Work for today's lesson

I hope that you are enjoying reading through 'To His Coy Mistress'. What I would like you to do is to compare this with the reading that we did yesterday of Donne's 'Elegy on His Mistris Going to Bed'. You might want to compare, for instance, some of the mercantile imagery used--of possessions, jewels and so on-- and you might also want to consider the different audiences for each poem.

For background on Donne, the best site is Luminarium, which has a wealth of information about his life and works.. You can find some especially interesting essays here.

Marvell is also well represented on Luminarium, and you can find some interesting background reading and critical essays here. You might find it especially helpful to consider the biographical background to each poem--how relevant is it--and how much is it a construct? In other words, are these poems written for real women in real situations, or are they in effect rhetorical showpieces, whose primary purpose is to entertain and demonstrate the ability and wit of the poet?

At a minimum, you should carefully read and annotate 'To His Coy Mistress' and be prepared for a blazing discussion on the comparison next lesson.

Find out, for instance, why Vegetable love would be slow, and what is the relevance of 'antediluvian' to the poem...

Happy researching!