Sample essay 2

'Metaphysical poetry values intellect above emotion'. To what extent have you found this to be the case?

This first year undergraduate essay was classified as being at the lower end of the upper-second class (2i).

'Metaphysical poetry values intellect above emotion'. To what extent have you found this to be the case?

Metaphysical is the label for the poetic tradition of the seventeenth century, the work of poets writing under the influence of John Donne. These poets were educated men with intellectual experiences, their interest in new discoveries, philosophies, concepts and the increase in foreign travel prompted this highly imaginative style, a product of the historical and cultural situation of the 1590's. Characteristic of their poetry is the use of intricate mental concepts of wit and learning, and a style rather than a universal subject matter is employed to justify a perceived likeness between different things. Most of the poems contain arresting imagery, which forces the mind to work, rather than those 'that appeal to the senses or evoke an emotional response through memory' (Bennett, 1964, p.5).

The idea of metaphysical conceit is prevalent amongst the poetry, a metaphor which strikes the reader at first as being highly inappropriate and un-obvious, which then needs to be established intellectually by proving the comparison. So successful reading of metaphysical poetry necessitates a temporary separation of feeling from intelligence. This has led to criticism of be metaphysical style, for being inventive purely for its own sake, merely to flatter the intellect of the author, rather than to produce an effective poem. Similarly, the genre seems to have its faults in that it is needlessly obscure, restrained by the intellectual imagery therefore failing to communicate the spontaneous emotion of the poet.

However, the use of intellect does give a certain refinement or respectability, intensifying the meaning of the poem, thereby producing and making possible an even greater sense of emotion through highly complex and intellectual theories. Intellect and emotion are nearly always viewed as separate entities, one concerned with strong instinctive or spontaneous feeling, sensation or passion, the other being the faculty of reasoning, knowing and thinking, quite opposite and distinct from feeling. In this essay, I plan to show that these two factors can, and do work in tandem to produce the effect of metaphysical poetry, and such distinctions are a rather simplistic generalisation of the genre.

I shall begin with John Donne's 'A Valediction Forbidding Mourning', in which the wit of the metaphysical conceit is used in relation to an intense emotional subject. The effect this has is not to undermine the emotion of the lovers parting but, in my opinion, says more about love in a thought provoking and covert way, giving a special quality that was not possible through conventional Petrarchan love sonnets that went before them.

Donne begins the poem by indicating a preference for their departure to be unobtrusive, to be as restrained as possible in their parting, by using an analogy between the couple and 'virtuous men'. He describes;

As virtuous men pass mildly away,
And whisper to their souls to go,
Whilst some of their sad friends do say
The breath goes now, and some say, no; (l.1-4)

Is Donne valuing intellect and reserve above emotion in this particular situation? Through descriptions of 'mildly' and 'whisper' he reveals his wish for their separation to be as temperate as this man's death, so tranquil that people standing around the deathbed differed in opinion as to the moment he died physically.

Donne calls for a similar restraint in their passing, for no fuss, tears or sighs, referring to the conventional hyperbolic lovers and using them as a vision of how not to act;

So let us melt and make no noise,
No tear-floods, nor sigh-tempests move (l.5-6)

Is this a realistic command by the poet or an idealised wish? Perhaps here the intellectual begins to take over the sentimentality, or spontaneity of the scene, as Dryden once fittingly described,

Donne perplexes the minds of the fair sex with nice speculations of philosophy, when he should engage their hearts and entertain them with the softness of love (quoted in Bennett, 1964, p.1)

It is exactly this which defines the style of metaphysical poetry, as images of truthfulness or those to delight the senses are not included, he takes the more intellectual viewpoint, suppressing the emotion of the scene. This has the effect of surprising the reader, as it is so unexpected in what is a quite conventional love scene. It is here that Donne begins to explore a 'logical subtlety capable of expressing complex emotion' (Bennett, 1964, p.23).

Intellectual theories are perhaps more clear as Donne develops the theme of departure. In the third stanza, comparisons are made between heavenly and earthly things, 'Moving of the earth' and 'the spheres'. Earthquakes bring concern - 'harms and fears', as to their spiritual meaning, but the 'trepidation', of the spheres, though far greater, is free from such worry. Therefore, Donne asserts, in their departure, they should be unobtrusive and calm like the spheres. This type of inflated analogy between the two worlds is somewhat typical of the logical complexity of metaphysical style, this stanza absorbed from the world of science rather than poetry. He chooses to relate in a manner which is more 'logical than sensuous or emotional. The abstract is connected with concrete, remote with near, sublime with commonplace' (Bennett, 1964, p.3).

One of the greatest images in metaphysical poetry comes in the seventh stanza, as Donne compares their love to a pair of compasses. He states;

If they be two, they are two so
As stiff twin compasses are two (l.25-26)

By stating this arresting form of imagery the poet now has to make the reader believe it. At first, this comparison seems highly unromantic, not one that would be used to comfort a love on a period of separation. It is though, testament to Donne's command over intellectual thought, and metaphysical wit that this at first incongruous idea can in my opinion translate into one of the most stunning and sincere assertions of love and sentiment in literature. Matthew Arnold though has a different outlook on the abilities of the metaphysical poets;

their poetry is conceived and composed in their wits, genuine poetry is conceived and composed in the soul. The difference between the two kinds of poetry is immense. (quoted in Williamson, 1968, p.9)

I would take issue with this statement, as when the reader has engaged the mind and worked to understand the initial complexity of the comparison, the imagery in metaphysical poetry, particularly (Donne's compass), is as soulful and poignant as any. In fact it may be that I feel this because it is not at all obvious initially, as one has to search behind the wit. It is my belief that the wit and the soul, (or the intellect and emotion), juxtapose to create the effect - the two kinds of poetry have joined together in Donne's piece successfully and engulfed the gap which Arnold suggests.

Donne's intellect works as he uses the opening and shutting image of compasses to reassure his love that they are never really separated, himself being one leg, his love the other, constantly joined;

Thy soul, the fixed foot, makes no show
To move, but doth, if th' other do (l.27-28)

The two lovers are not really separated because they come together and apart at the same time as compasses.

and though it in the center sit,
Yet when the other far doth roam,
It leans and hearkens after it,
And grows erect, as that comes home. (l.29-32)

Thus the compass figure enacts her role in the separation, leaning and inquiring after the wandering foot, but growing erect as that comes back to her.

So in a highly ingenious manner, Donne has managed to talk about love through intellectual ideas such as science and mechanics. He doesn't talk of her beauty in the emotionally conventional manner but draws on unconventional imagery and ideas. In one sense it would be quite easy for the reader to adopt the point of view therefore that Donne in this poem values intellect above emotion as he addresses a love on separation in a rather inappropriately blunt manner, however on an intellectual level such images are ingenious. However, I think Donne's metaphysical style enhances the emotion, firstly through its maturity; it does not feel the need to 'expect tunefulness or images that delight the senses' (Bennett, 1964, p.v). The author expects the reader of metaphysical poetry to have an active mind, so therefore intentionally uses images and words make poems deliberately complex.

In my opinion Donne's use of intellect actually enhances emotion, as the image of the compass acts as a satisfying comfort to the couple. This is achieved through what Joan Bennett describes as 'imagery enhanced meaning' (1964, p.v). Whereby using grand images the subject matter is also inflated and the stunning imagery can only add expression to simple thought, 'provide an analysis as well as a correlation of emotions' (Bennett, 1964, p.3).

Included in Donne's use of the compass metaphor is the conflict over gender, which again adds to the idea of the metaphorical conceit, as it seems highly inappropriate at first, which is in turn proved intellectually by the poet. There seems to be a strange inversion of sexual roles, as the woman is described in terms of 'grows erect' and 'thy firmness' which normally relate to the male, and the use of 'and though it in the center sit' and 'my circle' is referring to the male, not the woman who to as a phallic symbol it applies. This has clearly been intended by Donne, either to show that the female has been given control of the situation if she remains constant. Donne is simply trying to be clever by swapping roles, or is emphasising how this love is different.

Whatever the intention, the intellectual demands Donne pours on the imagination only increase the emotion. As Joan Bennett perfectly describes, 'The purpose of an image in his poetry is to define the emotional experience by an intellectual parallel. [...] He identifies his intellectual analogy with his emotion' (Bennett, 1964, p.7)

'The Flea' is an ingenious and entertaining poem, in which Donne uses an intricate series of peculiar events to lure a woman to bed. The difference between this poem and 'A Valediction Forbidding Mourning' is that here, it could be argued that Donne produces and values intellect over emotion. This is because 'The Flea' has unconventional and unpleasant images, a complex theory. The obscure thought involved, is at times repugnant;

It sucked me first, and now sucks thee,
And in this flea, our two bloods mingled be (l.3-4)

Indeed this seems a highly complex method of persuasion, but once analysed, is quite logical. Donne asserts that both their bloods have already joined together and mixed in the body of the flea, 'And in this flea, our two bloods mingled be'. Donne is decreasing the importance of the sexual act by saying this happens in the body of the flea, so why shouldn't we do it - 'this, alas, is more then we would do'. The poet then expands on the intellectual tone of persuasion by using the image of them inside the flea, coming together at an altar;

Where we almost, yea more than married are,
This flea is you and I, and this
Our marriage bed, and marriage temple is (l.11-13)

The poet develops a religious tone to the poem as the woman attempts to kill the flea, asserting that to do so would be blasphemous, described as 'sacrilege, three sins in killing three'. The religious tone, which adds drama, continues with images portrayed in the death of Christ; 'purpled', 'nail', 'blood of innocence', as the flea is killed. This intellectual argument is ended with an assertion that there will be no more loss to the woman in going to bed with him than there was when she killed the flea; 'Just so much honor, when thou yield'st to me, Will waste'. Clearly such psychology is disturbing, although clever and witty in context, the emotion of the sexual act is forgotten by the poet. It is quite easy to form a similar opinion to Samuel Johnson in reaction to this particular metaphysical poem;

Their thoughts are often new, but seldom natural; they are not obvious and the reader, far from wondering that he missed them, wonders more frequently by what perverseness of industry they were ever found. (Johnson in ed. Greene, 1984, p.677-8)

The intellectual style of metaphysical poetry removes it to a certain extent from the vicissitudes of life. Donne makes use of language and discourse which are obviously not 'poetical'. Things which are completely unlike are- brought together, so a certain sense of artificiality remains. This is the very nature of the metaphysical conceit, where far fetched comparisons are made through convoluted or unlikely metaphors, where 'heterogeneous ideas are yoked together' (Johnson in ed. Greene, 1984, p.678), such as the idea of love and a flea. This rather violent technique makes the reader see things in a different way, as is certainly true of Donne's No.14 from the Holy Sonnets, in which there is a violent juxtaposition of the religious and sexual, two things completely dissimilar. This method has been criticised for containing 'a combination of dissimilar images, or discovery of occult resemblances in things apparently unlike' (Johson in ed. Greene, 1984, p.678).

In attempting to be ingenious and creative, the greater power of the intellect takes over, the intricate train of thought then becomes too advanced and complex, the reader sometimes misreading the intentions of the poet.

In such as the Holy Sonnets No. 14, the reader cannot attain any sense of emotion through the intellect, but through the language and linguistic quality. It seems like ingenuity for its own purpose, or the creative impulse of the poet taking over, producing an obscure and unpleasant poem. Experiences which have normally been kept apart in the mind are now yoked together, in an unsettling manner, the revered God is now addressed in desperate, aggressive terms; 'Batter my heart, three-personned God' such are the violent, shocking and colloquial terms employed in the initial conceit as the poet calls for salvation.

This modulates through the poem to the disconcerting final paradox where Donne calls to be redeemed and purified, only possible if, as the poet deliberately puts it, God 'ravishes' him. So God is addressed in terms of sexual desire; 'never shall be free, Nor ever chaste, except you ravish me'. A conflict is established between religious chastity and 'ravishing'. The violent and awkward juxtaposition is strange; did Donne include this purely to shock and challenge the reader to new ways of thinking that challenged past beliefs in which views on public duty and private relationships, and sex and religion were confused, to evoke fear and excitement, or true to metaphysical aims to work the intellect of the reader, and achieve an emotional response through doing this?

It would be hard to say that Donne valued intellect above the expense of emotion in this particular poem or he would never have written about such shocking subject manner, or chosen such a violent juxtaposition of themes- the very fact he chose to do this intellectually is because he knew it would evoke an emotional response. I think this is typical of much of Donne's poetry, in that intellect and emotion go hand in hand, each supporting the other. Through this I feel Donne attains a very real sense of human experience. He writes about love in terms of religion, (the flea for example, with its references to the 'temple' 'sacrilege' 'purpled' 'nail' 'blood of innocence') and in his religious poetry he discusses religious purity in terms of sexual desire. This confusion gives a rich portrayal of human experience as everything is seen as a whole, intermingled, without categories for sexuality, faith and so on, a sense of coherence and unification is achieved.

'To His Coy Mistress', written by Andrew Marvell, is an example of emotion through reasoning. He aims to triumph over the female's reluctance by exploiting the 'male vigour of his intellect' (Legouis, 1965, p.34). Marvell uses wit and rhetorical skill by expanding in a rather fanciful way a relatively simple argument. He uses the metaphysical style in that he presents intellectual ideas and references to which he then has to prove the comparison and connection. Firstly, for example, he refers to time and space in reference to his enduring love;

I would love you ten years before the flood,
And you should, if you please, refuse
Till the conversion of the Jews (l.8-10)

By referring to the Great Flood, and the future events associated with the Jews Marvell is able to show the validity of his love through time's passing. An analogy is used to describe his love later as 'vegetable love' an intellectual idea of the fruit growing, thereby humanising love as something physical which grows, and in this context seemingly the poet would want us to believe, without conscious nurturing.

This poem values intellect highly, as there are a number of witty comments throughout that lend themselves much more to use of ingenious and risqué images than romantic ones, for example

Thine eyes, and on the forehead gaze;
Two hundred to adore each breast,
But thirty thousand to the rest (l.14-16)

This clever manipulation of the blazon then turns with a sexual innuendo to the woman's sexual organs. The fact that this is intended to be ambiguous reveals Marvell's skill in intellectual poetry, and the fact that although witty, this particular poem (or poet?) 'was not successful in representing or moving the affections' (Johnson in ed. Greene, 1984, p.678).

The intellectual tone is continued with the clever personification of death;

But at my back I always hear
Time's winged chariot hurrying near (l.21-22)

This is an inventive method of persuasion, the use of 'time's' and 'hurrying' give a sense of urgency, along with 'chariot' which seems to give the image of something speeding out of control. Marvell then embarks on descriptions of death, nothingness, a void, the danger for them if they do not progress; 'all before us lie Deserts of vast eternity' and 'in thy marble vault', 'My echoing song'. Then worms are used as a phallic symbol for the penis, as they will penetrate her virginity when she is inside the earth instead;

then worms shall try
That long-preserved virginity (l.27-28)

So a tone of intellectual crudity is substituting that of romance, as seriousness is mixed with levity in daring puns;

The grave's a fine and private place (l.31)

Marvell uses the simple description of 'like amorous birds of prey' to deliberately change the intellectual tone of the poem from love as a delicate thing, to one of sexual desire, with the image of the two devouring each other. It is in developing this idea that Marvell embarks upon one of the true images of metaphysical poetry. He uses the image of a ball to signify the two people coming together;

Let us roll all our strength and all
Our sweetness up into one ball (l.41-42)

The image of two separate people coming together and joining as one is what Marvell uses, the 'strength' being his and the 'sweetness' hers. This then will form a ball, which is the conventional image of perfection, the potent sphere.

It is also an image of a pomander, a ball of spices and herbs normally kept in the pocket or in a drawer to ward off disease. So the poet is saying, let us join in this manner and we will be a therapeutic, all powerful element. Although a highly intellectual concept, the 'passion is not trivialised' (Bellamy, 1981, p.39).

The obscure image of 'iron gates' are then used to enhance the potency, they will be able to burst through as a cannon ball, fired by their sexual energy, as again references to the rough passion are alluded through 'tear our pleasures with rough strife'. The poet has the wonderful skill of being able to employ 'brutal simplicities' to resolve 'sophisticated arguments' (Bellamy, 1981, p.39).

So in a very controlled and thoughtful manner, Marvell makes intellectual comparisons by using scientific imagery. This could have an emotional impact, or not- depending on the poet's skill and the intellectual abilities of the reader. Samuel Johnson's viewpoint on this matter is though interesting;

the metaphysical poets use the natural language of men when they are soberly engaged in commerce or in scientific speculation, so that the words themselves cut themselves off from one of the common means of poetry and thus became entirely dependant on a successful fusion between thought and feeling. (Johnson in ed. Greene, 1984, p.679)

It is this fusion between thought and feeling which makes the metaphysical poetry I have studied so successful, where at first the initial obscurity of the inflated sense of intellectuality is seen as a restraint to the emotion. However, I believe as one reads closely, it is easy to see how 'their learning instructs, and their subtlety surprises' (Johnson in ed. Greene, 1984, p.678), as emotion forms through the intensity and richness of intellectual meaning.

I do believe that the primary concern of the metaphysical poets was to 'employ something unexpected and surprising' (Johnson in ed. Greene, 1984, p.678) in terms of comparison, and to achieve a certain emotion through this. It would be impossible to write purely intellectual poetry about love for example. The additional factor though which makes me believe that intellect is not valued exclusively above emotion is that much of the poetry has a self conscious wit to it- the poets are aware of the ironies of their work in that they use highly complex analogies with lofty images of science and mechanics and even the Universe, to (for example) persuade a woman into bed. A certain incongruity does add to the richness of the form, in which through juxtaposing obscure images and emotional situations, the Metaphysical poets achieved 'their wish to say what they hoped had never been said before' (Johnson in ed. Greene, 1984, p.678).

 

Bibliography

Bellamy J, Havely CP, Hill C, Purkis J (1981) Seventeenth Century England: A Changing Culture, 1618-1689, Milton and Marvell Buckingham: Open University Press

Bennett, Joan (1964) Five Metaphysical Poets Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Donne, J. 'A Valediction Forbidding Mourning', 'The Flea', 'Holy Sonnets' in ed. Ferguson, M, Salter, M and Stallworthy, J (1996) The Norton Anthology of Poetry, 4th edn., New York: Norton

Johnson, Samuel 'Cowley' from Prefaces, Biographical and Critical, to the Works of the English Poets, in ed. Greene, D (1984) The Oxford Authors: Samuel Johnson, Oxford: Oxford University Press

Legouis Pierre, Andrew Marvell - Poet, Puritan, Patriot. Oxford University Press, 1965

Marvell A, 'To His Coy Mistress' in ed. Ferguson, M, Salter, M and Stallworthy, J (1996) The Norton Anthology of Poetry, 4th edn., New York: Norton

Williamson George (1968) A Reader's Guide to The Metaphysical Poets, London: Thames and Hudson

 

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