Artistic Features

Conceit (奇喻): to construct a reasonable relation between two completely incompatible things. (love and flea, love and compasses etc.) Metaphysical poetry uses conceits to express ideas. e.g. He looks like a pig. (normal) 他胖得象头猪。 He looks like a gas container. (abnormal) 他一副标准的煤气罐身材。 John Donne, the leading poet of the metaphysical school, frequently applies conceits, i.e. extended metaphors involving dramatic contrasts.(P113)

Love and flea
… It sucked me first, and now sucks thee, And in this flea, our two bloods mingled be; This flea is you and I, and this Our marriage bed, and marriage temple is;
c. The split within the revolutionary camp ( the middle bourgeoisie—the big bourgeoisie ; the bourgeoisie—the common people; ) d. The bourgeoisie dictatorship and the Restoration. After the death of Cromwell, the monarchy was restored. It was called the period of restoration. In 1688, James II was forced to flee to France. His Protestant daughter Mary and her husband William, Duke of Orange, were welcomed to England as the joint rulers of the country. This is known as the Glorious Revolution (bloodless). It marked the end of feudalism and the triumph of the bourgeois revolution. After a century of disputes and battles, the state structure of England was settled, within which capitalism could develop freely.
Rise & Fall of Metaphysical Poetry



Metaphysical poetry was rarely read in the 17th, 18th and early 19th century. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, there was a renewed interest in metaphysical poetry. The modernist poets T.S. Eliot, John Ransom and Allen Tate claimed their influence by John Donne. So John Donne became a cult figure in the early 20th century English-speaking countries.
John Donne (1572-1631)
“the fir things.”
—Ben Jonson
John Donne




Born into a prosperous merchant’s family. Roman Catholic family, but quitted his religious belief later. In 1615, he entered the Anglican Church (英国国教) and took orders. In 1621, he was appointed the Dean of St. Paul’s Cathedral and kept the post to his death. Well-educated in both Cambridge and Oxford universities but took no degree at either university because he would not take the Oath of Supremacy required at graduation. Expeditions in France and Italy. Donne became the private secretary to Egerton, the Lord Keeper of the Great Seal. He ruined his own prospect by secretly marrying the Lord Keeper’s niece, Anne More.
Metaphysical poetry(玄学诗)


Metaphysical poetry is commonly used to name the work of the 17th century writers who wrote under the influence of John Donne. With a rebellious spirit, the metaphysical poets try to break away from the conventional fashion of the Elizabethan love poetry. They are characterized by mysticism in content and fantasticality in form. John Donne is the leading figure of the ―metaphysical school.‖

Historical Context
a. The cooperation between the monarchy and the bourgeoisie was over in the early 17th century. (Elizabethan I died, James I came to power, and Charles I then dissolved the parliament and ruled the country with absolute government in 1629). b. The English Revolution (led by Oliver Cromwell), Charles I was captured and was executed in 1649. Thus, the monarchy was abolished and came the period of the Republican or commonwealth.
Literary Characteristics



Puritan influence (to suppress literary art, stern and hard style) Metaphysical poets (John Donne, George Herbert , Andrew Marvell) John Donne: ―The Flea‖, ―Song‖, ―A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning‖ John Milton ( a great revolutionary poet) Paradise Lost, Paradise Regained, Samson Agonistes, On his Blindness, On His Deceased Wife John Bunyan The Pilgrim’s Progress
Puritanism

Puritanism was the religious doctrine of the revolutionary bourgeoisie during the English Revolution. It preached thrift, sobriety, hard work and unceasing labor in whatever calling one happened to be, but with no extravagant enjoyment of the fruits of labor.
Final Reconciliation

Sir George had Donne thrown in Fleet prison for some weeks. Donne was dismissed from his post, and for the next decade had to struggle near poverty to support his growing family. Donne later summed up the experience: "John Donne, Anne Donne, Undone.‖ It was not until 1609 that a reconciliation was effected between Donne and his father-in-law, and Sir George More was finally induced to pay his daughter’s dowry.