Donne’s “A Valediction: Forbiding Mourning” and Marvell’s “To His Coy Mistress” are indistinguishable and contradictory in many respects. Although “A Valediction” dressed ores on the comfort of love on farewell and “To His Coy Mistress” contemplates about sexual love and the briefness of life. both exemplify features of metaphysical poesy. Metaphysical poesy is about the profound countries of experience. particularly about love. romantic and animal. and. to a lesser extent. about pleasance. acquisition. and art.

Metaphysical verse forms are brief but intense speculations. characterized by a dramatic usage of humor. sarcasm and pun. Beneath this slightly formal construction is the implicit in agreement of the poem’s statement. In “To His Coy Mistress” the expressed statement ( Marvell’s petition that the coy lady output to his passion ) is a background for the more serious statement about the demand for pleasance and to populate life to the fullest before decease. The outward elation conceals a deep earnestness of purpose. This verse form finds the pretension of passion used to hang serious contemplations on the brevity of felicity. or in other words. the chief point of a carpe diem verse form. In “A Valediction: Forbiding Mourning” the statement is non logically persuasive as Marvell’s verse form proved. but the inventiveness and nuance of Donne’s method are deviating in that a alone adult female might be comforted. She can non alter the fact of the lover go forthing. but the poem provinces grounds of the unity of the love he has professed therefore far.

The imagination used by the poets can besides be applied as a footing for comparing and contrasting. Donne writes in a wide-ranging and vague method. He did non compose for publication. but showed verse forms to friends whom he supposed to be good read plenty to understand these mentions. Donne’s imagination draws on the new acquisition of the English Renaissance and on topical finds and geographic expedition. For illustration. line 11’s “But trepidation of the spheres” is a mention to the domains of cosmology during the epoch. With Marvell. imagination is more hard.

Unlike Donne who scatters metaphors freely. Marvell is more selective and saving. Very frequently the image is more memorable and striking than the thought it expresses. as with the “deserts of huge eternity” . while often one finds an thought which can non be understood except as the image in which Marvell expresses it. as with the “amorous birds of quarry. instead at one time our clip devour” . In any instance. likewise with these two poets. the usage of the metaphor remains low-level to the metaphysical statement.

Both poets. though they on occasion display their higher acquisition. compose with reasonably conversational voices. However. Marvell exhibits more assortment in the voice. The 2nd individual is found in “To His Coy Mistress” . When Donne does this. it is assumed that an confidant reference to a existent adult female is intended. But Marvell’s “Coy Mistress” is evidently absent. a mere alibi for Marvell to analyze his existent carpe diem topics. clip and the shortness of human felicity.

The construction and punctuation in each verse form besides reveal cardinal differences. The same eight-syllable iambic line is continuously found in “To His Coy Mistress” . The vigorousness of the statement appears in the breathless lines. Few are end-stopped. and the lines have the unsmooth power of address. Donne. on the other manus. carries his statement utilizing four line stanzas in “A Valediction: Forbiding Mourning” . Unlike Donne. who is prepared to let some deficiency of punctuation ( between foremost and 2nd stanzas and often within all the stanzas ) . Marvell’s stanza here has a close metronomic quality. A punctuation grade at the terminal of the 2nd line exaggerates the riming syllable. which is matched at the terminal of the stanza.

Although discoursing different topics. both verse forms are illustrations of metaphysical poesy. Through their different images and manners of composing. Marvell was able to exemplify the carpe diem subject of the shortness of life and populating it to the fullest. while Donne expressed the solace of love on go forthing. The writers are able to convey their messages to the reader through these difference and similarities. functioning their literary intent.