- 1. Wednesday1 st February 2012 Learning Objective:To be able to
infer, deduce and interpretideas about His Coy Mistress Must:
CShould: BCould: AStarter: Find His Coy Mistress in yourAnthologies
and read this to yourselfquietly. This is a challenging poem andyou
need to pay attention to it.
2. Break it down! There was a man falling in love with
hismistress. He wanted to make love to her, butthe mistress was shy
and turned him down.The speaker wrote the poem to the mistress
inorder to persuade her to accept him. 3. Vocabulary 1. Coy - A coy
person is shy, or pretends to be shy, aboutlove and sex. (The
mistress) Ex: She gave a coy smile when he paid her a compliment.
2. Conversion - Someone changes his religion or beliefs.(Conversion
of Jews) Ex: Its hard to believe his conversion to Christianity. 3.
Vast - very large in area, size, quantity or degree;immense (The
speakers love for the mistress) Ex: A vast expanse of desert. 4.
Chariot - fast-moving vehicles with two wheels that arepulled by
horses (Time) 4. 5. Eternity - Eternity is time without an end or a
stateof existence outside time, especially the state which
somepeople believe they will pass into after they have died. Ex: I
have always found the thought of eternity terrifying. 6. Quaint -
Something that is quaint is attractivebecause it is unusual and
rather old-fashioned. (The honorof virginity) Ex: This may seem a
quaint idea in thus age. 7. Vault- A vault is a room underneath a
church wherepeople are buried, usually the members of a single
family. Ex: He ordered Matildas body should be buried in thefamily
vault. 5. 8. Lust - Lust is a feeling of strong sexual desire
forsomeone. Ex: His relationship with Angie was first which
combinedlust with friendship. 9. Hue - color Ex: The same hue will
look different in different light. 10. Dew - Dew is small drops of
water that form on theground and the other surfaces outdoors during
the light.(The mistresss skin) Ex: The dew gathered on the leaves.
11. Transpire - (of plants) give off (water vapor) fromthe surface
of leaves. 12. Pore - Pores are the tiny holes in humans skin. Ex:
He was sweating at every pore. 6. 13. Amorous (amrous, line38) -
readily showingor feeling love; relating to love, especially
sexuallove) (wild and passionate love) Ex: He became quite amorous
at the office party. 14. Prey - animals or birds hunted and killed
byanother for food Ex: The lion stalked its prey through the long
grass. 15. Languish - be or become weak and miserablebecause of
unfulfilled longings Ex: He languishes for love. 16. Strife -
violence of making love 7. Speaker :An adorer of the
mistressListener : The mistress 8. Theme Carpe dien seize the day
and have fun. This is a seducing poem. The speaker showshis strong
passion for the mistress and triedvery hard to persuade her to make
love tohim. Because time and time wait for noman, he asks her to
seize the day and havefun, or she will regret when she is dead. 9.
To His Coy MistressMistress: A woman with whom a IF we had enough
space byman is in love and time Andrew Marvell HAD we but world
enough, and time, Coy: to be shy; This coyness, Lady, were no crime
crime = problem or reluctant to make We would sit down and think
which way something regrettable commitments To walk and pass our
long loves day. Thou by the Indian Ganges sideEast (India) Shouldst
rubies find: I by the tide West; The Humber is a Of Humber would
complain. I would river in England; his fatherLove you ten years
before the Flood,Refers to the flood from the story of drowned in
this river.Noahs Ark in the Bible/Genesis (the And you should, if
you please, refuse beginning) Till the conversion of the Jews. My
vegetable love should growThis conversion will never happen,It will
grow slowly (like a seedgrowing into a vegetable) Vaster than
empires, and more slow; so hes saying that she could keep An
hundred years should go to praise refusing his love until eternity
Thine eyes and on thy forehead gaze; Two hundred to adore each
breast, Hes explaining to her how much tim he would spend admiring
each part But thirty thousand to the rest;her body . An age at
least to every part, And the last age should show your heart. For,
Lady, you deserve this state, Nor would I love at lower rate. 10.
But at my back I always hearTimes wingd chariot hurrying near;And
yonder all before us lieDeserts of vast eternity. Whereas the first
stanza focuses on anThy beauty shall no more be found, ideal
situation (If we had all the timeNor, in thy marble vault, shall
sound in the world), this stanza focuses onreality (we dont have
all the time inMy echoing song: then worms shall trythe world; life
is short; we eventuallyThat long preserved virginity,die).And your
quaint honor turn to dust,And into ashes all my lust: Marvell
reinforces these ideas throughThe graves a fine and private place,
death imagery.But none, I think, do there embrace.The overall idea
in thisNow therefore, while the youthful huestanza is carpe diem
(orSits on thy skin like morning dew,seize the day). He issaying,
lets get together And while thy willing soul transpireswhile were
still young! At every pore with instant fires,Now let us sport us
while we may,Notice how many times heAnd now, like amorous birds of
prey,employs the word now. Rather at once our time devourThan
languish in his slow-chapped power.There are two similes inLet us
roll all our strength and allthis section. What are thecomparisons
being made? Our sweetness up into one ball,And tear our pleasures
with rough strifeRather than running from the sunThrough the iron
gates of life: (which is associated with time), theyThus, though we
cannot make our sun will make it run with their intense
PersonificationStand still, yet we will make him run. love. 11.
Structure I 1st. Stanza: The speaker told themistress how much he
loved her. Ex: 1. I would love you ten years before theFlood. (
P.739 Line7~8) It is very early in the history 12. 2. An hundred
years should go topraiseTwo hundred to adore eachbreast: But thirty
thousand to the rest(P.739 Line13~16) The speaker uses the words,
such asan hundred years, two hundred years, and thirty thousand
years to describehis deep and lasting love toward themistress. 13.
2nd. Stanza: The speaker threatens the mistress if she does not
seize the day to havefun, she will regret when she dies because
timeflies.Ex:1. Butat my back I always hear timeswinged chariot
hurrying near(P.739Line21~22) Time waits for no men. 14. 2. Thy
beauty shall no more be found, nor in thy marble vault shall sound
myechoing songs; then worms shall try thatlong preserved virginity,
and your quainthonor turn to dust(P.739 Line 25~29) The speaker
tells the mistress that she shouldcherish time or once the mistress
is dead, therewill be only worms to admire her virginity. 15. 3rd.
Stanza: The speaker convinces the mistress to make love to him.Ex:
1. Nowlet us sport us while we may; andnow, like amrous birds of
prey. (P.740 Line37~38) Sport is a verb here, which means make
love. The speaker convinces the mistress that she shouldnot repress
her feeling and should make love to him. 16. 2. Let us roll all our
strength, and all our sweetness, up into one ball.(P.740 Line
41~42) Ball means making love. Let us make love so that our soul
and body will combine. 17. 3. Thorough theiron gates of life(P.740
Line 44) If we make love, we are not afraid of death. Here, iron
gates represents death. 18. 4. Thus,though we cannot make our sun
stand still, yet we will make him run.(P.740 Line 45~46) This
sentence has 2 meanings.One is that our passion toward each other
will melt the sun.The other is we can speed up the time, and
dosomething meaningful. 19. Structure II A. The poem is combined
with time and space. We cansee that from: The first stanza: 1.Had
we but world enough, and timespace 2.Thou by the Indian Ganges: Of
Humber would complain. I would * River Ganges is in India, and
Humber is in England. Thereis a long distance between the speaker
(Humber) and themistress (Indian Ganges), but the long distance
doesntaffect his love toward the mistress. 20. The second stanza:
But at my back I always hearTimes winged chariot hurrying
near;Time::Deserts of vast eternity. Space 21. B.1. Had we but
world enough, and timeThe speaker imagined that they had enough
world and time.2. But at my back I always hear Times winged chariot
hurrying nearThe speaker said that in fact, life is not eternal. 3.
Now therefore, while the youthful hueSits on thy skin like morning
dew, The speaker persuades the mistress to seize the time andmake
love with him. 22. Irony . That long preserved virginity/ Andyour
quaint honor turn to dust To keep her honor, the mistress sticks to
herprinciple to remain her virginity. But after shedies, all she
keeps turn out to be dust andnothing meaningful is left. The
speaker tries toargue whether virginity is honorable to her. 23. .
The graves fine and private place/But none, I think, do there
embrace The speaker uses ironic tone tothreaten the mistress if she
doesnt seize the day to have fun, she willregret once she dies. 24.
. Deserts of eternity/ And your quaint honorturn dust/ And into
ashes all my lust. The speaker said the desert is eternal because
itisnt affected by time. In the later lines, the speaker compares
quaint honor to dust, and lust to ashes.Although dust and ashes are
eternal, just like thedesert, these two things are meaningless. The
speakersaid because humans are mortal, humans should seize the time
to do whatever they would like to do. The speaker persuades the
mistress to express the desireand seize the day to enjoy life. 25.
Allusion 1. I would loveyou before theFlood(P.739 Line 8) Flood
happened in the story of Noahark, which occurs in Genesis some time
aftercreation. It indicates he shall love her early inhistory. 26.
2. And you should, if you please, refusethe conversion of Jews.
(P.739 Line 9,10) According to the Bible, the conversion of Jews
will come before the end of the world, which isjudgment day. So
this sentence means that the speaker would love the mistress
shortly before the end of the world. 27. 3. That long preserved
virginity, andyour quaint honor turn to dust.(P.739 Line
28-29)Quaint honor represents whatthe mistress is keeping now,
whichis her long preserved virginity. 28. Imagery 1. Vegetable
(P739 Line 11) The symbolic meaning of VegetableLove is deep and
unconsciously growinglove. The root of the vegetable is deep
intothe soil and the vegetable grows slowly, justlike the speakers
love toward the mistress inan ideal state. 29. 2. But at my back I
always hear Timeswinged chariot hurrying near.(P.739 Line
21-22)Time flies. Winged and Chariot represent somethingpassing
quickly. 30. 3. Thy beauty shall no moremarble vault shall sound my
echoing song.(P.739 Line 25-27)It means when the mistressdies, she
wont be able to enjoy life anymore. 31. 4. Now let us sport us
while we May And now, like amorous birds of prey(P.740 Line 37-38)
Sport means making love.The speaker convinces the mistressthat they
should make lovepassionately and dont represstheir desire for sex
just like amorous birds of prey. 32. 5. Tear our pleasure with
rough strife(P.740 Line 43)Strife originally means fight.But here,
strife means orgasm,which means the moment whenyou have the
greatest sexualpleasure during sex. 33. 6. Iron gates of life
(P.740 Line 44) Iron gates of life meansdeath. When making love,
theyare not afraid of death. 34. 7. We cannot make our sun Stand
still, yet we will make him run.(P.740 Line 45-46) In this
sentence, using the wordsun is a kind pun. One is Sun represents
heat but it still cant affect our love, and even our passioncan
melt the Sun. The other is that the sun means time, and we have to
speed up the time.