Philosophical Mood
in To His Coy Mistress
Had we but world enough, and time
That is the first stanza of Andrew Marvell's "To His Coy Mistress". If we read it briefly, we know that it is only about love. It shows how the speaker loves his lady, and his expression is really exaggerated. However, if we read it deeply, we will find something philosophical, and the love of the speaker has is not a common one, but platonic.
Platonic love is different from some love concepts which can be found in some poems. This concept is Plato's concerning with the ladder of love consisting of four stages. The first stage is the love of beauty of face, the second is the love of physical beauty, the third is the love of spiritual beauty and the last is the love of universal beauty, that is God (Danziger, 1966:124).
Had we but world enough, and time,
Marvell asks the lady to spend they love's day, but without knowing how to spend it. He then, compares his lady, in line 5-6, to the Indian Ganges to make clear how grand a lady she is and also how beautiful she is, as he says.
Thou by the Indian Ganges
In the following lines, Marvell shows his deep love, that,
... I would
He uses the words "Flood" and "the conversion of Jews" to show that his love will last forever. From the Christian teaching, the Flood of Noah means the beginning of the world (Genesis, Holy Bible), and the conversion of the Jews will take place before the Last Judgement, the is, the end of the world.
As his love is lasting forever, and his lady is beautiful, he needs,
A hundred years should go to praise
From this love of facial beauty, he proceeds to a higher step, that is, the love of physical beauty.
He says,
Two hundred to adore each breast,
The above quotation shows the beauty of the lady's body he adores. He needs thirty thousand to love it, "an age he needs to love every part of the body." Up to this part, the poet has proceeded to the second step.
The third level he steps is illustrated in, "And the last age should show your heart" (line 18) that the speaker loves her heart, her soul. He admires the lady's beautiful soul.
As a whole the lover proceeds from the love of the lady's facial beauty to the love of her physical beauty and to the love of the beauty of the soul. The last stage is not illustrated in the poem, but he poet here really wants to show his love to God.
Emerson asks to notice the traits of divine beauty in many souls, and to separate the divine from the taint in each soul which has been contracted in the world. And the lover ascends to the highest beauty, to love and knowledge of Divinity by stepping on this ladder of created soul (Taylor, 1960:230).
Diotima says that only in the Communion, he beholds the beauty with the eye of the mind, he will be able to bring not images of beauty but realities, and bring and nourish true virtue to become the friend of God and be immortal, if man may be made mortal (Edman, 1956:379).
In expressing his love, the poet declares that he is not a vulgar lover, as it is found in the last line of the first stanza, "nor would I love at lower rate" (line 20). Pausanias says that there are two characteristics of the low form of love:
Because he is not a vulgar lover, his love is without passion. He uses the word "vegetable" in "My vegetable love should grow" (line 11). Plato divided the behavior of organisms in the following steps:
Conclusion
Love is a personal experience, and Marvell in "To His Coy Mistress" expresses his love for the lady. In expressing it, he uses the philosophical teaching about love, that is, Platonic Love consisting of four levels of love which the lover may pass through: from the lowest level to the highest level, namely to love the absolute Beauty, that is God.
After having analysed this poem, it can be concluded that although this poem is a secular poem, the poet's love is for God. He admires the Beauty Maker. The religious teaching influences him very much as he lived in the Puritan Period.
Bibligraphy
Danziger, Marlies K. 1966. An Introduction to Literary Criticism. Boston: Neath & Co.
Dirgagunarsa, Singgih. 1978. Pengantar Psikologi. Jakarta: Mutiara.
Edman, Irwin. 1956. The Works of Plato. New York: Random House Inc.
Laurer, Armand A. 1962. Medieval Philosophy. New York: Random House Inc.
Willen. 1967. Literature for Writing. Belmont.
Tapan, E.M. 1946. A Brief History of English Literature. London: George G Harrap & Co. Ltd.
Taylor. 1960. Plato, the Man and His Work. London: Methuen & Co. Ltd.
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this coyness lady were no crime.
We would sit down, and think which way
to walk, and pass our long love's day.
Thou by the Indian Gang's side
shouldst rubies find: I by the tide
of humber would complain. I would
love you ten years before the Flood:
and you should if you please refuse
till the conversion of the Jews.
My vegetable love should grow
vaster than empires, and more slow.
A hundred years should go to praise
thine eyes, and on thy forehead gaze.
Two hundred to adore each breast:
but thirty thousand to the rest.
An age at least to every part,
and the last age should show your heart.
For lady you deserve this state;
nor would I love at lower rate
(Andrew Marvell)
this coyness lady were no crime.
We would sit down, and think which way
to walk, and pass our long love's day
(lines 1-4)
Shouldst rubies find
(lines 5-6)
love you ten years before the Flood:
And you should if you please refuse
Till the conversion of the Jews.
(lines 7-10)
Thine eyes, and on they forehead gaze;
(lines 13-14)
But thirty thousand to the rest
An age at least to every part
(lines 15-17)
Relating to the word "complain" in line 7, the lady in the poem is not an empty-headed. The word "complain" expresses that the speaker laments her love because of his difficulty in wooing her.
The choice of the "vegetable love" in the poem foes not have the pejorative meaning. It means that the poet's love has the power to grow, without passion, for passion is under the Sensible Soul which belongs to animals.
Susie Chrismalia Garnida, lecturer at the Faculty of Letters, Universitas 17 Agustus 1945 Surabaya.