10 Essential Q&A on Good Morrow by John Donne

Long Answer Type Q&A:

1. Write down a critical appreciation of the poem “The Good Morrow”.

“The Good Morrow” is an early love poem by John Donne, found in his collection “Songs and Sonnets.” In this poem, Donne celebrates the beauty and joy of true love in an enthusiastic way. He describes true love similarly to how Shakespeare talks about the ‘marriage of true minds,’ which means a perfect and deep connection between two people. However, unlike Shakespeare, Donne’s poem also includes the physical or sensual pleasure of love, not just the emotional and intellectual connection. A. G. Smith has compared Donne’s poem to some lines from Dante’s “Vita Nuova.” In Geierson’s opinion,

“Donne is primarily a poet, a creature of feeling and imagination whose acute and subtle intellect is the servant of passion and imagination, though sometimes an unruly servant.”

In the poem, the poet feels strongly that their love was already strong and deep even before they met. The poet is confident that their deep love has lifted them above any doubts or uncertainties and united them forever in a bond of love.

Their love has brought them together, and they don’t care about anything else. In the end, the poet says that their love is so strong and devoted that nothing can weaken or spoil it. He also thinks that their love might even survive after they die. While other people desire other things, the poet and his lover are completely absorbed in their love and don’t seek anything else but love.

As a characteristic metaphysical poem, “The Good Morrow” shows Donne’s excellence as a leader of metaphysical poetry. Metaphysical poetry often includes profound thoughts expressed in a very concise way. In this poem, the subject matter deals with the deep passion of love.

The vastness of the concept of love is part of metaphysical thought. The metaphysical mind doesn’t elaborate on the matter of love but focuses on the depth of feeling and understanding. Donne’s rich idea is that love controls all things and is everywhere. This is a specifically metaphysical concept that celebrates love as all-pervasive and all-powerful. Donne’s statement is concise but powerful:

“For love, all love of other sights controls,

And makes one little roome, an everywhere.”

Another feature of metaphysical poetry is the use of conceits, which are unusual and striking comparisons. Donne’s conceits are very effective. His thoughts on the depth of love and the complete unification of lovers are shown through conceits that are brief yet thought-provoking. This is especially seen in the concluding part of the poem where the lovers are compared to two hemispheres:

“Without sharp North: without declining west”.

The concluding lines of the poem convey the conceit that their love is so unified that ‘none do slacken, none can die.’

Metaphysical poetry is essentially intellectual. Donne’s poetry, whether religious or secular, is characterized by intellectualism. His love poems show more intellect and less emotion. Wit and wisdom go along with the feeling of devotion in his love poetry. The element of wit gives a unique quality to Donne’s love poems. In “The Good Morrow,” for example, his wit and wisdom are finely shown in his question about the lovers’ lives before they met. The whole approach is intellectually vigorous, which makes it a unique metaphysical poem.

The intellectual element in Donne’s poetry has given it a unique quality in imagery and expression. The poet doesn’t use conventional images and phrases but instead uses geographical and scientific terms. In “The Good Morrow,” the poet uses imagery like ‘sea-discoverers’ and ‘maps’ to describe how love has ‘one’ complete world.

Enjambment in poetry occurs when a sentence or phrase continues from one line to the next without a pause or punctuation. For instance, “If ever any beauty I did see, / Which I desired, and got, ’twas but a dream of thee.” End-stopped lines, on the other hand, conclude with punctuation, creating a pause. An example is “But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?”

Caesura is a pause within a line, often marked by punctuation like commas or semicolons, as in “Did, till we loved? Were we not weaned till then?” An apostrophe in poetry addresses an absent person or an abstract idea directly, like addressing a beloved in “The Good Morrow.” Allusion refers to indirect references to historical or cultural elements, such as “Seven Sleepers” referring to a legend.

In conclusion, “The Good Morrow” by John Donne is a beautiful celebration of true love. It combines intellectual depth, witty expressions, and unique imagery to convey the intensity and eternity of love. The poem’s conciseness and profound thought make it a prime example of metaphysical poetry.

10 Essential Q&A on Good Morrow by John Donne

Short Answer Type Q&A:

1. I wonder, by my troth, what thou and I

Did, till we loved? Were we not weaned till then?

But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?

Or snorted we in the Seven Sleepers’ den?

Ans. The poem “The Good Morrow” by John Donne begins with the poet speaking to his beloved. He talks about how deeply they love each other and wonders about their lives before they met and fell in love. He is curious about how they could have lived without each other. Their strong connection makes him think about their past lives with great interest.

The poet imagines a few different possibilities about their past. He thinks maybe they were sad and felt sick because they didn’t have each other’s love. Perhaps they spent their time doing simple, everyday things in the countryside. Another possibility is that they wasted their time sleeping, similar to the story of the “Seven Sleepers.” These were seven young Christians who hid in a cave to escape a Persian king named Decius and slept there for 300 years.

The passage shows Donne’s cleverness and unique style, known as metaphysical wit. This means he uses unusual and intelligent ideas to talk about love. Unlike the typical emotional love poems from the Elizabethan era, Donne presents love in a fresh and interesting way. His imaginative guesses about what the lovers did before they met highlight his playful wit. The mention of the “Seven Sleepers” also shows Donne’s original use of metaphors and analogies, which is a characteristic of metaphysical poetry.

10 Essential Q&A on Good Morrow by John Donne

2. ’Twas so; but this, all pleasures fancies be.

If ever any beauty I did see,

Which I desired, and got, ’twas but a dream of thee.

In John Donne’s poem “The Good Morrow,” the poet talks to his beloved, expressing how deeply connected he feels to her even before they met. He shares the idea that their love brings him complete satisfaction and joy.

The poet wonders how he and his beloved spent their days before they fell in love. He imagines that perhaps they felt lonely and yearned for each other without knowing it. Maybe they wasted their time on silly pleasures in the countryside or spent it in a deep sleep, like the legend of the “Seven Sleepers” who slept for centuries to escape danger. Before meeting, they were unaware of each other’s existence. However, these ideas are playful imaginings, and the poet delights in entertaining them.

He reassures his beloved that before they met, whenever he saw anything beautiful, it was only a reflection of her beauty. Every lovely thing reminded him of the beauty he longed for in his heart, which was ultimately her. In his dreams and desires, he always sought her beauty.

The poet reaches a high, philosophical idea of love, inspired by Plato, where his beloved is seen as the ideal form of beauty and love. Donne’s tone is deeply devoted and filled with joy, yet his words are clever and entertaining.

In “The Good Morrow,” Donne beautifully combines profound devotion with a playful wit, illustrating a love that transcends physical presence and becomes a spiritual connection.

3. And now good-morrow to our waking souls,

Which watch not one another out of fear;

For love, all love of other sights controls,

And makes one little room an everywhere.

Ans.

In John Donne’s poem “The Good Morrow,” the poet celebrates the deep and powerful love he shares with his beloved. Donne, a leader of the metaphysical poets, uses this poem to show how their love is strong and all-encompassing.

The poet is excited about the active spirit of love that fills both him and his beloved. Their love is pure and free from jealousy or mistrust. Instead, it is confident and fills their lives completely. Their love is so strong that it guides all their thoughts and actions, bringing them together in a deep devotion to one another. This love is so fulfilling that it transforms their small room into their entire world, giving them everything they desire and need.

In this poem, Donne presents an idealistic view of love, showing how it can control and uplift true lovers. The idea of their “one little room” as their whole world is a clever way to express how complete their love makes them feel. This is a typical metaphysical approach, mixing grand ideas with simple, everyday imagery.

“The Good Morrow” illustrates how love can be a powerful force that makes two people feel whole and satisfied. Donne’s poem is both profound and relatable, showing how love can make even the smallest spaces feel vast and complete. The poem captures the essence of love as both a sublime and intimate experience, demonstrating its ability to transform lives and create a perfect union between two people.

4. Let sea-discoverers to new worlds have gone,

Let maps to other, worlds on worlds have shown,

Let us possess one world, each hath one, and is one.

Ans. In John Donne’s poem “The Good Morrow,” the poet speaks to his beloved, assuring her that their love is constant and true. He uses vivid imagery, typical of metaphysical poetry, to show how their love brings them together as one.

Donne emphasizes how their love unifies them, making them one despite their differences. Their love is so strong and deep that it creates a sense of oneness between them. He uses the imagery of explorers and maps to illustrate this idea. Explorers set out to discover new lands and mapmakers create maps showing different countries and places. However, the poet and his beloved are not interested in these new worlds or uncharted territories.

For them, their love is their entire world, and they are content with that. They do not care about discovering new continents or lands, because their love is enough to fulfill them. This sense of completeness in their love makes them uninterested in anything beyond what they share together.

The poem showcases the unique style of metaphysical poetry, where complex ideas are expressed through imaginative comparisons. The imagery of explorers and maps highlights how their love creates a single, unified world for them. Donne’s use of this imagery is a hallmark of metaphysical conceits, which are clever and unusual comparisons that reveal deep truths.

In “The Good Morrow,” Donne beautifully captures how love can make two people feel complete and united, creating a world where nothing else matters. Their love is a powerful force that transcends all else, making them content and whole.

5. My face in thine eye, thine in mine appears,

And true plaine hearts doe in the faces rest

Where can we finds two better hemispheres,

Without sharp North, without declining West?

Ans. In John Donne’s poem “The Good Morrow,” the poet speaks to his beloved, celebrating the enduring and unified nature of their love. He uses a clever analogy from geography to express how their love makes them one.

The poet feels joyful about the idea of oneness in their love. Although he and his beloved are separate individuals, their love has made them feel like a single being. Their differences are united through love, and their hearts and faces are no longer separate but one.

Donne uses the analogy of two hemispheres, or half-worlds, to illustrate this idea. Just as two hemispheres come together to form a complete world, their love makes them a perfect whole. He imagines these hemispheres as perfect, without any flaws or divisions, because their love is perfect, sincere, and complete.

This passage showcases Donne’s unique metaphysical style, where he uses imaginative comparisons, known as conceits, to convey deep meanings. By comparing the two lovers to hemispheres, he highlights the unity and perfection of their love.

Donne’s ability to compare the extraordinary to the ordinary is evident in this analogy. He links the profound idea of complete and devoted love to the simple geographical concept of two hemispheres forming a world, with no harsh North or declining West.

In “The Good Morrow,” Donne captures the essence of love as a unifying force that brings two people together, creating a perfect and harmonious world of their own.

6. Whatever dies, was not mixed equally;

If our two loves be one, or, thou and I

Love so alike, that none do slacken, none can die.

Ans. In the final part of John Donne’s poem “The Good Morrow,” the poet talks about the enduring and devoted love he shares with his beloved. He reflects on how their love brings them a sense of immortality.

Donne asserts that their individual identities have completely merged through their love. This merger is so profound and constant that it is immune to decay or change. Unlike things that are not fully united and can fall apart, their love is so strong and true that it is eternal.

The poet and his beloved love each other equally and deeply. Their mutual trust and devotion lift them above the normal rules of life and death. Nothing can weaken or destroy them because their love is so powerful and all-encompassing. This devoted love gives them a sense of immortality even in this mortal world.

Donne’s belief in the everlasting nature of true love is evident here. This idea is common in Elizabethan poetry, but Donne’s metaphysical approach to this theme is unique. He uses precise and profound language to express his ideas.

The poem includes a subtle analogy: the constancy of their love is like a scientific compound, where different elements are perfectly combined to create something strong and lasting.

In “The Good Morrow,” Donne beautifully captures the idea that true love can transcend time and mortality, creating an unbreakable bond that endures beyond the physical world.

Short Answer Type Q&A:

1. What is the meaning of “Good Morrow”?

“Good Morrow” means “good morning.” In the poem, it represents a spiritual awakening, as the poet realizes the profound nature of his love and experiences a new, richer reality of life.

2. What does the poet mean by ‘were we not wean’d till them’?

Ans. The poet is saying that before they fell in love, they were like children who hadn’t grown up yet, living simple, incomplete lives without the deeper connection they now share.

3. ‘Whatever dyes was not mist equally;

If our two loves be one, or thou and I

Love so alike, that none do slacken, none can die’

-What sentiment is expressed here by the poet?

Ans. The poet suggests that perfect love, where both partners love equally and without any imbalance, is eternal. He refers to the idea that things perfectly balanced do not decay or perish, emphasizing the everlasting nature of their love.

4. What is meant by the allusion in the phrase ‘the seven sleepers den’?

Ans: This phrase alludes to a story about seven young men who hid in a cave and fell asleep to escape persecution, waking up centuries later. The poet uses this story to illustrate how his and his beloved’s love feels like a miraculous awakening after a long, deep sleep.

5. What is meant by the line ‘For love … makes one little room, an everywhere?

Ans: The poet means that their love is so fulfilling that they no longer need to seek anything outside of their relationship. Their love transforms their small, shared space into an entire world, making them content and complete in each other’s company.

6. “And now good morning to our waking souls” –

Why does the poet say ‘good morrow’ to waking souls?

Ans. The poet says “good morrow” to the waking souls because the lovers have experienced a spiritual awakening. They have entered a new world filled with profound love and deep emotions. By saying “good morrow,” the poet is greeting this new, enlightened state of being.

7. What does the poet mean when he says –‘Where can we find two better hemispheres’?

Ans. The poet compares the faces of the two lovers to two hemispheres, which together form a complete world. Unlike the geographical hemispheres of the Earth that experience extreme weather, the hemispheres of the lovers’ faces are perfect and unchanging, representing a perfect union.

8. ‘I wonder by my troth’ –What does the wonder?

Ans. The poet wonders what he and his beloved did before they met and fell in love. He imagines they might have been love-sick, longing for each other, or spending their time in simple, idle pleasures. They might even have been sleeping like the seven sleepers, waiting to awaken to their love.

9. ‘If even any beauty I did see

It was but a dream of thee’ –Explain

Ans. The poet believes that all the beauty he saw before was just a reflection or a dream of his beloved’s beauty. This idea is inspired by Platonic philosophy, which sees earthly beauty as a reflection of divine beauty. The poet uses this concept to praise his beloved, saying that true beauty is embodied in her.

10. “Let sea-discovers to new world have gone,

Let Maps to others, worlds on worlds have shown

Let us possess one world each hath one, and is one.” –What do these lines suggest?

Ans. The poet refers to famous Elizabethan explorers who discovered new lands. He contrasts their divided, geographical discoveries with the unified world of love he shares with his beloved. In their love, they possess a complete and perfect world. This clever comparison highlights the profound and boundless nature of their spiritual connection.

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