Metaphysical Poetry

The metaphysical poets, a group of 17th-century writers including John Donne (pictured to the right), George Herbert, and Andrew Marvell, stand as luminaries in English literature, crafting poetry that defies conventional norms and challenges readers with its intellectual depth and complexity. Their works are marked by a fusion of passionate lyricism and intricate metaphysical conceits, where abstract ideas are explored through vivid, often paradoxical imagery.

This distinctive style demands an engaged and discerning reader, as the metaphysical poets delve into profound philosophical and theological inquiries, blending the spiritual and the earthly. The intricacy of their language and the density of their metaphors create a poetic terrain that requires careful navigation, inviting readers to unravel layers of meaning and appreciate the nuanced interplay of intellect and emotion. In this exploration, we will delve into the unique qualities of metaphysical poetry, examining how its challenging nature contributes to its enduring significance in the canon of English literary tradition.

Qualities of Metaphysical Poetry

Here are some qualities of Metaphysical Poetry. Often you will need to re-read even a short poem to follow the complexity of the figurative language.

Intellectual Complexity: Metaphysical poetry is characterized by its intellectual depth, as poets engage in intricate explorations of abstract concepts, philosophical inquiries, and complex ideas.
Conceits and Metaphors: Poets of this tradition employ elaborate metaphysical conceits—extended and often paradoxical metaphors—that draw unexpected connections between seemingly unrelated elements, challenging readers to decipher layers of meaning.
Emotional Intensity: While intellectually rigorous, metaphysical poetry also exhibits a profound emotional intensity. Poets fuse intellectual inquiry with passionate expression, creating a dynamic interplay between reason and emotion.
Unconventional Themes: Metaphysical poets often delve into unconventional and thought-provoking themes, addressing topics such as the nature of love, the relationship between the spiritual and the earthly, and profound reflections on existence.
Complex Syntax and Language: The use of intricate syntax and language is a hallmark of metaphysical poetry. Poets manipulate words and phrases with precision, creating a dense linguistic texture that adds to the challenge of unraveling the layers of meaning within their works.

Reading John Donne's "The Broken Heart"

Let's examine John Donne's "The Broken Heart" and evaluate some sample essays. Despite the intricacy of the poetry, you can apply the literary techniques introduced previously to construct a robust analysis. Additionally, consider referring to the rubrics for more detailed descriptors of individual scoring elements such as thesis, evidence, and sophistication.

Clytie is transformed into a sunflower in this painting by Charles de La Fosse

He is stark mad, whoever says,
  That he hath been in love an hour,
Yet not that love so soon decays,
  But that it can ten in less space devour;
Who will believe me, if I swear
That I have had the plague a year?
  Who would not laugh at me, if I should say
  I saw a flash of powder burn a day?

Ah, what a trifle is a heart,
  If once into love’s hands it come!
All other griefs allow a part
  To other griefs, and ask themselves but some;
They come to us, but us love draws;
He swallows us and never chaws;
  By him, as by chain’d shot, whole ranks do die;
  He is the tyrant pike, our hearts the fry.

If ’twere not so, what did become
  Of my heart when I first saw thee?
I brought a heart into the room,
  But from the room I carried none with me.
If it had gone to thee, I know
Mine would have taught thine heart to show
  More pity unto me; but Love, alas!
  At one first blow did shiver it as glass.

Yet nothing can to nothing fall,
  Nor any place be empty quite;
Therefore I think my breast hath all
  Those pieces still, though they be not unite;
And now, as broken glasses show
A hundred lesser faces, so
  My rags of heart can like, wish, and adore,
  But after one such love, can love no more.

Image note: Charles de La Fosse painted Clytie Transformed into a Sunflower in 1688. How does such an image of transformation, using classical themes, tie in with metaphysical poetry?

Sample Scoring

For the following written responses to John Donne's poem, determine what score you would give each. For reference, download a copy of the FRQ Rubrics from AP Central.

As a reminder, we have the ability to earn up to six points:

0-1 points for the thesis
0-4 points for evidence and commentary
0-1 points for sophistication

After you've provided your score, you can review the scores from AP below. Can you accurately grade each response?

Response 1
Response 2
Response 3
Response 4

Throughout history, innumerable poets have commented on the nature of love. Each poet uses his own style to convey his attitude toward love. In "The Broken Heart," John Donne uses imagery to reveal his view of love as a powerful, consuming, and cruel force.

The first stanza indicates Donne's belief that Love does not occur gradually; instead, it can "devour" ten people in less space than an hour. By using the image of Love devouring the lover, the author indicates the lack of choice of the lover; falling in love is an involuntary process that occurs instantaneously. He then uses the ideas of "[having] the plague a year" and "[seeing] a flask of powder burn a day" as comparable occurrences—they are as hard to comprehend or believe. Having shown the immediacy of Love, Donne then illustrates the power of love. He uses the image of the heart as a trifle, indicating the heart's helplessness "[i]f once into love's hands it come[s]." He compares Love to grief but believes that other griefs claim but portions of our souls. Love, in contrast, "swallows us" completely. Donne also portrays Love as a force that can be cruel; in the conclusion of the second stanza, he provides two images of lovers as victims. Comparing love to "chain'd shot," he reveals his belief that love is responsible for the spiritual deaths of "whole ranks" of people. This simile also provides the image of lovers as soldiers, fighting vainly against the force of Love. The second image is that of Love as a "tyrant pike" and lover's hearts as "the fry." Again, Donne portrays lovers as vainly attempting to escape from the devouring force of Love. In the third stanza, Donne reveals the reason for his view of Love as a cruel, consuming power.

While the first two stanzas illustrate his view of Love in general and all lovers, the third stanza relates his personal experience with Love. He uses the images of "[bringing] a heart into the room" and "[carrying] none" when leaving, indicating the loss of his heart when he sees the woman in the room. However, his heart does not go to the woman, for otherwise his heart "would have taught [her] heart to show more pity" unto him. She rejects him, an event which he illustrates by the image of Love shattering his heart. He compares his heart to glass, indicating how easily the powerful force of Love can break it. Once broken, Donne believes that the heart is no longer capable of true love. Although he feels that his breast still contains all the pieces of his heart, they are merely pieces, "not unite." Therefore, his pieces or "rags of heart" may still be capable of lesser feelings, such as liking, wishing, and adoring, but, "after one such love, can love no more." John Donne's own experience with Love has left an emptiness in him. He realizes then how powerful Love is and how cruel and destructive Love can be. By using various images of Love, lovers, and his heart, he conveys this attitude toward the nature of love to the reader.

The Broken Heart, by John Donne, portrays someone’s broken heart from an unequal reply of love. Donne uses varied imagery throughout the poem to reveal the speaker’s attitude toward the nature of love.

Various imagery is used throughout the poem which symbolizes the condition of the speaker's heart. Images of digestion, such as “devour” (line 4) and “swallows chaws” (line 14), show, how love, takes control over the heart. An image of a fire, such as in line 8, shows the agony of the speaker as his heart is broken day by day. Donne reveals the speaker’s feelings about his heart’s death in line 15, “chain’d shot.” Other images such as “broken glass” (line 29) and “rags” (line 31) reveal the weakness and unwholeness of the speaker’s heart. Through these images, there is an attitude that is revealed by the speaker towards the nature of love.

Images of pain, death, and darkness reveal an attitude of sorrow and hopelessness. The sorrowful attitude comes from the pair of a broken heart. However, the hopeless attitude comes from knowing if this one person does not return the love the speaker has sent, the speaker will never be able to love another person. The images represented in this poem are symbols of the condition and feelings of the speaker’s heart. From these images, one can determine the attitude of the speaker toward the nature of love.

Love is the single most celebrated human emotion. A vast body of literature examines its nuances and explores its meanings. Typically, poets and authors champion love's myriad virtues. It is a salve for the wounded and a boon for the whole, a founder of relationships and a builder of unity. John Donne sees love differently, however, and departs from his literary comrades in his powerful description of love as the destroyer of his heart.

The poem's first verse addresses the duration of love. Donne opens by offering the impression that passion varies in length, although he states that the general perception of love is that it is a short-term affair. He queries, "Who will believe me, if I swear/That I have had the plague a year?" The line informs the reader that Donne is operating from personal experience and at the same time casts a negative light on love, which Donne calls the plague. The same combination of testimony about the existence of a long love coupled with a negative connotation of the emotion is found in the neat line, which reads "Who would not laugh at me, if I should say,/I saw a flask of powder burn a day?" The striking image is of love as a flask of powder. Donne's image presses the issue of the abnormality of a long love, since love is generally explosive, like the keg of powder would logically be. At the same time, the powder image contributes to love's falling reputation in the poem. A barrel of powder conjures thoughts of war and destruction, and by using it as a symbol of love Donne associates passion and feeling with the powder's destructive capacity.

The second verse carries over the idea of love's ability to damage and destroy. Donne personifies love and draws the mental picture of it grasping a heart in the lines, "Oh, what a trifle is a heart,/If once into love's hands it come!" The idea that love has the power to grasp and hold the human heart, symbolic of man's capacity for emotion, reinforces Donne's point of love as a negative force. The poet mentions the griefs associated with love and then proceeds to weave several disturbing images together, stating, "By him, as by chain'd shot, whole ranks do die,/He is the tyrant pike, our hearts the fry." He is love, and his ability to lay waste to the hearts of men is directly stated through Donne's images of carnage and slaughter. As the pike image suggests, Donne believes that love is a predator ready and willing to devour the defenseless human heart.

The third verse moves from the realm of generalizations into the field of personal experience. The poet rhetorically asks, "If 'twer not so, what did become/Of my heart, when I first saw thee?" The line establishes the verse as the relation of a specific event. Donne simply evokes the image of a man walking into a room with a heart and leaving without it in the lines "I brought a heart into the room,/But from the room, I carried none with me." Once again, Donne is arguing his main point, this time through personal experience. Explaining the loss of his heart, he says, "More pity unto me. but Love, alas,/at one blow did shiver it as glass." No frail heart can withstand the explosive power of love. The results of love's depredation are the subject of the last verse. Donne utilizes the entire verse to express the shattered feeling he has experienced. He says of his heart "Therefore I think my heart hath all/Those powers still, though they be not unite." The eventual result of his experience was, as the poem's name implies, a broken heart. His experience led to pain and suffering, not joy and happiness. As he states, "My rags of heart can like, wish, and adore,/But after one such love, can love no more," meaning that once true love has been experienced, it will not be experienced again. After the powder keg has exploded, all that is left to do is pick up the pieces and remember the heat of the passionate inferno.

It is a bitter and depressed attitude that the speaker in John Donne’s poem “The Broken Heart” has towards love. This is expertly revealed through the various types of imagery used in the poem. The first two lines of the poem set the tone. It is apparent that the speaker is crushed and now ruined by flawed love because he begins harshly, doubting those who claim to be in love. Then, in line six, he refers to lovesickness as “the plague”.

The second stanza depicts love as a predator, who preys on our hearts, as Donne writes, “. . . us love draws, / He swallows us, and never chews. . .” (lines 13–14). This comparison is made more evident with a metaphor used in line 16: “He is the tyrant pike, our hearts the fry.” To further victimize those who have been crushed by the jaws of love, Donne compares love to “chain’d shot”, expressing how powerful love can be.

The speaker’s relationship with whoever it is who has broken his heart (with the help of love, of course) is explained in greater detail through microcosms used in the third stanza. The “room” he speaks of is used to mean the relationship, while the “heart” means the speaker’s capacity to love, his emotional capabilities. Love, however, renders him powerless, taking away the speaker’s “heart” or his capacity for love.

The visual and auditory imagery of breaking glass in the final line (love hits hard) completes the stanza powerfully. There is a resigned tone apparent in the final stanza. The speaker contends that, yes, he does still have a heart, but it is “broken glasses” that “show / A hundred lesser faces,” meaning that his love will never be quite the same: it will vary in degrees of affection, but will never truly, deeply love again. This is more visual imagery, which is continued into the last two lines, where he refers to his now shattered heart as his “rags of heart”. This imagery, like the rest used in the beginning and middle of the poem, is very effective in describing the bitter, ruined tone the speaker now has towards love.

Suggested Prompt Scores

Now that you've provided your own scoring, how do they match up to the official scores:

Response 1: Total score of 5 (Thesis = 1; Evidence = 4; Sophistication = 0)
Response 2: Total score of 3 (Thesis = 1; Evidence = 2; Sophistication = 0)
Response 3: Total score of 6 (Thesis = 1; Evidence = 4; Sophistication = 1)
Response 4: Total score of 4 (Thesis = 1; Evidence = 3; Sophistication = 0)

Reflection

Metaphysical poetry, characterized by its intellectual and philosophical exploration, often presents a challenge for analysis due to its complex and abstract nature. However, it can still be analyzed using standard poetic terms by considering various elements, especially metaphors, imagery, and overall structure.

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