Metaphysical poetry General features The Metaphysical poets were a [602316]

Metaphysical poetry General features The Metaphysical poets were a
group of writers of the 17 th century, whose leader was John Donne, that
reflected the crisis of their age through a new way of writing. The phrase
"Metaphysical poetry", which identifies the literary production of this
period, was created later and could be misleading: in fact in its literal
meaning it concerns with the main problems of nature, universe and
man's life. Although Metaphysical poetry can't be considered a real
literary movement, the poets who wrote during this period had some
common features: they were men of "wit", that was the capacity of
dealing with lots of subjects, such as geography, alchemy, natural
science, medicine and so on. Besides they made a large use of the
"conceit", a particular kind of metaphor whose language was much more
difficult and rich of latinisms and archaic words. Through the choice of a
style so difficult and elevated, the poets tried to pin down what seemed
ungraspable. Dramatic element are one of the most important
characteristic of their poems, basing on different verse- forms. During
the 18th century these poets and their art were obscured by the success
of the Enlightenment. Their importance was revalued only by a modern
writer, Thomas Eliot, who understood that their way of writing was
deeply influenced by the crisis of that period. Two Metaphysical poets:
John Donne and John Milton John Donne · Life John Donne was born a
few years after Shakespeare. His parents were both Catholic, so the
education he received allowed him to have a perfect knowledge of Latin
and Greek. His literary career started with the composition of some love
lyrics and satires, which had a great success among his circle of friends.
When an expedition against Spain was organised, he decided to leave as
a volunteer: so he experienced lots of adventures and when came back to
England found in front of himself the prospect of a successful political
career. He ruined his bright future by marring a sixteen- years- old, who
gave him twelve children. From now he lived in poverty and illness and
decided to take the holy orders: soon he became Dean of St Paul's, but
above all one of the most admired preachers of London, whose sermons
attracted big crowds of people from every corner of the town. · Main
works Donne's sermons became immediately famous, while his literary
production was little known outside the circle of his friends: his
importance as a poet was known only after his death. This production
includes: 1. Songs and Sonnets; 2. Elegies; 3. Satires; 4. Divine Poems; 5.
Sermons or Meditations. · Unconventional poetry Donne was an
innovator, who sacrificed melody, courtly grace and mythological
references in order to create a new way of writing, based on two things:
"wit" and "conceit". This choice refers to style, imagery, language and
form. He liked to surprise the reader with a vivid speech and to present a

man deeply absorbed in the personal experiences of his own. The tones
of the language are vary and often change with an extraordinary rapidity.
· Sensual and spiritual imagery Donne rejected the conventional forms.
His imagery is characterised by the struggle between physical and
spiritual; his poems are rich of metaphors, which allude both to religion
and to physical love. The main images of Donne's poetry are "Death" and
"World", the world of lovers. These images are always joined. His works
concern with lots of subjects, like the "wit" wanted, and every argument
is conceived to create strong emotions. · The Metaphysical conceit
Besides to a large use of the conceit, Donne's poetry is characterised by
the "roughness": it consists of the use of rhyme, metre, alliteration and
other sound effects. John Milton · Life and main works John Milton's
literary production reflects the main aspects of his time. His life can be
divided into three periods: 1. The first period includes his education and
his first political experiences: he learnt Latin, Greek and Italian and
wrote his first poems, all about religious themes. So he started to travel
around Europe and when came back to England decided to side with
Cromwell and Parliament, that admired his great religious tolerance.
Later he married the daughter of a Royalist, but she soon abandoned
him because of his intellectual stature, too high for her. This experience
brought him to justify divorce in a series of pamphlets. 2. The second
period includes his main public offices and his prose production. The
pamphlets he started to write were based on his knowledge of Latin and
among them we can remember Aeropagitica, about the freedom of he
press; Of Education, dealing with the importance of culture;
Eikonoklastes; explaining the king's execution. During this period the
poet became Latin Secretary to the Council of State, but he chose to turn
back to poetry because of the loss of his sight. He also continued to write
anti- monarchical pamphlets until the year of Restoration. 3. The third
period was the one of disillusion, during which he was imprisoned
because of his political ideas and soon released. It was the period of his
masterpieces: Paradise Lost, Paradise Regained, Samson Agonistes. ·
Paradise Lost Paradise Lost, whose central theme is the fall of Satan in
the Hell, is an epic poem: Milton chose this genre because of the
importance of the arguments he wanted to deal with. In fact the epic
poem, born before writing as long narrative texts recited in front of an
audience, celebrates the deeds of a hero, and because of the struggle
between two opposing religious forces, Milton's masterpiece can be
called a "religious epic poem". The events take place in Hell, Heaven and
Eden, while the characters are no longer warriors, but Satan, God, Christ
and Man. Milton decided to exchange the traditional themes for more
spiritual and philosophical arguments, reflecting the spirit of the period

he lived. Although the author lived during the scientific revolution, he
based his universe on the old Ptolemaic system: in fact he judged the
Copernican universe too wide and found easier to work in a more limited
world, like the Ptolemaic universe was. In Milton's universe God sits on
his throne surrounded by the nine orders of angels; the tenth was turned
into a dreadful reign because of the rebellion of an angel, Satan. This
reign was called Hell, out f which God created the Earth, fixing it in the
centre of the universe. Satan is the hero of the poem: Milton gave him all
the characteristics of the traditional heroes: courage, leadership and
ambitions, which turn into the desire of attacking man, a God's creature,
and of escaping from Hell. Satan can be considered an autobiographical
character: his rebellion against God seems to reflect the rebellion of the
author against the king and the Church of England. The style of the
poem is elevated, based on the Latin syntax and rich of latisisms, using a
new kind of blankverse.