Coyness in Marvell’s time may have been used to symbolize mere reticence or coquettishness, but the mistress portrayed may well be playing ‘hard to get’, capable of calculation, and extracting an erotic compliment at a high ‘rate’.Marvell’s playful entanglements of sex and condescension are conspicuous in his poem are achieved by the use of overwrought similes, outsized metaphors, and hyperboles, such as ‘an hundred years’, ‘vaster than empires’, ‘thirty thousand to the rest’.He uses these techniques to enrich meanings and to express how strong his sexual feelings are for his mistress.She is a lady to whom erotic longing is conveyed on a courtly conventional style, elevating her to an almost divine, super ordinate status.In his first verse, he says 'Had we but world and time', which suggests that he is setting up a condition and then taking everything back before giving it. The use of 'would' in line 3 shows his lavish forms of courtship that he 'would' but will not be happy to perform. The alliteration of 'long love' and repetition of elongated vowel sounds like 'o' helps the rhythm of the poem to flow more smoothly and gives the poem a soft romantic touch.Marvell adds to the exotic image of his mistress by describing her collecting rubies by the ‘Indian Ganges'. He also
uses biblical references like 'before the flood', which is supposed to represent the idea of Noah's Ark. The vegetable metaphor seems to be an attempt at being honest, and not using flowery phrases. Plants are also very simple, and symbols of nature, so possibly he telling her his love is like this, pure and nothing she should shy away from.These hyperboles that he uses which also include phrases like 'an hundred years,' 'two hundred,' and 'thirty thousand,' is so that he can exaggerate his feelings and emotions.In this poem we find the idea of coyness being absurd used as a ...
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uses biblical references like 'before the flood', which is supposed to represent the idea of Noah's Ark. The vegetable metaphor seems to be an attempt at being honest, and not using flowery phrases. Plants are also very simple, and symbols of nature, so possibly he telling her his love is like this, pure and nothing she should shy away from.These hyperboles that he uses which also include phrases like 'an hundred years,' 'two hundred,' and 'thirty thousand,' is so that he can exaggerate his feelings and emotions.In this poem we find the idea of coyness being absurd used as a peg on which to hang serious reflections on the brevity of happiness.In To His Coy Mistress the explicit argument (Marvell's request that the coy lady yield to his passion) is a stalking horse for the more serious argument about the fleeting nature of pleasure. The outward levity (barely) conceals a deep seriousness of intent.By saying, 'Thou by the Indian Ganges' side should'st rubies find', the poet creates a vivid image of beauty and exoticness. He cleverly mentions rubies, a relatively rare and beautiful stone, it captures the deep shade of their love, captured within the stone for eternity.Andrew Marvell wrote the poem to persuade his young love, or 'coy mistress' that they needed to expand and take their relationship to a new level. This can be seen through the structure in which he writes the poem. He has three stanzas, using 'If' 'But' and 'Therefore' in each.'My vegetable love should grow', uses a conceit to show time in a metaphorical sense. These words create an image of slow growing, tendered love that is always alive. His forever love can be portrayed through the hyperbole, 'vaster than empires and more slow'. Empires are seen to be strong, so he uses his love and compares its greatness to an empire.‘Two hundred years to adore each breast; but thirty thousand for the rest; an age at least to every part, and the last age should show your heart'. This shows a mistaken love between the two, instead of mentioning her breasts, the lover, if it was true love, would have mentioned her heart to start with. This shows a sexual attraction, desire, towards his lover rather than of true love.The final section of Marvell's poem uses much harsher and aggressive language than the rest of his poem. Words such as 'devour', 'tear', and 'rough strife' add to the aggressiveness of 'like amorous birds of prey'. These images are all callous and hostile and add another twist to his poem.'Had we but world enough, and time, this coyness, lady, were no crime.' This statement tells her that her shyness is at fault. Implied is the sense that they are stuck in their own small worlds, with a short life ahead of them. The suggestion of an enclosed world, although it is never made obvious, becomes important later. Her 'crime' of being coy places him as the victim, the plaintiff, and as such gives her a sense of guilt.The next verse provides the antithesis. He cannot do all this, because he will die. He hears 'Time's winged chariot hurrying near' and they are only getting older. Every age he spends worshipping her she only gets older, and soon 'Thy beauty will no more be found', and he will not be able to pay homage to her. The eternity that lies in front of them is a desert, barren and arid, with none of the earthly pleasures they should or could be enjoying now.He uses language cleverly, with assonance and alliteration to emphasize his point. When they are dead he cannot sing to her, and she will not hear his entreaties. 'Nor, in thy marble vault, shall sound my echoing song'. This repetition of syllables and sounds gives an impression of a love song sounding hollow in a tomb.Death levels everything. All her reasons for staying chaste and virginal now crumble into nothing when seen from the perspective of eternity. No matter how hard she tries to stay pure, the worms will eat her; after her mind is gone, what price her 'quaint honor'? He uses the phrase: 'And your quaint honor turn to dust, and into ashes all my lust', recalling the funeral ceremony 'ashes to ashes, dust to dust'. He does not assault these virtues, but rather says that whatever they mean to her now, they will mean nothing when she is forgotten. Language in this piece is emotive, even more so in comparison with the morbid images of the previous paragraph. He suggests: ‘Now, therefore, while the youthful hue sits on thy skin like morning dew'. I see in this sentence several links to them being young, and having a lot of time in front of them - the obvious mention of her youth, the use of morning dew, because they are in the morning of their lives, and dew is fresh and sparkling - all qualities associated with being young and free.Their identities are linked together in this paragraph, he uses the words we and us where previous he had used thou and I. He repeats the word now, and uses the present tense.'And now, like amorous birds of prey, rather at once our time devour,' Birds of prey are strong, cruel, but sleek, beautiful and fast. They are also killing machines, and would devour time, rip it apart, and consume it totally. He suggests it is better that they use time, slice it up and make the most of every day, than let Time keep a grip on them. Time is personified as someone they have to escape from, which makes the threat and pressu re more real than if it was simply an abstraction.'Thus, though we cannot make our sun stand still, we can make him run.' Although they cannot stop time, they can make the time fly by in a daze of love. This can be summed up in the latin phrase 'Carpe Diem' - seize the day.
