These notes come from myself, who passed matric of 2023 with an overall average of 87% in each subject i took.
A detailed summary of the poem "The Sun Rising" for the IEB English exam
Poetry - The Sun Rising
Friday, 29 July 2022 12:36
Poets Intention: Metaphysical poetry
- Subverts typical love poem Metaphysical - beyond the physical
- The speaker grumbles about rising sun but uses the moment to impress their beloved. Deals with the relationship, the universe and mankind
- Speaker asserts
- Sun has no power over love Conceit - Extended metaphor combing two vastly different ideas
- Love doesn’t change with time
- Love is worth more than power and wealth Title
- Nothing matters apart from love
- Speakers makes extravagant claims about power of love and it reinforces the joy and exhilaration that his love brings Title addresses the sun and indicates the concept of time and day
- Love gives him power to do anything
Busy old fool, unruly Sun,
Message:
Apostrophe: addresses an object or force.
The sun has no power of the love of the speaker and his beloved. Calls the sun an old busybody - in rather a disrespectful tone.
The lovers do not have to obey the rules of time governed by the sun.
Through windows, and through curtains call us?
Imagery:
Rhetorical question - effective as a speaker can scold the sun without interference.
Apostrophe - speaking about the sun Reprimands the sun for spying on the lovers, as it peeps through curtains.
'us' - refers to the speakers and beloved.
Metaphor - makes the comparison to his beloved and their love.
- Conceit -> vastly different ideas: their love to power of the sun Must to thy motions lovers' seasons run?
The sun is the centre of our solar system and dictates life on earth.
Speaker questions whether love should be subjected to the sun's motions and seasons.
Metaphysical language e.g. morning is the "season" for rising but lovers won't get out of bed.
Structure: Saucy pedantic wretch, go chide
3, 10-lined stanzas and rhyme scheme of ABBA - CDCD - EE Scolds the sun: 'saucy' - cheeky, 'wretch' - miserable, pitiful creature.
Sun is neglecting more serious duties for those who need to follow the rules.
1. the poet call the sun a busy old fool as the poet would like to stay in bed with his lover without being disturbed by anyone, even the sun itself when they slumber in their bed and have a good time with each other Late school-boys and sour 'prentices,
2. The intention of the poet is that of utter disappointment from the sun as it the sun has all the time in the world to
3. Tells the sun to bother boys late for school and unwilling apprentices late for work.
4. consider the authors intention of the poet in describing the suns control over the rags of time where he explains Tone = snobbish and patronizing -> implies lovers don’t need to worry about menial tasks like learning or working.
Go tell court-huntsmen that the King will ride,
Go harass the court-huntsmen.
Call country ants to harvest offices;
To remind peasants of their duties to harvest crops.
Insignificant and only there to do one job.
Metaphor: comparing people (peasants) to ants -> constant activity
Love, all alike, no season knows nor clime,
Reminds the sun that it has no power over love (like it does seasons and weather).
It is eternally the same "all alike"
Nor hours, days, months, which are the rags of time.
Love is untouched by small things like hours.
Metaphor: diminishes the sun by saying the things it controls are like rags - useless and worn whereas love is full, rich and complete.
Thy beams, so reverend and strong
Usually sun is admired and respected for its magnific and worshipped like a god.
Why shouldst thou think?
The speaker questions the attitude.
I could eclipse and cloud them with a wink,
Suggests he could block out/ shut out the suns brilliance by closing his eyes.
Clever use of 'eclipse' and 'cloud' to shut out sun. Metaphysical.
But that I would not lose her sight so long:
Even though he can shut his eyes to block the sun - he wont.
He does not want to lose sight of his beloved.
If her eyes have not blinded thine,
If his lover's eyes have not blinded the sun.
Look, tomorrow late, tell me,
Commands the sun to travel the world and tell him by tomorrow.
Whether both the Indias of spice and mine
If the riches and treasures of India.
Insolent tone as he commands the sun.
Be where thou left'st them, or lie here with me.
Are where he left them or if the riches of the world are in his bed.
Ask for those kings whom thou saw'st yesterday
'kings' - referring to wealth and power.
And thou shalt hear, 'All here in one bed lay.'
All the wealth and power lie in his bed - his beloved.
i.e. all the riches in the world lie in his bed with him.
She's all States, and all Princes I;
Beloved means the world to him - 'all states' and he is the prince of these countries.
Starting with 'she' and ending with 'I' -> world is contained within them.
Repetition of 'all' -> emphasizes whole world is contained in one room.
Nothing else is.
[placement on own line] emphasizes claim that nothing exists or is real outside the world of their room (their love).
Princes do but play us; compared to this,
Princes fool themselves if they think they rule countries since all the 'states' are contained in the room.
All honur's mimic, all wealth alchemy.
Any other form of respect or privilege is a poor imitation/fake of the real worth that exists in their room (their room).
Thou, Sun, art half as happy as we,
Tone - patronizing to address the sun 'thou'.
The sun should be pleased.
In that the world's contracted thus;
That the whole world is concentrated/located in this one room.
Thine age asks ease, and since thy duties be
Sympathizes with the sun because he is old and should be relaxing.
To warm the world, that’s done in the warming us.
POETS SOLUTION is that the sun's duty is to warm the world which can be done simply by shining on the lovers.
Shine here to us, and thou art everywhere;
Tone - confident and triumphant as he sums up argument.
Commands the sun to shine on them.
This bed thy centre is, these walls thy sphere.
Then the sun will be everywhere and lovers are the centre of the universe.
The lovers' bed is the centre of sun's heavenly sphere -> does not extend beyond walls of the room.
Stanza: Sustained metaphor: lovers' bed becomes the centre of the universe and walls of the room become the sun's experience.
Use of hyperbolic long to elevate the lovers and exaggerates his claim of power of their love.
Is the metaphysical aspect of the poem
English Page 1
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