hesitancy”. Using a sharper, more pungent term like coyness, shows the narrator’s discontent with his mistress’s tentativeness, making the reader think the mistress is the one causing this problem rather than the narrator. Additionally, the iambic tetrameter rhythm that persists throughout the poem reiterates that time maintains its constant rhythm. Continuing his onslaught that time is running out, the narrator discloses that he “would / Love you ten years before the Flood, / And you should if you please refuse / Till the conversion of the Jews” (7-10). By proposing exaggerated declarations of love to his mistress, the narrator is showing her how ridiculous her actions are in their short amount of time left together. Additionally, he is admitting that if he had an eternity to prove his love to her, he would use it. Following these declarations, the narrator goes on to share how he

The writer uses a metaphors to say that life is short and we should just get on with the relationship “ But at my back I always hear Times winged chariot hurrying near” and “While the youthful hue sits on the skin like the morning dew… let us sport” these quotes prove that Marvell is begging her to stop wasting time before there too old. He uses alliteration and says “this coyness, lady, were no crime”, he addresses her as “coy” (shy) this suggest that he wants something from her that she isn’t prepared to give him.