The Scrutiny Flashcards
Wh wrote this poem?
•Richard Lovelace in the early 1640’s
What themes are prevalent in this poem?
• Lust and sexual desire, virginity and purity, infidelity and faithfulness
How does Lovelace treat love in the poem?
•Lovelace adopts a hedonistic and libertine perspective, treating love as a transient pleasure free of emotional entanglements
“Why I should you swear I am forsworn “
•The speaker begins by dismissing the idea of fidelity, addressing his lover directly and rejecting her expectation of constancy
•The repetition of “I” in the opening stance further heightens the speakers priority of his own needs
In the beginning lines was semantic field is created?
•One of promises which suggests permanency
•In this way the speaker begins by dismissing the idea of fidelity, addressing his lover directly and rejecting her expectation of constancy
“A tedious twelve hour space”
•The alliteration creates a sporting sounds which conveys the speakers disparaging attitude towards his lover
•He suggests that their time together was unsatisfactory for him, he needs more
“But I lost search the black and fair/ Like skillful mineralists that sound/ for treasure in un-plowed-up ground”
•The word must reveals his overpowering desire and compulsive need to sexually explore other women
•For him women are “treasures” to be explored which objectifies them
•He reduces love to a quest for variety and self-indulgence.
•This makes the tone, lighthearted and unapologetic
•Furthermore, Lovelace takes a colonial approach to love as he wants to explore and exploit women like one would do to new territory
“When I have loved my round”
•This is interesting as a round could perhaps refer to a roundabout course
•This is a grand tour that young men took around Europe as a rite of passage
•This suggests, like a roundabout, he seeks to conquer and explore women
•He aims to deflower as many women as he can and this is monumental and pivotal point in his life for him
How does the poem reflect its context?
•The Cavalier ethos was rooted in the social liberties of the early Stuart court, it celebrated wit, charm, and indulgence, all of which are embodied in Lovelace’s carefree treatment of desire
•Carpe diem attitude form Cavalier poets
•Wrote in a time of political turmoil as it was written perhaps during or near the bloody civil war between the puritans and royalists- he rejects Christian chivalry instead opening the door to sexual liberty
•”The Scrutiny” reflects a cultural moment that prized individual pleasure over societal duty
Critical perspectives
•Some would say the poem articulates the pose of the careless cavalier for whom love is nothing more than a game
•The speaker acts immorally
•His sinister view one encapsulates the carpe diem and carefree attitude of a candid cavalier poet
What does the rhyme scheme convey?
•The rhyme scheme follows ABABB structure with no deviations
•This immediately evokes a sense of regularity and control with perfectly mirrors the control the speaker has over his life due to the imbalance in affection
Thesis
•Richard Lovelace’s The Scrutiny presents a more modern, assertive portrayal of masculinity, characteristic of the cavalier poets of the 17th century
•The cavalier poets, who were associated with the court of King Charles I, embraced ideals of physical beauty, pleasure, and libertinism, often rebelling against the more restrained Puritan ideals of the time.
•In this poem, the speaker’s masculinity is defined by his sexual autonomy and freedom, as he justifies his decision to seek out new conquests rather than commit emotionally to the woman he has already been with.
•In Lovelace’s work, the tension is internal, as the speaker rationalizes his inconstancy and indulges his desires without regard for emotional depth. Where Wyatt laments the futility of love, Lovelace celebrates its transient and fleeting nature.
•Furthermore, In Wyatt’s poem, this tension is external, as societal and political forces render the speaker’s longing unattainable
•Ultimately, the poems offers a complementary perspectives on the complexities of love and desire, reflecting both personal experiences and the broader cultural values of their respective eras
