University of Hamburg

An interpretation of " A Lecture upon the Shadow"
(by John Donne)

written by: 

Hanno Frey

CONTENT

1 INTRODUCTION 4

2 THE POEM 4

2.1.1 A Lecture upon the Shadow (John Donne) 4

2.2 FORM 5
2.3 CONTENT 6

2.3.1 The image of love 7

2.4 STYLE 7

3 CONCLUSION 8

1 Introduction

One of the most significant characteristics of the so-called "metaphysical poets" was the usage of metaphorical language. The metaphors contained in their works were that striking that some people adored them for the usage of such a language while others disliked them for the same reason.
The theory which stands behind metaphors is that complex that it would go beyond the scope of this essay to explain it in great detail. Nevertheless I want to stress one aspect of it which will enable me to interpret the following poem: Metaphors draw connections between different semantic fields and thus cause interactions which very often lead to a better understanding. Interpreting the poem "A Lecture upon the Shadow" by John Donne I am going to work with this thesis and thereby explain it.

2 The poem

2.1.1 A Lecture upon the Shadow (John Donne)

Stand still, and I will read to thee
A Lecture, Love, in loves philosophy.
These three houres that we have spent,
Walking here, two shadows went
Along with us which we our selves produc´d;
But, now the Sunne is just above our head,
We doe those shadowes tread;
And to brave clearness all things reduc´d.
So whilst our infant loves did grow,
Disguises did and shodows flow
From us, and our care, but now ´tis not so.

That love hath not attain´d the high´st degree,
Which is still diligent lest others see.

Except our loves at this noone stay,
We shall new shadows make the other way.
As the first were made to blinde
Others; these which come behinde
Will worke upon our selves, and blind our eyes.
If our loves faint and westwardly decline;
To me thou, falsly, thine,
And I to thee mine actions shall disguise.
The morning shadows weare away,
But these grow longer all the day,
But oh, loves day is short, if love decay.

Love is a growing, or full constant light;
And his first minute, after noon, is night.

2.2 Form

The form of the poem resembles two Petrarchan sonnets which possess a most interesting structure: Each sonnet is not complete in the sense that it lacks the second terzett. Instead of ending with these, the last two lines are in both cases heroic couplets. By this means the poem is devided into two halfs and each half possesses a declining number of “connected lines“¹ (4+4+3+2). This is true for the first half as well as for the second and accordingly the structure of both halfs can be called absolutely parallel. In this way the form of the poem resembles the course of the sun: Its progression, “noon” and decline and therefore draws a close connection between form and content.

[...]

1 The connection derives from the rhyme schema.