Mark but this flea, and mark in this,
How little that which thou deniest me is ;
It suck'd 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 pamper'd swells with one blood made of two ;
And this, alas ! is more than we would do.
O 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, we're met,
And cloister'd 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.
Purpled thy nail in blood of innocence?
Wherein could this flea guilty be,
Except in that drop which it suck'd 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 honour, when thou yield'st to me,
Will waste, as this flea's death took life from thee
The theme in this poem is marriage. The speaker is trying to seduce a woman into marrying him. Donne uses a “Flea” to provide the reader with imagery “The Flea” is a symbol as a union. Flea also symbolizes the fact that it contains blood of the male and female making both their blood one as a tactic of persuasion. The speaker makes this with marriage, making the actual marriage ceremony seem like not a big deal, “we almost… married are,” the speaker tells his love, “this flea is you and I, and this...” There is conflict between the two who wish to marry but “though parents grudge” the parents as seen by the phrase.
ReplyDeleteHEHE i like this poem. Donne uses an unlike image like a Flea to symbolize love and romance. The speaker and his beloved are bitten and go through this conflict on whether they should marry or not. The beloved seems to refuse and when she kills the flea after the speaker tries to save it, the beloved completely refuses. This may be a call for sex and the bite from the flea can be a symbol of sin. Iambic pentameter is used as well.
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ReplyDeleteI agree with Sandra. The flea symbolizes sex. This poem was written in times when erotic images were forbidden, therefore, Donne uses this image to refer to sex and sin without running the risk to get in trouble with society. The speaker is trying to persuade his beloved to have sex with him and tells her that doing so before marriage won’t make her less honorable. Donne wrote this poem to rebel against society. He uses an image that alludes to sex without especially mentioning the word. However, the erotic image cannot be misinterpreted making those who were against sex in literature, clearly understand the meaning without being able to prove Donne’ real message. The Flea portrays Donne’s view towards sex and marriage. Marriage isn’t fully sacred and neither is sex. Sex before marriage is harmless and it shouldn’t be perceived as a sin.
ReplyDeleteJohn Donne uses the "flea" to symbolize sex. The author is trying to convince his future wife that having premarital sex is not bad. "Cruel and sudden, hast thou since
ReplyDeletePurpled thy nail in blood of innocence?
Wherein could this flea guilty be,
Except in that drop which it suck'd from thee?" right here the author is trying to explain to his wife that if them being in love is not a sin then why would them having sex be any different. The author knows that she wants to kill the "flea" thats why he says by killing the flea she is killing all three . By all three he is referring to himself, her and the flea itself. i agree with Yosselin that the John Donne is pointing out that sex before marriage shouldn't be perceived as a sin.