第三讲The Metaphysicals and John Donne.ppt

the Cavalier Poets * mostly courtiers. Robert Herrick(1591- 1674), Richard Love (1618- 1658),etc. * light poetry, polished elegant, amorous gay, but often superficial – lighter, neater but less fresh than the Elizabethan poetry, and lacking their imagination. * The term, “Sons of Ben” or “Tribe of Ben,” was employed as self-description by some of the Cavalier poets who admired and were influenced by Ben Jonsons poetry. Robert Herrick (1591 –1674) Early life Herrick He graduated from Cambridge in 1617 and took holy orders in 1623, but lost his position because of his Royalist bent. Civil War During this time, he had his lyric poems printed in 1648 under the title Hesperides; or the Works both Human and Divine of Robert Herrick . Restoration and later life When King Charles II was restored in 1660, Herrick became the vicar of Dean Prior again in the summer of 1662 and lived there until his death To the Virgins, to make much of Time by Robert Herrick(1591–1674) Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,Old Time is still a-flying:And this same flower that smiles to-dayTo-morrow will be dying.The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,The higher hes a-getting,The sooner will his race be run,And nearer hes to setting.That age is best which is the first,When youth and blood are warmer;But being spent, the worse, and worstTimes still succeed the former.Then be not coy, but use your time,And while ye may, go marry:For having lost but once your prime,You may for ever tarry. The structure A simple, four-stanza structure with both rhyme and meter The rhyme scheme is a simple alternating pattern (ABAB CDCD EFEF GHGH), creating a musical light verse. Point of View a second-person point of view The lines were written in the imperative form, directly instructive to the reader. The Listener To whom did he write Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May? The reader must wonder whether the lines are directed solely at young maidens or at a broader