Renaissance Poetry
Pastoral Poetry
What Is Pastoral Poetry?
Pastoral poetry takes its name from the word pasture, or a grassy field usually used for grazing livestock. What do you think of when you hear the word pasture? Perhaps you imagine shepherds with flocks of sheep or natural landscapes filled with green fields and valleys. This imagery—together with themes of nature, love, and peace—is typical of pastoral poems, which feature an idealized portrayal of rural life.
Why would people living in Renaissance England be interested in country life? The answer can be found in hardships of living in cities during this time period. Life in London during the Renaissance was difficult for many reasons. For example, there was no adequate system for waste management, medical care was primitive, and most people struggled to survive on very little money. Given these circumstances, it is understandable that art and poetry celebrating the natural world appealed to readers. Pastoral poems share elements such as a sense of peace and idealism that allowed readers to escape the harsh reality of their poor living conditions.
Christopher Marlowe
During his brief life, Christopher Marlowe was considered by his contemporaries as the greatest playwright in England. Just a few weeks older than Shakespeare, Marlowe was born the son of a shoemaker in 1564. He grew up in Canterbury and later attended Cambridge. During his time at the university, he served the royal government in some capacity, possibly as a spy. His plays, which were first performed in the late 1580s, include Dido, Queen of Carthage; Tamburlaine; Doctor Faustus; and The Massacre at Paris. He is also well known for his pastoral poem "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love." Marlowe was killed at the young age of twenty-nine. The circumstances of his death may never be known with absolute certainty, but the impact Marlowe had on his contemporaries is undeniable. Among his most avid admirers was William Shakespeare, who was heavily influenced by Marlowe's work and paid homage to him in the play As You Like It.
Access and read "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love" by Christopher Marlowe. Although the speaker of the poem is presumed to be a shepherd as the title indicates, Marlowe himself did not actually give his poem a title. Knowing this, how do you interpret the motives of the speaker when he makes an argument to his love, and how do you think his love will respond?
Sir Walter Raleigh
Sir Walter Raleigh was born in the early 1550s to a highly Protestant family. Once the Protestant Queen Elizabeth assumed the throne, Raleigh was able to actively promote Protestantism in Ireland. Winning favor with the queen, he was knighted in 1585 and sailed to the New World to establish a lucrative English colony. He named the region Virginia in honor of the Virgin Queen and helped to popularize the tobacco crop in England, but his settlement at Roanoke mysteriously disappeared and came to be known as the Lost Colony. In 1591, he secretly married one of Queen Elizabeth's ladies-in-waiting. For this they were briefly imprisoned in the Tower of London. In 1595, Raleigh sailed again to the New World in search of the legendary golden city El Dorado, which he popularized in his book about the expedition. When the queen died in 1603, Raleigh was found guilty of plotting against the new king. His life was spared, but he remained imprisoned for many years until he was sent on a second expedition to find El Dorado. Because his men broke a treaty by invading Spanish territory, Raleigh was executed in 1618.
Access and read "The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd" by Sir Walter Raleigh. Like many others who would come after him, Raleigh wrote this poem as a direct response to Marlowe's poem "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love." After reading Raleigh's poem, you may find it helpful to reread both poems side by side since Raleigh replies to Marlowe's poem almost line for line.
Allusions in "The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd"
How well can you identify allusions in literature? Did you notice any when you read "The Nymph's Reply to the Shepherd"? Take a moment to review three of the allusions in Sir Walter Raleigh's poem, which was composed as a response to Christopher Marlowe's pastoral poem "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love." In this interactivity, use the NEXT button or the numbered tabs to explore in greater detail some of the allusions in Raleigh's famous poem. Click the player button to begin.
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Other Renaissance Poets
In this topic, you have so far explored the lives and poetry of two famous Renaissance poets. Now you will take a look at three other notable English writers. You have already caught a glimpse of the lives of John Donne, Ben Jonson, and Amelia Lanier in the Warm-Up activity. Now spend some time getting to know them further in this interactivity. Click each of the tabs for a brief overview of the lives of these three English poets of the Renaissance. Click the player button to begin.
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Epitaphs
Have you ever seen a monument or statue dedicated to a famous person from the past? Perhaps you have visited the resting place of someone departed and read an inscription engraved on the tombstone. These inscriptions on monuments or tombs that commemorate people's lives are known as epitaphs.
An example of a famous epitaph was penned by Thomas Jefferson, a Founding Father of the United States, for his own tomb. It recognizes what Jefferson considered his greatest accomplishments:
Epitaph to Thomas Jefferson
Here was buried Thomas Jefferson
Author of the Declaration of American Independence
Of the Statute of Virginia for Religious Freedom
And Father of the University of Virginia.
Other people have epitaphs of a more humorous nature, such as the Dutch-German mathematician Ludolph van Ceulen, who spent most of his life calculating the value of π, a mathematical constant. His life achievement, determining the value of π up to thirty-five decimals, serves as his tomb's epitaph:
Epitaph to Ludolph van Ceulen
3.14159265358979323846264338327950288…
More often, epitaphs are often solemn, poetic, and spiritually moving. For example, consider an epitaph that a young Benjamin Franklin, another American Founding Father, had penned for his future tomb:
Epitaph to Benjamin Franklin
The Body of B. Franklin Printer;
Like the Cover of an old Book,
Its Contents torn out,
And stript of its Lettering and Gilding,
Lies here, Food for Worms.
But the Work shall not be wholly lost:
For it will, as he believ'd, appear once more,
In a new & more perfect Edition,
Corrected and Amended
By the Author.
At the end of his life, Franklin opted for a more humble inscription on his tomb, but his early draft still remains as an example of poetic writing, complete with imagery, symbolism, and metaphor. In fact, epitaphs are so often moving and artistic that they have developed into their own literary genre: poetic verses that commemorate the life of someone who has passed away.
Ben Jonson's poem "On My First Son" is one of the most famous epitaphs in the English language. During the medieval and Renaissance periods of English history, the bubonic plague took many victims, one of which was Jonson's seven-year-old son Benjamin. After his eldest son's death in 1603, Jonson composed a poem of grief and sorrow. Access and read "On My First Son," paying close attention to Jonson's use of allusion and metaphor to express his feelings for his son.
In 1611, John Donne prepared to journey to France, leaving behind his beloved wife, Anne. In an effort to console her, Donne composed a poem to inspire courage and strength in the face of impending separation. Access and read "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning" by John Donne. As you read Donne's poem, identify the comparisons that the speaker makes involving his relationship.
Metaphysical Poetry
During the 17th century, a group of poets rejected the flowery, ornate sonnets characteristic of William Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe. The forerunner of these poets was John Donne, who favored simple, everyday vocabulary to express complex, philosophical thoughts. Although an open admirer of John Donne, contemporary poet Ben Jonson disapproved of Donne's inconsistent meter. Nearly two hundred years later, writer Samuel Johnson would critique Donne's poetic style by dubbing it "metaphysical poetry." Although meant as an insult in reference to the lofty metaphors characteristic of this type of poetry, the term metaphysical poetry has endured today as the name of the poetic style pioneered by Donne. In this interactivity, click the tabs to examine four characteristics of metaphysical poetry. Click the player button to begin.
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A Renaissance for Women
Have you ever heard someone be referred to as a "Renaissance Man"? This term refers to a person who is knowledgeable in a diversity of fields and has acquired many skills. During the Renaissance, it was admirable to be educated and proficient in wide variety of fields, but women were seldom afforded the same opportunities of education and enlightenment for which the Renaissance period is remembered. Women in England during the 17th century were not allowed to own property or receive a formal education. Their lives revolved around religion, the family, and maintaining a household.
Nevertheless, there were some notable women who were outspoken against the limited opportunities for them and others. One such critic was Amelia Lanier, who is often remembered for her poem "Eve's Apology in Defense of Women." Lanier's poem makes reference to the Biblical story of Adam and Eve in which a serpent tempts Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. Adam also eats the fruit, and as punishment for disobeying god, they are banished from the Garden of Eden. Lanier challenges the traditional interpretation of Eve in the Bible as the cause of the fall of humanity by examining the role that Adam plays in their fall from grace.
Take a moment now to access and read an excerpt from "Eve's Apology in Defense of Women" by Amelia Lanier. As you read the excerpt, consider what arguments Lanier makes for improving the treatment of women in society. Do you agree or disagree with her interpretation of the sins of Adam and Eve? Why do you think Lanier chose to use poetry to argue her point of view?
Renaissance Poetry Review
Now that you have explored the poetry of several Renaissance authors, it is time to review your knowledge and practice what you have learned. In this non-graded activity, read the questions and select the appropriate answers. Click the player button to get started.