In: Psychology
To His Coy Mistress In this poem, Marvell speaker sets outs to convince a reluctant woman to become his lover. To make his case more persuasive, he uses hyperbole, exaggerating time period, sizes, spaces, and the possible fate of the woman if she refuses him. Identify as many examples of hyperbole as you can The tone of "To his Coy Mistress" is more whimsical than serious. Given this tone, what do you see as the purpose of Marvell's use of hyperbole?
In Marvell's poem, "To His Coy Mistress," the tone may be humorous in that it expresses the speaker's impatience. The theme of the poem is based upon its first two lines:
Had we but world enough, and time,
This coyness, Lady, were no crime.
Marvell seems to embrace the Cavalier sentiment of "carpe diem," seize the day.
The young man employs syllogistic flattery and reality simultaneously. He suggests that for someone whose countenance is so beautiful, she could postpone responding to his loving supplications by journeying to exotic, faraway lands, such as the banks of the river Ganges, while he would continue to mourn the separation and unresponsiveness by the river Humber.However, in the same breath, he insists that in reality, youth is fleeting and so, she must accept his proposal immediately.
He compares Time to an entity which flies a "chariot." (But at my back I always hear/Time's winged chariot hurrying near).