Sonnet 147 vs To his coy mistress

Question 1

Meter of the poems

Answer 1

To his coy mistress is written in tetrameter, while Sonnet 147 is written in pentameter.

Question 2

Respective Contexts

Answer 2

Sonnet 147 was composed in 1609, by William Shakespeare, in the Jacobean Era (under the reign of King James 1), while although posthumously published in 1681, it is thought that it was written in the 1640’s or 50’s, during the interregnum.

Question 3

Obvious Themes

Answer 3

Sonnet 147 explores themes such as lust, obsessive desire and self destruction, while To His Coy Mistress employs an argument of “Carpe Diem”, implying that the muse should succumb to his advances while there is still time.

Question 4

Structure

Answer 4

Sonnet 147 adheres to the prescribed form of the Shakespearean/Elizabethan Sonnet, (ABABCDCDEFEFGG), 3 quatrains and 1 rhyming couplet. Alternatively, ‘To His Coy Mistress’ is written as a series of 23 rhyming couplets (46 lines), and is a modified axiomatic syllogism, where to propositions are made followed by a panacea.

Question 5

Themes & Ideas: Love and desire

Answer 5

Sonnet 147: Love as a disease, clouding the speakers mind as an uncontrollable passion, ultimately leading to a self-perpetuating cycle of self-destruction.
To His Coy Mistress: Love is a fleeting opportunity, urging immediate amorousness from the muse.

Question 6

Speaker

Answer 6

Sonnet 147: The speaker is widely believed to be Shakespeare himself, and is believed that his sonnets are widely autobiographical.
To His Coy Mistress: The choice of the pronoun ‘his’ in the title indicates a detachment from Marvell himself, indicating that the speaker is a constructed character, rather than Marvell speaking from his experience.

Question 7

Time and mortality:

Answer 7

Sonnet 147: Love is an endless suffering, where time only prolongs the speakers despair.
To His Coy Mistress: Time is personified as an enemy - i.e. love must happen now before death.

Question 8

Reason vs Emotion:

Answer 8

Sonnet 147: The speaker is male but has female tendencies as the speaker’s emotions have overcome his reason.
To His Coy Mistress: The speaker utilises reason and logic as an effective tool that is structured as a persuasive argument.

Question 9

Imagery and extended metaphors:

Answer 9

Sonnet 147: Love as a disease is the extended metaphor of the poem