Unit A2 1 - The Study of Poetry - 1300-1800 and Drama
Institution
CCEA
This is a comprehensive analysis of John Donne's poem 'Elegy to his Mistress going to bed.' It provides information on the context, form and structure and language and imagery of the
Unit A2 1 - The Study of Poetry - 1300-1800 and Drama
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ELEGY XIX TO HIS MISTRESS GOING TO BED
FORM AND STRUCTURE
- This is a single stanza poem. The elongated nature of the poem evokes the protracted
negotiation of the ardent lover, trying to seduce his mistress. The protracted nature of the
poem also conveys the excitement of the speaker.
- The poem is an apostrophe to his mistress as he tries to seduce her
- The poem is made up of rhyming couplets and has a regular rhythm (pentameters.) The
regularity of the rhythm and rhyme creates a degree of levity and playfulness to the poem.
- Throughout the poem, the Petrarchan tradition is subverted- the mistress is not portrayed as
an unattainable and chaste figure
- The poem has a logical, argumentative structure as he flirtatiously tries to seduce his
mistress
- The poet combines flattery and argument for seduction purposes
LANGUAGE AND IMAGERY
- This was most likely one of Donne’s earlier poems and it was probably only written for a
private audience
Body of the poem
- Line 1: The use of the apostrophe, “Come, madam, come” creates a sense of intimacy in the
poem. Through the use of the imperatives, “come” the poet creates a didactic tone. The
male speaker is presented as dominant (context). Rather than flatter his mistress, the poet
bosses his mistress for seduction purposes (subversion of Petrarchanism). Through the use
of sexual euphemism, “my powers defy” the poet suggests his state of sexual arousal and
implies that he will not rest until he has been satisfied.
- Line 2: Through the parallel grammatical structure and inventive use of syntax, “Until I
labour, I in labour lie” the poet creates a paradox. He suggests that he will not relax until he
is sexually satisfied
- Line 3: Through the unflattering use of martial imagery, “The foe…having the foe in sight”
the poet portrays love as a battle. (subversion of Petrarchanism)
- Line 4: Through the extension of the witty battle imagery, “tired with standing though he
never fight” the poet evokes the current dramatic scenario of a standoff with his mistress.
The implicit phallic image, “standing” evokes the male arousal
- Line 5: Through the anaphoric patterning and repetition, the poet subverts the Petrarchan
technique of blazon which listed the virtues and attributes of the mistress. Here, the poet
uses the blazon to describe the removal of his mistress’s clothes, “Off with that
girdle…Unpin that spangled breast plate…Unlace yourself.” The cosmological imagery,
“heaven’s zone” suggests she has almost a celestial beauty. The flattering simile contrasts
with the imperative. This contradiction shows how the poet employs a range of techniques
to seduce his mistress.
- Line 6: The alliterative phrase and the language of discovery, “far fairer world” evokes the
ardour of the speaker and suggests that she is like a new territory to be explored
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