Ben Jonson as a Lover Poetry of Ben Jonson describes him as a renaissance man, in the full sense of this word. This is because he was able to integrate into his verses his love of sensual pleasures, his idealism, and his philosophical aspirations. Just as any educated person in England, at the time, Jonson was being heavily influenced by the notions ancient Greek and Roman culture. This explains epicurean attitudes, which are often found in Jonsons poems. At the same time, Jonson was a man of his time; this is why he understood its own psychical incompatibility with ancient ideal of harmony between body and spirit. This metaphysical discrepancy is especially noticeable in Jonsons love poems, where he is represented to us as both: an idealist and cynic, who get pleasure out exposing the futility of his romantic aspirations to the public. In poem My Picture Left in Scotland, Jonson refers to himself as being physically unfit for the love of lady of his heart.
He describes love as being rather deaf than blind, but at the same time he admits that it is his unsightly features that prevent his poetry from having any effect on the object of his desire: My hundreds of gray hairs Told seven and forty years, Read so much waste as she cannot embrace My mountain belly and my rocky face, And all these, through her eyes, have stopt her ears (Jonson) It reveals Jonson as basing his romantic pessimism on the facts of objective reality. We can say that Jonson was rather a philosopher-lover. The love towards woman is expressed by him in very rational manner; however, it does not prevent him from remaining very affectionate. This was also a common feature of Greek and Roman lyrics. Jonson appears as not being blinded by his passion, because his life experiences prevent him from considering love as something that will last forever. According to Jonson, the essence of love is very illusive; this is why it can never be realized in its entirety. Jonson appears to think that only through collecting sensual pleasures that one can get a better understanding of its own romanticism.
The Essay on Love In Carl Sandburgs Poems
Love in Carl Sandburg's Poems Love is one of the most frequently deployed themes in poetry, and it is understandable people are more willing to read and think about something that concerns them and affects their personal well being rather than something abstract. Love comes in different appearances as we look at different poets works, each of them has unique style and conceptualization, and Carl ...
What separates Jonson from the modern romantic poets is that he clearly associated love with physical health. Just like Renaissance artists, he imagined a perfect woman as being slightly plump. Back in Jonsons times, the ideal of feminine beauty had nothing to do with pathological thinness, as it is the case in present time. This is because beauty derives out of physical health. The feminine health is strongly associated with fertility. Very thin women are incapable of normal childbirth. This is why thin women can be considered as being attractive, at best, but they can never be referred to as beautiful.
It explains why Jonson often used to associate feminine virtue with ripeness. In his poem To Penshurst, Jonson compares young women to plums and pears, which clearly indicates the fact that the concept of sexism was virtually unknown to him: The better cheeses, bring them ; or else send By their ripe daughters, whom they would commend This way to husbands ; and whose baskets bear An emblem of themselves in plum, or pear (Jonson) Jonsons poetry reveals himself as being a loving father. His both sons died before they reached the adulthood, which was very common in 17th century England. His poem On my First Son helps us to have a better understanding of Jonsons concept of love. Apparently, he did not think of this feeling as being self-efficient. According to poet, a true love always bear fruits. This is why he does not make a distinction between love and sex. In fact, sex for Jonson is nothing but a tool.
The Essay on Summer Love Partner Stanza Poem
"Summer Love" is a poem written by Marilyn Chin about a girl's range of emotion as she experiences uncommitted relationships over her summer vacation. The girl starts out detached from any sort of serious feelings for her partner. As the poem progresses she expresses lust and gets physical with her partner which then causes her to be concerned over her brief, uncommitted encounters and the ...
Just like an electrical screwdriver requires and electrical power, in order to be used, sex needs to be powered by love, otherwise we cannot think of it as being anything else but physical expression of peoples animalistic instincts. Jonson refers to his son as a fruit of his love: Rest in soft peace, and, asked, say, Here doth lie Ben Jonson his best piece of poetry. For whose sake henceforth all his vows be such As what he loves may never like too much (Jonson) At the same time, we cannot suggest that love for Jonson was something that he could fully rationalize. There are clearly platonic undertones can be found in his poem A Celebration of Charis, where he refers to subject of his love in rather allegorical manner. In this poem, Johnson associates love with purity. The symbol of purity has traditionally been a swan, because of its gracefulness and whiteness.
In 17th century, there was no political correctness, which allowed Jonson to express his feelings in very open manner. In Jonsons time, it was a self-evident fact that individuals beauty, health, and intellect are related to each other in separable manner. However, their most important precondition is purity. This is why Jonson uses symbols of dove and swan as material embodiments of highly abstract idea of untainted love: See the chariot at hand here of Love, Wherein my lady rideth! Each that draws is a swan or a dove, And well the car Love guideth (Jonson) Jonson fits into a classical definition of lover, because he also was a soldier, adventurist, duelist and politician. Just like a Casanova, Jonson had spent a few years in jail, which proves that his stance in life has always been active. Women are attracted to this type of men, because they intuitively feel a raw power in them.
At the same time, Jonson was a sensitive person, who was capable of writing poetic masterpieces, which only added to his popularity among women.
Bibliography:
The Works of Benjamin Jonson. 2006. Luminarium.Org. 28 Apr. 2007. http://www.luminarium.org/sevenlit/jonson/benbib.h tm.
