Both poets were very close to well-known people, and when both poets’ parents past away Donne and Marvell inherited a fairly large sum of money. Before both poets died they each had a very good and respectable job. If Donne had not have been emaciated, Donne most certainly would have became Bishop in 1630, but Donne died in 1631.
Donne and Marvell's poems where what linked them together, it was the style that they wrote in, they both fit into a metaphysical group. Both poets include an argument with themselves. "His Coy Mistress" has a syllogistically framework, where it begins with an initial premise, to introduce a qualification to the premise and ending with a solution to the conflict. Marvell’s poem is of seduction and how it could be used. His first argument is about if there were all the time in the world to woo his lady so slowly her coyness would be irrelevant.
Marvell carries on to outline what he would do out of love if their love was live on forever, mentioning periods of time like centuries and ages. Marvell uses esoteric imagery to show his argument. He does this by describing his life as vegetable love, this shows that his love is developing love to grow for his mistress, but it also implies that he sees himself as a vegetable soul, which is the lowest level of the soul. Therefore, this suggests a love that could only exist by its association with the vegetable soul that is a lower form then love then sexual love.
Donne's poem is about an argument with a natural element-the sun. He not only orders the sun to go away, but also gives a list of reasons why. He also sees time as a large aspect of his poem with the line "Nor hours, days, months, which are the rags of time." In the first verse he always includes a metaphor "Late schoolboys, and sour 'prentices, Go tell court-huntsmen that the King will ride, call country ants" by this he is referring to the common, insignificant people.
Donne has a passionate thought about love he says how a woman’s beauty can blind another person, and hide who they really are. Donne uses a wide range of language, such as rhetorical questions. The use of rhythm is iambic (strong, weak, weak, strong). Each line of every verse has the same amount of syllables to the other. Donne was assertive in what he was writing. The verses are mirror image of each other. The mood of the poem changes because in verse one he was bossy, but in verse two he was moody. He uses guttural sounds to emphasis the stress and makes him sound angry. This fits in with the tone. Donne uses short phrases to sound abrupt and angry. He also uses colloquil language, Donne appears as an individual, a free thinker.
In the second poem by Marvell the poem is set into three different blocks. In the first block Marvell speaks about his ideal world. He also speaks about his love for a woman and how he wishes time stops so he is with her always. He mentions this by saying "to walk and pass, our long loves day" on line four.
Marvell shows how much his love to this woman means, he talks about rubies, the jewel of love "Thou by the Indian Ganges side shouldst rubies find." Both writers talk about time, how it goes too fast. And before you know it everything has been and gone. Marvell uses a hurried tone to make it seem as if time is rushed. Marvell also used the realities of life to subvert the premise of the final part of the argument.
In the second block of the poem Marvell addresses the concept of the reality. He shows this by "but at my back I always hear, times winged chariots hurrying near." Here Marvell is facing the reality. Marvell shows that time is an issue and he discusses the lack of time that he and his 'coy mistress' share.
By Michelle Whitty