A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning Flashcards
As _____ men pass ____ away,
And _____ to their souls to go,
Whilst some of their sad _____ do say,
“The _____ goes now,” and some say, “__,”
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,”
What is Donne’s argument/message in this poem?
A poem of great depth of feeling, the gist of the argument is that rue love goes beyond the physical and becomes spiritual.
True love can transcend/withstand separation and become enriched in the process.
Tru love knows no bounds.
What happens in the first stanza?
This is a deathbed scene. Virtuous/honorable men accept the approach of death by accepting fate and allowing their souls to leave.
The atmosphere would be expected to be sombre but tranquil as loved ones take comfort that ‘virtuous’ people ‘pass mildly away’, confident of a spiritual life hereafter.
The separation of the body and soul is so gentle that those surrounding the dying are uncertain about whether they are still alive or not.
So let us ___, and make no ___,
No tear-____, nor sigh-_____ move;
‘Twere ______ of our joys
To tell the ___ our love.
So let us melt, and make no noise,
No tear-floods, nor sigh-tempests move;
‘Twere profanation of our joys
To tell the laity our love.
How is the tranquil mood created in the deathbed scene?
Soft sibilant sounds (‘whisper’ and ‘souls’) create this untroubled mood.
How is the confusion of the people at the deathbed scene created?
Donne uses breaks in punctuation to suggest this confusion.
What does Donn mean by ‘So let us melt, and make no noise’
This metaphor is created from the peaceful passing away of the virtuous men in the deathbed scene previous to this stanza.
He draws a comparison between them and the stanza before. He wishes they can be like the ‘virtuous men’ and maintain their dignity.
For Donne, the couple’s separation is like a minor death which should also be treated in a dignified and restrained way.
No tear-floods, nor sigh-tempests move;
‘Twere profanation of our joys
To tell the laity our love.
What does Donne do here?
What poetic technique is present here?
He ridicules people who cannot restrain/control their feelings and resort to ‘tear-floods’ and ‘sigh-tempests’. This is an example of hyperbole (exaggeration) which was typical of courtly love.
There will be no hysterics or histrionics which would belittle their love. It would be blasphemous to let outsiders know about their love.
Where is typical themes/techniques of courtly love poetry seen in this poem?
The hyperbole in ‘tear-floods’ and ‘sigh-tempests’
Moving of the ___ brings ___ and fears,
Men reckon what it did and ___;
But _______ of the spheres,
Though ____ far, is innocent.
Moving of the earth brings harms and fears,
Men reckon what it did and meant;
But trepidation of the spheres,
Though greater far, is innocent.
Moving of the earth brings harms and fears,
Men reckon what it did and meant;
But trepidation of the spheres,
Though greater far, is innocent.
Explain the conceit present here and the meaning of the paragraph.
In typical metaphysical fashion, Donne uses events in the physical world (earthquakes) to make a more convincing point.
Scientists try to understand earthquakes while ignoring events like planetary rotation.
The bigger event (earth’s rotation) is seen as harmless (‘innocent’) so the geographical separation the couple will face should not be feared.
Dull ______ lovers’ love
(Whose soul is ____) cannot admit
______, because it doth ____
Those things which _______ it.
Dull sublunary lovers’ love
(Whose soul is sense) cannot admit
Absence, because it doth remove
Those things which elemented it.
Dull sublunary lovers’ love
(Whose soul is sense) cannot admit
Absence, because it doth remove
Those things which elemented it.
What is Donne getting at here?
Explain the poetic techniques present.
The ‘sublunary’ lovers need to be physically close to each other suggests there is nothing else to their love. It is shallow.
Unlike the poet and his lover, other couples cannot tolerate being apart because their inferior type of love is dependent on physical contact.
The assonance of the short ‘u’ sounds in each word of the first line reinforces the concept of dreariness which he associates with shallow relationships.
What does ‘sublunary’ suggest in terms of lovers?
It suggests that all these other lovers are changeable and unreliable just like the variable moon.
But we, by a ___ so much _____
That our selves know not what it is,
Inter-_____ of the mind,
Care __, eyes, lips, and ____ to ___.
But we, by a love so much refined
That our selves know not what it is,
Inter-assured of the mind,
Care less, eyes, lips, and hands to miss.
