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Metaphysical Poets Don T Follow The Code

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Metaphysical poets don’t “follow the code”; they bend the “traditional” rules by taking unrelated ideas and gluing them together. These poets desire to shake up the foundation of what’s known and show one a world that would otherwise be hidden from social thinking. There are several characteristics that aid to the categorizing of a poet’s work: the lack of end-stopping a line, use of everyday language, analysis of an emotion over the expression of it, and a conceit that combines two seemingly unrelated ideas into one. John Donne falls into this classification of writers due to his technique and wit. According to The Poetry Foundation, Donne’s poetry was considered crude during its publication after his death and was historically unpopular. …show more content…

The flea has metamorphosed from a bug, to a marriage bed. Which, of course, is totally reasonable. After all, their blood, their life’s essence, are blended into a single element. This work is a prime example of metaphysical poetry because it takes a flea and compares it to marriage. Equally important is the use of everyday language; there is no overly grandiose language that enables one to look up every other word to be able to enjoy the piece. In fact, the only word that a person may not be familiar with in modern times is “maidenhead” which according to the Oxford English Dictionary means “The state or condition of being a virgin, virginity…” (OED). The second poem by Donne that feature some of his talent is “A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning”. The poem is about true love, a stark contrast to the previous one mentioned. Here Donne explores the feeling of love rather than acting on it, comparing love to a compass (the kind used in mapmaking) with each person as a leg; they are individuals connected by the same feeling. In addition, no matter how far the lovers travel from each other, their devotion to one another stays in tact and unites them

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