TO HIS MISTRESS (THEME STRUCTURE)

Question 1

How does Donne explore desire, seduction and sexuality?

Answer 1

• Unlike traditional courtly love poetry, which idealises unattainable love,
• Donne embraces physicality without shame and elevates, intellectualizes desire, synergising it with spirtual and imperial imagery.

Challenges= Puritan morality,

Question 2

How does Donne explore the theme of the body as a Microcosm?

Answer 2

• Elevates the mistress’s body as a landscape to be explored + divine space.
• By intertwining the erotic and the sacred, Donne makes a Neoplatonic argument: true love is both physical and spiritual.
• Divine relevation to be found in human connection.

Question 3

How does the poem explore gender dynamics, male hegemony and possession?

Answer 3

• The speaker positions himself as a conqueror of his lovers body,reflecting the language of European imperialism. .