Poetry Analysis

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Busy old fool, unruly sun,

Original Poetry

Translation

Busy old fool, unruly sun,

Why dost thou thus,

Through windows, and through curtains call on us?

Must to thy motions lovers' seasons run?

Saucy pedantic wretch, go chide

Late school boys and sour prentices,

Go tell court huntsmen that the king will ride,

Call country ants to harvest offices,

Love, all alike, no season knows nor clime,

Nor hours, days, months, which are the rags of time.

Thy beams, so reverend and strong

Why shouldst thou think?

I could eclipse and cloud them with a wink,

But that I would not lose her sight so long;

If her eyes have not blinded thine,

Look, and tomorrow late, tell me,

Whether both th' Indias of spice and mine

Be where thou leftst them, or lie here with me.

Ask for those kings whom thou saw'st yesterday,

And thou shalt hear, All here in one bed lay.

She's all states, and all princes, I,

Nothing else is.

Princes do but play us; compared to this,

All honor's mimic, all wealth alchemy.

Thou, sun, art half as happy as we,

In that the world's contracted thus.

Thine age asks ease, and since thy duties be

To warm the world, that's done in warming us.

Shine here to us, and thou art everywhere;

This bed thy center is, these walls, thy sphere.

Explanation

John Donne's 'The Sun Rising' is a metaphysical poem that personifies the sun as an intrusive force in the lives of lovers. The speaker chastises the sun for interrupting their private world, suggesting that love transcends time and space. The poem uses a playful tone to diminish the sun's power, asserting that love is not bound by the sun's cycles. The speaker claims that their love is the center of the universe, making the sun's duties redundant. The poem is rich in metaphysical conceits, using elaborate comparisons to convey the intensity and supremacy of love. Donne's use of direct address, irony, and hyperbole emphasizes the lovers' defiance against external forces and celebrates the timeless nature of their union.

Word Dictionary15

Word	In English	Plain (English)	Pron.
unruly	disorderly, uncontrollable	difficult to control or manage	uhn-roo-lee
dost	do	do	dust
thou	you	you	thou
thy	your	your	thigh
saucy	cheeky, impudent	boldly disrespectful	saw-see
pedantic	overly concerned with rules	excessively concerned with minor details or rules	puh-dan-tik
wretch	miserable person	a person regarded with pity or contempt	retch
prentices	apprentices	people learning a trade	pren-tuh-siz
reverend	respected	worthy of respect	rev-er-uhnd
eclipse	obscure, block	to block out or overshadow	ih-klips
clime	climate, region	a region considered with reference to its climate	klahym
alchemy	magical transformation	a seemingly magical process of transformation	al-kuh-mee
sphere	area, domain	a round object or area of influence	sfeer
mimic	imitate, copy	to imitate or copy closely	mim-ik
contracted	shrunk, reduced	made smaller or reduced in size	kuhn-trak-tid

Poet & Context

PoetJohn Donne

EraMetaphysical poetry, early 17th century

John Donne (1571/1572 – 1631) was an English poet, scholar, and cleric in the Church of England. Known for his metaphysical poetry, Donne's works are characterized by their metaphorical and sensual style. He served as Dean of St Paul's Cathedral and is famous for his mastery of metaphysical conceits.

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WhenEarly 17th century

WhyJohn Donne's 'The Sun Rising' is a metaphysical poem that challenges the authority of the sun and highlights the timelessness and supremacy of love over worldly concerns. It reflects Donne's style of using metaphysical conceits to explore complex themes.

FormMetaphysical poetry

Themes & More

Themes

LoveTimeNature vs. Human ExperienceDefiance

Literary devices

Personification: The sun is addressed as a person who can be spoken to.Metaphysical conceit: Elaborate comparisons between the sun's duties and the lovers' experience.Hyperbole: Exaggeration of the lovers' importance compared to the sun.Irony: The sun, a powerful force, is mocked and diminished by the speaker.Imagery: Vivid descriptions of the sun's beams and the lovers' intimate setting.