"To His Coy Mistress"

Paper Summary:

The author of this paper states that, although he strongly disagrees with the 'carpe diem' theme of Marvell's poem, (he believes it is a disturbing and violent condemnation of the female body), he still finds Marvell's skill as an artist captivating and his poetry both interesting and enjoyable. The paper examines the insecurities of Marvell that can be seen in his poetry and its "carpe diem" theme--which basically says "sleep with me now, before you are old, ugly and, eventually, dead." It also defines and make additions to the text.

From the Paper:

"Marvell starts his second stanza with a vivid picture: he claims to hear "Time's winged chariot hurrying near." This is a reference to the sun, which was believed in ancient Greece to travel in a chariot across the sky; the sun also marks the passing of each day, which draws additional attention to the leitmotif of time. We can imagine the poet reading to his mistress; he is presumably facing her while time is racing to overtake him from behind-and she can see the oncoming of this onslaught. Humorously opportunistic, the author tells his mistress: "I'm not getting any younger; time's about to run me down; let's take off our clothes and seize the day!""

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• Poem Review # 73842 : "To His Coy Mistress"
• Poem Review # 72371 : "'To His Coy Mistress'"

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