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I Am A Little World (John Donne)
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A2 Unit 1-John Donne notes
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I Am a Little WorldFORM AND STRUCTURE
- The poem is a sonnet
- While its structure is very similar to a Shakespearean sonnet (3 quatrains and a
couplet), the rhyme scheme has notes of the Petrarchan sonnet form (particularly
the ABBA rhyme in the first quatrain)
- The majority of the poem is in iambic pentameter
- The rhyme scheme of the poem is ABBA CDDC EFEF GG
- Unlike most of his sonnets, this poem lacks the characteristic volta that marks the
transition between the first two quatrains and the latter half of the poem
- The poem is structured through a series of contrasts, most notably that of good and
evil- it explores the elements of the poet’s inner nature that exist as diametrically
opposed to each other
LANGUAGE AND IMAGERY
Subject of the Poem
- ‘I Am a Little World’ is a speaker’s prayer to God that the good and bad sides of his
soul will be simultaneously purged by fire
- The first half of the poem explores ideas of duality. He presented the dual nature of
body and mind and the duality of the speaker’s soul, with the speaker exploring both
his good and bad side. However, the speaker fears that sin has taken over his soul
and turns to God in an attempt to combat this
- In the second half of the poem, the speaker asks God to take direct and drastic
action and, in the process, give the speaker redemption and salvation in heaven
Body of Poem
First Quatrain
- Line 1: “I am a little world made cunningly”- The poem immediately opens with a
complex conceit as Donne explores the idea of the man as a microcosm. Donne
evokes the Ptolemaic theory of the universe. Here, the human body is compared to
the entire cosmos. The adjective “cunningly” evokes the omnipotent intelligence of
the divine in his creation of mankind.
- Line 2: “Of elements, and an angelic sprite”- The use of enjambment between the
first and second line, intimately connects the elements of the speaker’s own private
world- the physical body (“elements”) is fused with the soul (“sprite”) to become
one conjoined entity. The adjective “angelic” alludes to the good part of the
speaker’s soul
- Line 3: “But black sin hath betrayed to endless night”- The structural marker “but”
marks a shift as the speaker begins to reflect on his sinful nature. The adjective
“black” evokes the extent of the speaker’s sin while the adjective “endless” suggests
the poet’s fear that he will never be able to overcome his sin
- Line 4: “My world’s both parts, and oh, both parts must die”- The repeated
reference to “both parts” alludes to the duality of the human body, namely the body
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