Author Archives: Mariam-Boubacar Nimaga

Holy Sonnets-10

Donne personifies death in sonnet 10, which is common, but he claims that death has no real power. Death is inferior to “fate, chance, kings and desperate men.” Drugs (opium) are superior to death because it “makes us sleep as well.”In this instance, Donne takes something that is perceived as macro (death) and makes it micro. Donne mentions that death will die, which seems like he is equating death to humans. But he says death cannot kill him, thus also making humans superior to death. Ironically, this sonnet was published two years after Donne’s death, but we are still reading his work today.

Book of Common Prayer

I think Sarah brought up an interesting point about relating the marriage ceremony to the public/private discussion we were having in class. While reading I also noticed the line, “I require and charge you (as you will answer at the dreadful day of judgement, when the secrets of all hearts shall be disclosed) that if either of you do know any impediment why ye may not be lawfully joined together in matrimony, that ye confess it.” Although not said word for word, this is something that is still said in weddings today. It shows that marriage is not a private event, and that the joining of two people includes the opinions of their communities or families. I think this also reminds me of why people choose to have a ceremony and invite guests in the first place. Many book religions state the importance of having “legal witnesses” in weddings to legitimize the union of two people, and whether or not it is religious, ceremonies are a huge part of wedding culture today, thus making it more public than private.

Hero and Leander

My group and I didn’t get to share some of our ideas about Hero, but we mostly talked about her double nature and how contradictory it was. Her clothes were described as being made of “lawn.” In the footnotes this was described as “as kind of fine linen or thin cambric.” The thinner fabric suggested to me that her clothes were see through, which plays on the doubleness of Hero’s nature as hyper-sexualized and virginal. The blood on her dress show how much she is desired by men, but it also symbolizes that her dress has been tainted by the blood and therefore isn’t as innocent as she is perceived to be.

Theme of Sonnets in Twelfth Night

I found it interesting that Professor Kitch raised a question about the relation between Shakespeare’s sonnets and Twelfth Night. While reading, Viola says to Olivia, “Lady, you are the cruell’st she alive if you lead these graces to the grave and leave the world no copy” (1058). The theme of sonnets 1-10 are prominent in this conversation. Viola tries to convince Olivia to marry Orsino and have a child to reproduce her beauty. Olivia does not understand Viola and replies, “I will give out divers schedules of my beauty. It shall be inventoried…” In this scene, Olivia is the young man from sonnets 1-10, while Viola is used as a mouthpiece to reinforce Shakespeare’s beliefs.

Britomart

In book 3 canto 1, Arthur and Sir Guyon chase after Florimell with the intention of saving her, as well as marrying her as we discussed in class. They were not able to fight off their temptation, but I find it interesting that later on in book 3 we find out that Britomart was not distracted by Florimell because she had to fulfill her own quest: to find her destined husband, Artegall. It seems as if Britomart, Sir Guyon, and Arthur are on the same chase. Although Britomart knows Artegall will be her husband as told by Merlin, is she able to fight her temptation of love? It is clear that she isn’t able to because Glauce is concerned about Britomart, and she is described as having a sickness:

Old Glauce call, to cure this Lady’s Grief:
Full many ways she sought, but none could find,
Nor Herbs, nor Charms, nor Counsel, that is chief
And choicest Med’cine for sick Heart’s Relief

Edmund Spencer 37 & 67

Edmund Spencer’s sonnet 37 and 67 from Amoretti are interesting because they reverse the conventional gender roles often seen in poems like “The Passionate Shepherd to his Love.” In sonnet 37, the speaker mentions that women’s appearance often deceives men because of how well they are presented. One example he includes is the woman’s hair which is wrapped in a net of gold, but he does not know what is hair or what is gold. Her beauty causes him to loose his power in differentiating what is real and what is not. He states, “In which if ever ye entrapped are, Out of her bands ye by no means shall get.” The woman he describes is the one who seduces or does the wooing. Men have the weaker hearts, and are depicted to succumb to the power of women’s beauty. In sonnet 67, Spencer uses the hunting metaphor that we’ve seen in “Whoso List To Hunt” by Wyatt, but he gives the woman or the dear the power. Although he believes he is hunting the dear, he is not successful until the dear returns on her own will. The dear allows him to capture her, which could be interpreted as a man cannot get a woman unless she wants him to. Because the dear makes the decision, it shows that she controls the fate of their relationship. The dear has done the hunting, and she chose him, rather than the opposite.