Metaphysical Poetry

1. Name :- Kapdi Hareshwari
Roll no :- 10
Topic :- Metaphysical Poetry : John Donne
Sem :- M.A Sem -1
Presentation given by Dr. Dilip Barad sir
Paper no: 1 The Renaissance Literature

2. What is Metaphysical poetry ?
• The word “ meta “ “means beyond and “physical “ means physical nature .
• A group of poets emerged in the beginning of the seventeenth century, whose Poetry come to be known
as the Metaphysical poetry.
• Metaphysical poem is lyrical poem of 17 century.
•The term Metaphysical Metaphysical or Metaphysics in poetry is the fruit of Renaissance tree.
•A word Metaphysical first time used by Dr. Johnson in ” The lives of poet “.
• Originally the term ‘ Metaphysical Poetry ‘ was coined by John Dryden and later popularized by Samuel
Johnson in his book “Lives of the most Eminent English poets “ (1179-1781).

3. John Donne (1572-1631)
◦ Born in London 22, January 1572.
◦ He was a poet, Satirist, lawyer and priest
◦ He wrote on religion, sexuality, love and death.
◦ He was a metaphysical poet.
◦ His personal relationship with spirituality is at the
centre of much of his work.
◦ Psychological analysis

4. Major Metaphysical poets
•John Donne
• George Herbert
•Andrew Marvell
•Saint Robert Southwell
• Richard Crashaw
• Thomas Traherne
• Henry Vaughan

5. • “ The Flea “
• “The Ecstacy “
• “ The Damp “
• “The Sun Rising “
• “The Dream “
• “Song : Sweetest
Love , I do not go “
John Donne’s poems / His Metaphysical Poems

6. Characteristics of Metaphysical poem
use by John Donne
Poems
1. The Dream
2. The Ecstacy
3. A valediction Forbidding Mourning
Characteristics
1. ‘ Lightening’ , ‘Torch’ , ‘Mixture’ etc.
2. ‘Pregnant bank’ ,’ Pill on a bad’ , mixture
of things’,’ transplant’ , prince in prison,
etc.
3. In this poem John Donne compare his
wife to a compass.

7. ◦ Far- Fetched images
◦ Conceit
◦ Dramatic Quality
◦ All metaphysicals were the men of learning
◦ Paradox
Characteristics of Metaphysical
poetry

8. John Donne Metaphysical poet
◦ John Donne is the foremost metaphysical poet in English.
◦ Donne’s intellectual wit and energy, his passionate thought and his power of poetic argument
make him the first metaphysical poet in English.
◦ Dryden said that Donne “affects metaphysics “ an “ uses nice speculation of philosophy” in
his love poetry.
◦ Donne’s poem, “A Valediction : Forbidding Mourning” possesses all the characteristics features
of Metaphysical poetry.

9. The Flea is ideal example of the
Metaphysical by John Donne
◦ For example.
“Mark but this Flea, and Mark in this
How little that, which thou deniest me is
It sucke’d me first, and now sucks thee
And in this Flea our two blood mingled be.”
• Is taken from the field of Biology to expression of love.
• The Flea is a small insect used here as a theme for the expression of love.
• John Donne the master of Metaphysical was written by poem’The Flea’.
• Metaphoric conceit : connecting and comparing the seduction of a woman to the
biting of a flea.