During the poem he uses hyperbole in many ways in the poem and all of them are very affective he talks about his love being vaster than “Empires” we all know this is impossible but he says this to try and get the point across. He also uses it by putting capital letters in front of words in order to exaggerate them.
“Tide, Flood, Loves Day, Gaze.”
Marvel also uses assonance to soften the tone of the poem by saying things like “ Long Loves Day” he also puts capital letters instead of lower cast so that you will notice it and slow it down. When said slower it sounds more romantic and it softens the tone of the poem.
To exaggerates important words to help her to understand how much he wants her
“ Vaster than Empires”, he put a capital letter in front of Empires so that you’ll take note of its importance.
Section two of “To His Coy Mistress” is not as complimenting and is more shocking. He says some shocking things, which after reading the first half don’t expect him to say.
In section one Marvell gave the poem a soft tone. He tries to seduce his mistress by making her feel guilty. He says to her
“It’s a crime”, but he also uses the soft consonants of “Long Loves Day.” This is a good use of assonance, which creates a soft tone. In section two he starts by saying
“But at my back”. This I think is very powerful it tells you straight of that he isn’t going to as complementary as the first section. He uses a threatening tone almost frightening, makes you squirm.
He uses a metaphoric language by saying about a “desert.” When an author or poet uses metaphors he or she makes sure that the word he or she uses has more than one meaning so that can explain themselves in fewer words. Meaning Marvell says “deserts of vast eternity” he reefers to the desert and relates to his love because in a desert very little can survive. This is because there is very little harbour from the sun perhaps he is talking about his loves not being able to survive with out sex as you couldn’t survive in the desert without water. What he is also saying is that death is a desert, there’s no void nothing there’s just death because the heat is so strong and there’s no water can survive.
Where as in section one he put her on a pedestal in this section he undermines her in many ways he becomes sarcastic and talks about her virginity and relates to it by saying
“ Your quaint honour” means virginity and her curious honour. He’s wondering why she is proud to be a virgin most aren’t. He tries to make her feel unsecure in the way she is.
He uses shocking imagery in this section the best bit of imagery was I think the worms it was very clever. I think it was clever because it puts the most horrifying image in your mind the quote is
“My ecchoing song: then worms shall try that long preserv’d virginity.” He is saying that if she doesn’t have sex with him know that when she dies the worms will have sex with her and they will crawl inside her as he wanted to and eat away at her virginity. This is a powerful quote from the poem but is also a frightful one. It works well because his intention was to make the reader squirm and it did just that. It is very gruesome but it would make you think twice about dying a virgin.
I think that in section two when he relates to the ashes,
“And into ashes all my lust.” He is saying that when she’s he will no longer want her. So she should have sex with him know and enjoy it whilst it last other wise she will die a virgin and then the worms will have her as he wanted her and they will eat away at her virginity. Also ashes relates to burning out of his love which when something burns out there will be no attraction. So when she is older he won’t want her and time is running out. Also ashes relate to death because when you die instead of the worms getting her she might get cremated but he says that is she does get cremated his lust will die and her ashes will be all that is left of his attraction to her.
He also talks about her,
“Quaint honour,” he is referring to her virginity. Her honour is her virginity and when he says quaint he is saying that it is unusual that she is a virgin and that she doesn’t mind being one. He is calling her odd and thinks that it will persuade her to loose it with him again a persuasive technique to get her to sleep with him. The last rhyming couplet is,
“And your quaint honour turn to dust, And into ashes all my lust.”
I have explained what the are a symbol of as individuals but when put together it makes so much sense. It says that once she dies and her honours is gone and after the worms have eaten her virginity away he won’t want her and so his lust will also turn to dust. When she dies his lust for her will go with it.
In the next section is again different to the past sections of the poem. In section one he charms his mistress, in section two he shocks her by using imagery. Through out the poem he became more aggressive. And now in section three, the final section, he is more persistent. The argument is that time is running out is they are to have a sexual relationship then it should be now. Relating to time to time again, he does it all through the poem and sometimes he conceals it well. All the way through the poem he using excellent imagery, a good example of this is,
“My ecchoing song: then worms shall try that long preserv’d virginity.” I love the way he uses compares the softness of her skin to morning dew. I have so many favourite pieces from the poem but this comparison really stands out,
“Now therefore, while youthful hew sits on thy skin like morning dew.” His devious helps us to understand what he means by this. He is again being persistent on the time issue. Morning dew is only on the grass for a short amount of time and he compares this to her looks, he is saying that she may have her looks now but they are fading and in a short period of time before she knows it they will be gone. So use them whilst she has them because when she thinks she’ll be ready she’ll be old and ugly and inadequate for any man. Again a very persuasive technique.
“And while thy soul transpires.” He’s telling he that he knows that she’s blushing and is flattered. He’s telling her that he knows that deep down she wants it as well and that he’s just bringing out the side that is dying to be set free. Now this may not be true but he says it in a reassuring manor so that shell think well maybe I do want this and maybe I’m just holding back and should let go. He reassure her that she does want sex with him and tries make any negative thought she may have had to disappear. Also that her soul is her true feelings.
Also in section 3, again one of my favourite quotes is,
“And now, like rous birds of pray.” He is talking about how their sex would be. Birds of pray are aggressive and their claws would grasp each other. Their love would be aggressive and he wouldn’t be able to keep his hands of her because he finds her so attractive. Saying this puts images in her head and allows her to see how it would be. He would wrap his wings around her and protect her whilst they made love as birds of pray do when mating.
In this section he also uses rhyming couplets. Were as in the section one he used then to create softness in this section he uses then to inspire her.
“Let us roll all our strength, and all our sweetness into one ball.” He uses this inspiration in a bid to gain her say so that they can have sex. He is saying let’s get together and give ourselves to each other wholly and have sex.
The last two lines of the poem,
“Thus, though we cannot make our sun stand still, we shall make it run.” This is again an example of rhyming couplets. But he is also saying that even though they cant stop time they will use the time they have left well.
The poem of seduction was written by Eileen Mcauley it is about a young boy and an adolescent girl who meet at a party and get talking. It’s an average party with drink and dancing. After getting to know each other they begin to kiss and before she knows it she’s three months pregnant. She’s upset about it and takes her anger out on things in her room. She was frightened and what was worse was that she knew it and admitted it to herself. The young girl is in her own world in her prime, she was living in a magazine or comic strips were nothing was real. She was only going on 16. She’s thinking of all she will miss because she’s pregnant. She’s trying to say or reassure herself that she’s not “a little slag.”
Just by reading the title of the second poem “the seduction” you know that it is going to be a cold poem because the title relates to what the poem is going to be about seduction. If you thought this you would be right it’s about, as I said above, a young boy who seduces a young girl in a night of drunkenness. It was set in an extremely rough part of Liverpool were the people went about their business
