Ben Jonson

* Elizabethan and Jacobean literature.

* Neoclassical style which emphasized clarity, precision and order.
* Use of satire, irony, and realism.
* He used his poetry to criticize social and political issues..
* insights into the social and political life of Elizabethan England.
* Metaphisical and cavaliar poetry
* Label in the poetry is not important.
To John Donne
* Praise for John Danne, his art and literature. He praises deliberately and in detaily.
1st stanza:
* Phoebus → God of poetry
* the delight of Phoebus → praise
* Muse → searches for inspiration. Muse select power. Muse can select a specific person.
they inspire John Donne.
2nd stanza:
Again he praises in detail
He refers to his use of language
→ Last stanza
... All which I meant to praise, and yet I would, But leave because I cannot as I should.
* I would praise John Donne, I can't praise him enough. Words are not enough to praise him.
This is a kind of exaggeration.
When he said I cannot as I should, he refers to the inability of his capacity. But he can praise
very well. It leads to a paradox, which is a metaphysical item.
"On Something, The Walks Somewhere
* There is a decorum which means appropriate rendering of the character, action, speech, or
scene. (adaba uygun olma)
* He reflects his belonging to this class. His clothes reflect high class. So there is a decorum.
* Pronan usage is "it".
* Stateman's face → face belongs. to the body, and the body belongs to that face. There is a
problem with 3 person in the poem
stateman, narrater, stateman's face → It pronoun like something, not someone
*The poem is like a dialogue between the poet and the face
* This poem shows the complexity of 17th century poetry.
* Gossip of stateman
* Face represents the body
* Harsh criticism
* There are dialogs. It makes sense
* There is irony, satire, and criticism of politicians. Inhuman qualities of politicians.
* There are contradictory ideas. Normally face is part of the body and in this poem body is
part of face. There is discordia concors.
* Ben Jonson is the father of 17th century and a satirist and intelligent dramatist. He is a
Renaissance man (If a person has multiple perspectives, and qualities, that person is called as
a Renaissance man.
* Elizabethan and cavalier poetry are contemporary. There is no clear-cut changes.
* metaphysical poetry and cavalier poetry have slight differences.
There are on the same age.
He is a follower of the renaissance
On My First Daughter "

* The subject of poem is " Realism

* Dramatic opening, Jonson is a dramatist.
* Simplicity, clarity, simple language usage.
* There is personal grief directly from that perspective He is a follower of the Renaissance.
He reflects his own sorrow to the reader.
* It is a lyric poem because it directly reflects the inner self, and sorrow of the poet.
* Argument of the poem is the loss of the daughter
* He used simple images:
* Here lies → he shows the place.
* Christianity offers a consolation. He consoles himself with his beliefs. He thinks that his
daughter is in heaven Mary. They share the same place. Because both of them are virgins
and innocent. It creates a consolation for parents.
Safely s her innocence → Virgin Mary

*" This grave portages the fleshly birth " (last lines)
There is discordia concors
mother's body creates Baby's body
Grave replaces Baby's body
* Parents are the owners of the baby. But then the grave replaces the baby. In mortal life, the
mother protects the baby but then the grave protects the baby.
* " Which cover lightly, gentle earth! ( last line )
Latin epitaph (mesar yaziti) / Pagan virtue
* When compared with the "John Donne" poem, this poem is more realistic.
"On my First Son "
* Poet narrates the loss of her son, the grief of loss
* "Right hand" → able one, reflects ability.
* Religious items (Sin, fate)
... Here doth lie " → simile, metaphor
* Parents think that children are their own product, property
* Fathers equal to poets, both are create, and produce something. (Maker)
So poet says "Ben Jonson his best piece of poetry." He refers to his son as his best piece of
poetry. According to metaphysical poetry, the human body is the perfect farm of creativity.
* Consolation with scientific elements
* Dying sooner is better, it is consolation. Rational answers.
* He wouldn't escape from loss and he believes after world gives consolation. (Religion)
* There is a balance between the physical realm and the metaphysical real.
* He glorifies the after-world, he thinks that after world is more fictional because of his loss.
* With his lass of daughter and son, he finds consolation by going beyond the physical realm.
* He praises himself even with his sorrow. He says my son is my best poem.
Jonson's Poetic Style
* Neoclassical style
* Balance btwn culteranismo and conceptisismo.
* He emphasizes clarity, precision and order.
* His poems are complex and demanding Just as Renaissance drama
* He is the master of language and form (right hand ... poem
* His neoclassical style helped to shape the development of English poetry.
* He has timeless ideas, and insight into human nature, society and politics.
* Balance btun content and form
* He reflects 17th century which is age of reason.
* When we compare with the poetry of John Donne, Jonson is more secular. Andrew Marvell
is perverse.
Andrew Marvell
* He appeals to politic and literature.
* He used political and religious issues.
* He was a staunch/loyal defender of Parliamentary system.
He was a vocal critic of the monarchy. He differ himself fram John Donneln terms of being
defender of monarchyand republicer.
* He is the defender of free voice of people. In monarchy, king is autonomy but in parlament,
people con discuss.
* Elizabethan legacy.
* He repeats renaissance elements, humanism. Regular humanbeing is valuable in the
parlamentory system each person has equal rights.
* He is activist of the period.
* Hursh critic of hypocrisy of the time.
* Ruthless attacks on his targets.
* Philosophical and religious themes.
* He uses complex imagery.
The Definition of Love
* Title is metaphorical. Love can't defined it con experienced.
* Scientific reality of love, it starts and ends.
* He uses allegorical words, conceits to express love
* Love is beyond our definition. Such feelings are beyond the feelings.
* Love is spiritual, trancendental feeling.
→ First Stanza
* Despair is capitalized so there is personification and allegory.
* His love origin is unusual, it comes from despair and impossibitity
* Despair and impossibility is parents and love is a child.
* Elizabethan despair, is like a dark lady image.
* Love can be produced by hopelessness, despair.
* Describe af love with negative images. Hardship of love.
* Biological imagery of love.
* Means are bad but results is good. Bad parents produce a good child. There is balance with
negativity and positivity.
→ Second Stanza
* Magnanimous despair. I's beyond the physical love.
* Tension between despair and hope.
* He uses discordia concors. Because despair is negative, hope is positive. It creates
possibility and balance. A combination of magnanimous despair and feeble hope. Hope is
weak because of magnanimous despair.
* In the end, there is satisfaction to reach that love Primary goal is to reach loves
" Where feeble Hope could ne'er have flown → it never flies away
→ Third Stanza
* He uses conceit and alleging to define love, just like a compass image. He says that my
extended soul is fixed, my love is stabilized. Love is the center, lovers turn around that.
* Fate is a friend of despair and impossibility. He is the bad guy and unification of love. There
is the similarity between iron wedges and Fate. It's fragile easy. Fate always disturbs love.
Fate is Jealous, it replaces small games with love. Fate is separating force nat
reats hardship

→4th Stanza
* Fate replaces lover to opposite sides. Fate is jealous.
* He blames fate.
→ 5th Stanza
* He uses scientific terms to describe religious elements. He combines religious elements and
scientific elements.
* Fate separates to opposite poles and it creates the impossibility of reunion.
* He uses geography. Northern and Southern poles.
→ 6th Stanza
*Combination of earth and heaven. It's impossible
* He uses geographical elements to describe his love. He speculates on their reunion.
→ 7th Stanza
* They can reunion even in parallel lines oblique way ) but not in straight
* Love can reach out forever but they can't ever touch.
* Definition of impassible love with scientific terms, mathematical definition of love.
* Hursh definition of love.
* They con see each other but they can never meet. It create despair .
* There is a starting point but there is no destination.
→8th Stanza
* He blames Fate again.
* Zodiac sign. Fate is order in the stars.
* Love's power goes beyond the power of science.
* Love is the conjunction of the mind" He defines love with specific scientific elements
metaphysical elements, the Power of fate
* Amblematic stanza

"The Garden"
* This poem is about elements of nature. Clash between nature, culture, and society.
→ First Stanza
* He focuses on how vain to try. He sees discordia concors, a combination of different
elements such as nature vs. society
* There is hursh criticism of humanbeing, he criticizes such material things. It is vain effort
because they are not important.
* Winning part vs. loosing part
* Unity, harmony of flowers and trees. So it is satirical
* He tries to discover hidden meanings of nature that form a Garland of peace and calm
* They have prudence and sin. So he criticizes humankind,
→ Second Stanza
* He finds solitude not in civilization but in nature
* Romanticism, transcendentalism, anachronism, pantheism
* He regarded elements of nature as the main issues. He focuses on the material of nature.
He uses allegory. They are like a person.
* He creates musicality. Below › grow > solitude.
* Poet finds serenity, innocence, and solitude in nature.
* He appeals to us. Because human being does not change.
* "Your sacred plants.." → refer to innocence
* Animals behave in their own manners, unlike human beings. There is always a class
between human beings and nature.
* He is a pantheist because all elements refer to a higher power (God)
→ Third Stanza
* There is a specific judgment of good quality and nature.
Not white nor red it's green. He glorifies nature with colors There is a comparison between
colors.
→ Fourth Stanza
* God from mythology → opposite forces
* Mortal beauty
* tree → timelessness
/Opposition btw in time bound and timelessness