Andrew Marshall

Mazany

AP Literature

09 March 2017

Poetry Paper

John Donne was an English poet and founder of the metaphysical poem. One of his most

famous metaphysical poems is called "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning. The poem begins

with a comparison between two lovers parting and the death of virtuous men. The speaker then

begins to compare their love to an earthquake claiming that his love is not like an earthquake but

like the planets and the stars. He then says that physical couples with shallow love cannot be

apart, but his love can stretch the distance. Thy firmness makes my circle just,/ And makes me

end where I begun. The last comparison he has is there love to a compass saying that the two

pieces are apart, they are all ultimately together and that they will always end up in the same

spot. Donne is overall trying to tell his lover that she should not be afraid for him to go because it

will actually make their love stronger. The title is used and enforce the theme to the audience.

While The metaphors demonstrate the theme as well as impose the important features of a

metaphysical poem.

"A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning" is a very important title because it affects the

meaning of the poem overall. It literally translates to a farewell, "A Valediction," that forbids

mourning. Donne clues to the readers that this is no traditional goodbye. He is saying farewell

hence the valediction, but he has forbidden his wife's grief because of it. Dunne chose the title

because it sums up the meaning of the point the speaker is making enforcing the theme overall. It

enforces the theme that although they are apart their hearts are always united.
 There is many metaphors throughout the poem+First, the speaker is comparing his

separation from his wife to the death of a man. He talks about the separation from the man and

his soul to the separation of the them. The body stands for the physical lover and the soul stands

for the love that is spiritual. Although they will not be physically together, they will be spiritually

because their love is so strong. The speaker then follows that metaphor with others saying that

his wife should not cry "tear-floods" or act in extremes like a "sigh-tempests." He thinks to act in

such a away would make their love vulgar and lessen it. The next section compares the small

movement of spheres to their love and the "Moving of th'earth" to others love. The lovers who

are all physical are unable to have separation because they will fail. But the speaker's love is like

the "trepidation of spheres" because it is not completely physical. This allows their love to

stretch wide and far because it will last. The distance is harmless to their relationship. The very

last important metaphor the speaker makes is comparing his love to the arrows on a compass.

Although the hands of the compass are apart and pointing in different directions they are

ultimately unified in the middle. The two hands will always end up where they started, together.

The metaphors in the poem ultimately make this piece metaphysical. A metaphysical

poem is a poem that has difficult to understand versus that compared to completely different

things. Instead of comparing his love to roses and sunsets he compares his love to dead people in

natural disasters. Although these things don't normally pair together Dunne write them in a way

that make sense and ultimately reinforces the idea of the theme. The first metaphysical metaphor

is the comparison of the separation and death. The movement of the earth and the in the

movement of the stars is next compared to two different types of love. A breach, but an

expansion,/ Like gold to airy thinness beat.The next metaphysical metaphor is comparing their

love to gold that is beaten. Their love does not break but it expands. The last being his most
famous metaphysical metaphor is comparing his love to the legs a compass. All those love and a

compass are two very different things he connects them in a way that makes sense. One leg

travels but is always anchored by the other. The two legs of the compass can never truly be

separated similarly to the two lovers. The use of such uncommon cause the poem to reflect a

metaphysical style overall.

John Donnes "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning is a poem about the separation of

two lovers with inseparable love. The metaphors used in the poem not only represent the theme

but they reflect the style of a metaphysical poem. The title is also a significant factor in

reinforcing the theme. In one of his most famous poems, Dunne questions the idea of love and

lust allowing readers to really think about the old saying distance makes the heart grow fonder.

Works Cited

Donne, John. "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning." Poetry Foundation. Poetry Foundation,

n.d. Web. 15 Mar. 2017.