The Holy Sonnets written by John Donne are ripe with the images and extended metaphors typically associated with his work. Donne's imagery and biblical references reflect a solemn tone that underscores the sincerity of these sonnets.
In Sonnet 5, Donne begins a conceit by stating that he is in fact a miniature representation of the world. His comparison emphasizes the catastrophic nature of the discoveries of Galileo and the explorers of the new world on one person's religious worldview. The final quartet and couplet allude to biblical flood and fire and show the severity of pleading with God to allow the preservation of one's faith. Sonnet 10 deals with the subject of death. The imagery involved in this poem associates death with its causes such as war, poison and sickness and subjects it to the whim of fate, chance, king, and desperate men. This idea of death obeying these wills as a slave and cohorting with war and sickness personifies death and enhances the apostrophe by clearly depicting death and death's actions and thus adding an image to Donne's direct address of death.

another shot at getting my picture up...not one of my two blogs this week.

The duality of meaning in Shakespeare's Sonnet 138 jumped out at me initially as the subject for my next blog post but when I began to consider writing about it I decided to discard the idea for another since the sexual interpretation seemed to outshine the other. After reading it for a third time I decided that any greater emphasis on the one interpretation was due to human nature and the footnote's lead and I decided to analyze the text more closely for clues that would support an interpretation beyond that of an older man lamenting his younger lover's lack of faith.
The two interpretations that I will support with the text are 1) that the author of the poem's lover is proving unfaithful and 2) that the woman in the poem regrets being with such an older man. The double interpretation relies not only on multiple meanings of the numerous uses of the word "lies" but also on the notion in lines 3-6 that his lover thinks him young. On the one hand the lines can be interpreted as a man stating that he is not young and therefore not foolish. This interpretation supports the notion that the woman thinks she is fooling the author by having another lover. The other possible interpretation of these lines is keyed by the line "Thus vainly thinking that she thinks me young." The duality of this sentence rests in who is doing the thinking here; if it remains that she is vainly thinking that she thinks him young then the first interpretation holds, but if he is thinking this then the first two lines can be interpreted differently. That rather than lying to him about being unfaithful she is lying to him by pretending to feel that he is not too old for her. The third quatrain continues the duality, does the author muse that both he and his lover keep the "simple truth repressed" about their age difference or about illicit actions by the woman? Again it is left up to the reader's interpretation. Just as strong as the suggestiveness of a love affair is the reiteration of the subject of age in lines 10 and 11. The final couplet has little polarity concerning these two interpretations but leaves the couple lying together with their deceit. The woman about age or adultery and the author about his knowledge of his woman's deceit.

Sidney's 10th sonnet of Astrophil and Stella dances around the subject of reason. Thus my nearly cheating selection for the key word in this sonnet is the word Reason. The entire poem is an apostrophe addressing his own reason and berating it for getting in the way of and arguing against sense and love. The couplet provides a sort of turn in Reason's reasoning whereby rather than confusing and opposing the love he has for Stella Reason "offeredst straight to prove By reason good, good reason her to love." This turn represents a rationalization for the character of Astrophil as, at the end of the fourth quatrain he, and Reason, are "strake...with Stella's rays." Stella's beauty is apparently enough to bring Reason itself to heel.
This is some of the glossiest writing weve encountered thus far. AN EXAMPLE OF THIS IS THE AUXESIS LOCATED IN THE FIRST QUATRAIN OF THE FIRST SONNET. This build-up expresses Sidney's burgeoning emotion and need to express himself to Stella. It rushes the reader through the lines with a hint of the desperation Sidney must have felt. I'll save some other examples of his aesthetics for class but I just wanted to note the placement of the auxesis and that I found these sonnets particularly beautiful.

Great troupes of people traveild thitherward
Both day and night, of each degree and place,
But few returned, having scaped hard,
With balefull beggerie, or foule disgrace,
Which ever after in most wretched case,
Like loathsome lazars, by the hedges lay.
Thither Duessa bad him bend his pace:
For she is wearie of the toilesome way,
And also nigh consumed is the lingring day.

The literal action of this stanza mainly rests on the observations made, presumably by the Redcrosse Knight, as he approaches the House of Pride. A large number of people make their way to the palace. Yet few return and those who do are seen beggin wretchedly among the hedges. Duessa leads the Redcrosse Knight there pleading weariness.
The glaringly obvious metaphor that only becomes clearer in subsequent passages is the seemingly beautiful House of Pride's representation of sin and evil. This stanza provides the first clues to this as "great troupes of people...of each degree and place" travel there. The allegorical significance of the first two lines indicates that all people, regardless of rank, are susceptible to the sin and evil represented by the House of Pride.
The next four lines describe the state of those few who have returned from the House of Pride. Spenser provides two alliterations in these lines, describing these people as "baleful beggars" and "loathsome lazars." These alliterations intensify the wretchedness of these characters and the lines that contain them become parallel due to the similar placement of the alliterations. The simile that compares them to lepers(lazars) particularly emphasizes their sinful, outcast state as lepers were perhaps the most reviled sort of folk and it was widely believed that lepers were what they were due to their sins.
The final three lines serve as a justification for Duessa bringing the Redcrosse Knight to the House of Pride. It cites her weariness and the time of day. The endings of the couplet at the end rhyming way and day have a drawn-out sound that likens the phonetics to Duessa's weariness. It brings together the perfect sensibility of stopping at such a beautiful house at this time and covers Duessa nicely.

The Faerie Queene feels like a mash-up of Beowulf, King Arthur's tales, biblical references and Homer's epic poetry. The setting and storyline of the first canto of The Faerie Queene feels Arthurian and the battle with the serpent-woman recalls the biblical monsters of Revelation and I couldnt help recalling Grendel from Beowulf. Subsequently the manipulations of the older Greek gods of sleep and dreams feels Homeresque and all the while theres a fair few references to the Bible. Spenser alternates between telling the story and stopping to reference and/or allude to older texts. Spenser's overreferencing demands the attention of the reader and likely accomplishes its goal of positive association.
Spenser's form allows him to complete a thought in each stanza and moves the pace of the story that much faster. It feels like, were the story written in prose that each nine-line stanza would be a sentence. This helped me personally because although it was hard to keep up with his references and language I felt I could understand a flow of the story if I understood the general idea that each stanza conveyed.
The story seems fairly run-of-the-mill but the allusions and conveyance lies in the actions and reactions of the characters to the events in the story. The redcross knight becomes more of a symbol for holy righteousness than the emblem he bears on his shield.

The primary observation of interest that jumped off of the pages at me in Langland's Piers Plowman was each character's symbolic significance. The narrator's vision begins with an expansive view of these people clamoring for truth that turns into a long description of the scum of 14th-century England. But as the story moves into the search for this truth and the plowing of Piers' land the cast of characters begin to resemble Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. This parallel is most specific in the character of the knight whose steadfast loyalty transcribes him directly into the role of Piers' protector. Parsons, pardoners, and law-sergeants also make an appearance which show that both Langland and Chaucer had observations about people in certain positions they needed to express through verse.Langland's less detailed(than Chaucer) characterization serves to further establish the dreamlike setting. Nowhere in the text is his symbolic character representation more apparent or exaggerated than when he names Piers' family. He almost appears to be making fun of his own style when he states Pier's son's name "Suffer-Your-Sovereigns-To-Have-Their-Will-Condemn-Them-Not-For-If-You-Do-You'll-Pay-A-Dear-Price-Let-God-Have-His-Way-With-All-Things-For-So-His-Word-Teaches." Finally, Langland likens knowing God to a quest for truth and uses Love as a metaphor for Jesus. This allows him to play on the meanings of these words all while purporting his own beliefs about God and lambasting those who abuse or forsake the Truth and Love.

(Note : Two different fonts because I had to repaste this from Microsoft Word since blogger was being stupid)

The primary observation of interest that jumped off of the pages at me in Langland's Piers Plowman was each character's symbolic significance. The narrator's vision begins with an expansive view of these people clamoring for truth that turns into a long description of the scum of 14th-century England. But as the story moves into the search for this truth and the plowing of Piers' land the cast of characters begin to resemble Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. This parallel is most specific in the character of the knight whose steadfast loyalty transcribes him directly into the role of Piers' protector. Parsons, pardoners, and law-sergeants also make an appearance which show that both Langland and Chaucer had observations about people in certain positions they needed to express through verse.

Langland's less detailed(than Chaucer) characterization serves to further establish the dreamlike setting. Nowhere in the text is his symbolic character representation more apparent or exaggerated than when he names Piers' family. He almost appears to be making fun of his own style when he states Pier's son's name "Suffer-Your-Sovereigns-To-Have-Their-Will-Condemn-Them-Not-For-If-You-Do-You'll-Pay-A-Dear-Price-
Let-God-Have-His-Way-With-All-Things-For-So-His-Word-Teaches."
Finally, Langland likens knowing God to a quest for truth and uses Love as a metaphor for Jesus. This allows him to play on the meanings of these words all while purporting his own beliefs about God and lambasting those who abuse or forsake the Truth and Love.

The primary observation of interest that jumped off of the pages at me in Langland's Piers Plowman was each character's symbolic significance. The narrator's vision begins with an expansive view of these people clamoring for truth that turns into a long description of the scum of 14th-century England. But as the story moves into the search for this truth and the plowing of Piers' land the cast of characters begin to resemble Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. This parallel is most specific in the character of the knight whose steadfast loyalty transcribes him directly into the role of Piers' protector. Parsons, pardoners, and law-sergeants also make an appearance which show that both Langland and Chaucer had observations about people in certain positions they needed to express through verse.
Langland's less detailed(than Chaucer) characterization serves to further establish the dreamlike setting. Nowhere in the text is his symbolic character representation more apparent or exaggerated than when he names Piers' family. He almost appears to be making fun of his own style when he states Pier's son's name "Suffer-Your-Sovereigns-To-Have-Their-Will-Condemn-Them-Not-For-If-You-Do-You'll-Pay-A-Dear-Price-
Let-God-Have-His-Way-With-All-Things-For-So-His-Word-Teaches."
Finally, Langland likens knowing God to a quest for truth and uses Love as a metaphor for Jesus. This allows him to play on the meanings of these words all while purporting his own beliefs about God and lambasting those who abuse or forsake the Truth and Love.

The primary observation of interest that jumped off of the pages at me in Langland's Piers Plowman was each character's symbolic significance. The narrator's vision begins with an expansive view of these people clamoring for truth that turns into a long description of the scum of 14th-century England. But as the story moves into the search for this truth and the plowing of Piers' land the cast of characters begin to resemble Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. This parallel is most specific in the character of the knight whose steadfast loyalty transcribes him directly into the role of Piers' protector. Parsons, pardoners, and law-sergeants also make an appearance which show that both Langland and Chaucer had observations about people in certain positions they needed to express through verse.
Langland's less detailed(than Chaucer) characterization serves to further establish the dreamlike setting. Nowhere in the text is his symbolic character representation more apparent or exaggerated than when he names Piers' family. He almost appears to be making fun of his own style when he states Pier's son's name "Suffer-Your-Sovereigns-To-Have-Their-Will-Condemn-Them-Not-For-If-You-Do-You'll-Pay-A-Dear-Price-
Let-God-Have-His-Way-With-All-Things-For-So-His-Word-Teaches."
Finally, Langland likens knowing God to a quest for truth and uses Love as a metaphor for Jesus. This allows him to play on the meanings of these words all while purporting his own beliefs about God and lambasting those who abuse or forsake the Truth and Love.

The primary observation of interest that jumped off of the pages at me in Langland's Piers Plowman was each character's symbolic significance. The narrator's vision begins with an expansive view of these people clamoring for truth that turns into a long description of the scum of 14th-century England. But as the story moves into the search for this truth and the plowing of Piers' land the cast of characters begin to resemble Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. This parallel is most specific in the character of the knight whose steadfast loyalty transcribes him directly into the role of Piers' protector. Parsons, pardoners, and law-sergeants also make an appearance which show that both Langland and Chaucer had observations about people in certain positions they needed to express through verse.
Langland's less detailed(than Chaucer) characterization serves to further establish the dreamlike setting. Nowhere in the text is his symbolic character representation more apparent or exaggerated than when he names Piers' family. He almost appears to be making fun of his own style when he states Pier's son's name "Suffer-Your-Sovereigns-To-Have-Their-Will-Condemn-Them-Not-For-If-You-Do-You'll-Pay-A-Dear-Price-
Let-God-Have-His-Way-With-All-Things-For-So-His-Word-Teaches."
Finally, Langland likens knowing God to a quest for truth and uses Love as a metaphor for Jesus. This allows him to play on the meanings of these words all while purporting his own beliefs about God and lambasting those who abuse or forsake the Truth and Love.

Ah the tale told by the sweet old "gat-toothed" Wife of Bath. I found a few details particularly interesting about her both from the general prologue and her own lenghty preamble. The first is her "gat-toothed" description which denotes her as amorous. Its a nice changeup from the crudeness of the Miller and seems to be part of a logcal progression by Chaucer. From noble (Knight) to crude and drunken(Miller) to amorous. Another standout characteristic is her devout religiousness which, while it may not pervade her everyday actions, it certainly finds its way into her rhetoric. There are a number of biblical references in her prologue. The final interesting tidbit that stuck out to me was her five husbands. And the ironic peculiarity that the one who was cruelest to her was the one that she loved the most. This, of course, establishes the Wife of Bath's character and does an excellent job of setting up her story. These traits combine to make the Wife of Bath the least archetypical of the tale-tellers thus far. While the other characters have their peculiarities the Wife of Bath seems to be entirely composed of them.
The tale itself, set in a world of faeries and knights, provides a unique situation in which a man must give mastery over his life to a woman and finds that this results in the best possible outcome for everyone involved. The assertion that this tale is a Feminist one is arguable. At the very least, I would state that the Wife of Bath is an anti-anti-feminist. She doesnt exactly make demands for women in her society but she does address anti-feminist sentiments and writings. The ultimate conclusion, that a woman desires mastery in the relationship and that all benefit from it clearly conveys the Wife of Bath's fantasy and reflects her final marriage. Im looking forward to discussing this in class. See you there!