Thinking activity on Metaphysical poetry

Hello, 

         In literature  there are many genre in poetry and prose.Both are written in different  genre so here my concern with the Metaphysical poetry.This is the thinking activity given by Dr. Dilip Barad Sir.

      

         Metaphysical poetry is little bit different than other poetry. Metaphysical poems are highly intellectualized used rather strange imagination, paradox and content extremely complicated thought by poet.

       Samuel Johnson first used the word 'Metaphysical poetry' in his book 'lives of the most Eminent English poets'in this book he wrote  about John Donne,George Herbert Richard Crashaw, Marvel and Henry vaughan.

  

  *Definition:-

    The word 'Meta' means after or beyond so in a literary way something is beyond that physical is metaphysical this word which can not defined by the science because of the  literary imagination of poet then also poet make the changes in reality and nature ,so here we can remember the objection of Plato about that poets took us in their imaginative World and in a fantasy.

 When we read the metaphysical poetry and try to understand them we have a questions about (1)reality of nature question about (2)perception imagination of poet with the (3) limitation of brain its puzzle of poem which week we cannot solve someway because of the limitation. 

    This kind of poems are not related with the religious and Science but it is a form of express the thoughts process of the poets mind  with their freedom to put their view and imaginative world front of us.

*characteristics:-

1)Metaphysical poems  present in a           dramatic form

2) Wit

3) Satire

4) Irony

5) Far fetch imagination

6) Carelessness in diction

7) concious attempt 

Major Metaphysical poetes

John Donne

George Herbert

Andrew Marvell

Robert southwell

Henry Vaughan

Thomas Traherne

Richard crashaw

                             John Donne 

      In the first half of the 17th century a group of poets emerge.who's poetry is known as the 'Metaphysical poetry' John donne the pioneer of this group. it also known as the school of Donne.

   

     They wanted to make their poetry look different from former poets. It was a conscious attempt to part with existent style of writing poetry and to cultivate in a new style

   

   The sun rising :-

           In this poem donne has made remarkable use of perfect images this is the famous Love poem The Rising Sun is the astronomer field utilised in poem for the theme of love your poet want to say that love is the superior than everything in this world so so never doesn't want that sunrise and disturb he and his beloved in this poem for first image which we find in the poem is mimic and on example off on performing art.

The flea :-

 

       The Flea is the very famous romantic love poem lover wants to convince his love to his beloved poet use the metaphor of flea we can see the exaggeration that lower says that the flea Sakthi him then his beloved so they become one already because their blood are together in the flea his argument things on the belief that body leaf its makes during sexual intercourse.

    This is the examples of metaphysical poetry by John Donne there are other poetry by him like 'Death be not proud', 'The dream',sweetest love'.

 In the sweetest love we see the sun astronomical image it is also a love poem and convince to love to his beloved. 

When thou sigh'st, thou sigh'st not wind, 

         But sigh'st my soul away; 

When thou weep'st, unkindly kind, 

         My life's blood doth decay. 

                It cannot be 

That thou lov'st me, as thou say'st, 

If in thine my life thou waste, 

         That art the best of me.

     George Herbert is is one of the metaphysical poet his poem Pulley is is very famous Bully is the religious metaphysical poem this poem about the unfinished Desire of human and unsatisfying despite having all the things he wants in this poem we can see the characteristic of turn off direct speech This line said by God. 

 "Let's us" said he "pour on him all we can "

To his coy mistress:-

          This  very well known poem This is also about the felling of love and lover wants to convince  his love to his beloved. He praised her beauty and try to make her his .

*Critical analysis 

   In the metaphysical poetry we didn't find imaginary world and fantasy. We can find exaggeration unreal world and nature this poem make a imaganary world.In this case we remember the objection of Plato that poetry is mimic and imitation. 

    Metaphysical poetry emerged because 17th century poets want to do differ then former poets like Shakespeare, Philip Sidney and others ,so a group emerged which is called as a school of donne Poems are not related with science and also science cannot define it because there is nothing like that Science can make the logic upon it.

   All the metaphysical well literate and degree holders wanted to exhibit their learning and scholarship and so they tried to differ from the former poets Samuel Johnson has one remarkable comment to pass on the poetry of metaphysical the comment is:

    

      "Their poetry stood trial of their fingers but not of the ear"

    In  john Donne's poetry  The Sun Rising  we can see the far fetch imagination because if you tell sun that don't rise it is not possible and it is against the nature and even impossible to happen. It is a feeling to express lover's love to his beloved.But in Death to be not proud is a love poem but very natural to talk about the death is  rest to delivered the soul into other body.

        

         If we talk about  The Flea and The dream both are different each other.

 One is felling of love with  so much exaggeration and other one is tell about the reality of world and the reality of dream.Donne said through this poem you can be more  happy in dream than in real life. The line like 

When thou sigh'st, thou sigh'st not wind,     But sigh'st my soul away ;

 When thou weep'st, unkindly kind,  

   My life's blood doth decay.... 

      Herbert wrote the poem named The coller.In this poem he camper his life with the spoiled alcohol .we can see the hyperbole is used in the poem also abrupt  opening with this line 

       "I struck the board and cried no more"

Richard crashaw

     

  He was an english poet.crashaw was an Anglican priest ,but then he converted to Roman Catholics.we can see in his poem address mostly religious and mystical theme. Here  his poem   'Love  horoscope'

    Here I tried to write some line:

       

                    'હાશ' થકી 

          પૂછયું ચાંદને,આમ જ રહીશ ક્યા સુધી?
          પેલા સૂર્ય પણ પૂછે, બસ આમ જ જગીશ મારા થકી?
          તુ તારું તેજ કેમ છુપાવે છે એ કહે જો જરા?
           કે રાખ્યુ એ તેજ કોઇ ખાસના મળવા સુધી?
           બધા જ પરિણામોની જેમ તારી  પ્રાંતમાં કયાં ?
           પૂછીશ જ હી ભલે  તુ સંતાય અમાસ થકી,
           જ્યારે  ફરી પૂનમની વેળા આવશે  ને આવશે તે,
           ત્યારે જ હું પૂર્ણ  થઇશ મળેલ  'હાશ' થકી.

                                            - મેહલ પંડયા