Donne's "The Flea" Commentary

"The Flea" by John Donne

Mark but this flea, and mark in this,
How little that which thou deny'st me is;
It sucked me first, and now sucks thee,
And in this flea our two bloods mingled be;
Thou know'st that this cannot be said
A sin, nor shame, nor loss of maidenhead;
Yet this enjoys before it woo,
And pampered swells with one blood made of two,
And this, alas, is more than we would do.

Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare,
Where we almost, yea, more than married are.
This flea is you and I, and this
Our marriage bed, and marriage temple is;
Though parents grudge, and you, w'are met,
And cloistered in these living walls of jet.
Though use make you apt to kill me,
Let not to that, self-murder added be,
And sacrilege, three sins in killing three.

Cruel and sudden, hast thou since
Purpled thy nail in blood of innocence?
Wherein could this flea guilty be,
Except in that drop which it sucked from thee?
Yet thou triumph'st and say'st that thou
Find'st not thyself, nor me the weaker now;
'Tis true, then learn how false fears be:
Just so much honor, when thou yield'st to me,
Will waste, as this flea's death took life from thee.

Commentary

In John Donne’s poem “The Flea”, the diction, imagery, and constant use of metaphors creates a comical, yet persuasive and argumentative tone, which exhibits another one of Donne’s metaphysical poems. Donne uses unusual images to resemble symbols of love and romance. The image of the flea biting the speaker and then his beloved metaphorically represents the two engaging in premarital sex. Using the innocence of the image “two bloods mingled” within the flea, the speaker wants to convince his lover that sexually mingling would be equally innocent.

In the first stanza the speaker says, the flea “sucked me first, and now sucks thee, and in this flea our two bloods mingled be”. The speaker is implying that the flea has sucked his blood first and then his beloved, so now inside the flea’s body they are “mingled”, hence in a sense they have already had sex, though the lover denies him. The speaker tries to reason with the lover and suggests that their blood mingling in the body is neither “a sin, nor shame”. The speaker argues that the flea is not a big deal, hence losing her virginity would not be either.

In the second stanza, the speaker persuades the speaker and says, “Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare, where we almost, yea, more than married are.” The three lives the speaker is referring to are himself, his lover, and the flea. The speaker is suggesting that by allowing the flea to cause their blood to conjoin, the two have had sex in its body, therefore they have become “more than married are” though they are not married at all. The speaker metaphorically refers to the flea as their “marriage bed” and “marriage temple” as the flea is sacred and he tries to prevent the lover from killing it. The speaker exaggerates using the words “self-murder” and “sacrilege” to guilt and convince the lover that in killing the flea, she will be but also killing herself and the speaker.

By the third stanza, the lover does not fall for the persuasive accusations the speaker makes throughout the play as the lover “purpled thy nail”, evidently squashing the flea. So the speaker calls the lover “cruel and sudden” having killed the innocent flea, which also destroyed the hopes of sexual relations between the two. The speaker suggests to the lover that she should not fear the loss of honor as long as she surrenders her virginity to him.

In conclusion, Donne uses diction, imagery, and figurative language to convince his lover to have premarital sex with him. These devices create a seductive and argumentative, yet comical tone throughout the play. Using the innocence of the image “two bloods mingled” within the flea, the speaker wants to convince his lover that sexually mingling and the loss of her virginity would also be innocent.

Commentary on John Donne's "The Good-Morrow"

"The Good-Morrow"
by John Donne

I wonder, by my troth, what thou and I
Did, till we loved? Were we not weaned till then?
But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?
Or snorted we in the Seven Sleepers' den?
'Twas so; but this, all pleasures fancies be.
If ever any beauty I did see,
Which I desired, and got, 'twas but a dream of thee.

And now good-morrow to our waking souls,
Which watch not one another out of fear;
For love, all love of other sights controls,
And makes one little room an everywhere.
Let sea-discoveres to new worlds have shown,
Let us possess one world, each hath one, and is one.

My face in thine eye, thine in mine appears,
And true plain hearts do in the faces rest;
Where can we find two better hemispheres,
Without sharp north, without declining west?
Whatever dies was not mixed equally,
If our two loves be one, or, thou and I
Love so alike that none do slacken, none can die.

Commentary

In John Donne’s poem “The Good-Morrow” the speaker uses repetition, diction, and rhetorical questions to express his ideas and feelings of the maturing love he has for a significant other. As the poem is broken down in three stanzas, each stanza signifies a particular phase in growth of love that these two lovers share together. Through the structure of the poem we see how the relationship these lovers share progresses from an immature and childlike relationship and develops into an eternal love for one another.

In the first stanza the writer uses word choice and rhetorical questions to express his love he once had for an individual. The speaker states “Did, till we loved? Were we not weaned till then? But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?” Here the speaker’s tone is lustful. With that, this suggests that the love they once had was childish, naïve, and immature. It seems as though their relationship was nothing more than that. A rhetorical question the speaker uses says, “Or snorted we in the Seven Sleepers’ den?” The allusion the writer uses also refers back to his youth. As he questions where the time went, this indication suggests the love he once had was never really true love. Also, the use of the words “I wonder” and “dream” resembles the love he wished he had with his lover, but he has yet to have that connection with her.

Again, in the second stanza the speaker uses rhetorical questions and diction to express the change and transition from immature love in exchange for the hopes of true love. The speaker states, “and now good-morrow to our waking souls”. As the speaker awakes from his dream in “good-morrow”, literally good morning, he realizes his hopes for true love. As he comes to this realization, the repetition of the words “let” and “world” broaden the opportunities of vast love the speaker wants to share with his lover.

In the third stanza, there is again a transition in the speaker’s emotions towards his lover. As the poem changes stanzas, so does the speaker’s view on love. The speaker states, “My face in thine eye, thine in mine appears”. As the speaker’s eyes get lost in his lovers, this assures he has found true love. As the speaker concludes, “Love so alike that none do slacken, none can die”, he is sure that their love is everlasting and they are meant to be together as he looks forward to the future.

To conclude, in John Donne’s poem “The Good-Morrow”, the use of the rhetorical question, diction, and repetition of words express the changes of love the speaker has for his lover from stanza to stanza. Stanza to stanza, we see how the love matures. The speaker begins to reminisce of the immature love he once had, only to dream of the love he wishes he had, and concludes that he has found that true love.