With close reference to the two poems which you have studied, show how the poets have approached the theme of romantic love.
With close reference to the two poems which you have studied, show how the poets have approached the theme of romantic love. In your response, you should refer to: ) The poets' use of language, style and imagery. 2) Your personal response. For this assignment, I have chosen to analyse two contrasting poems. The first poem is "To His Coy Mistress" which was written in1650 by the English poet Andrew Marvell, and it is surprising how modern the subject matter is. This poem uses language to persuade the poet's mistress into shedding her coyness. The second poem, "Valentine" by the contemporary poet Carol Ann Duffy sets out to show how the poet casts aside the traditional artificial values of love, to place instead her own truthful picture of love. "To His Coy Mistress" is a classic seductive poem, a carpe diem poem, in which the poet expresses his sadness at the thought of time swiftly passing by and the brevity of love. It comes across as a private meditation, giving a persuasive argument to his mistress, relating to the passage of time and the fading of earthly joys. In the first part of the poem, Marvell presents us with images of time and space. He tells his mistress what they could achieve in their relationship if they had sufficient time. "Had we but world enough, and time, This coyness Lady, were no crime." Marvell uses the word "crime", in order to suggest
