Song ('Go and catch a falling star') Revision Notes for Edexcel A-Level English Literature

Song ('Go and catch a falling star')

Context

John Donne's Personal Life:

Donne's personal life was marked by both professional and financial instability, which often influenced the themes of cynicism and disillusionment in his poetry. Song: 'Go and catch a falling star' reflects a sceptical view of women and romantic relationships, which may stem from Donne's own experiences with love and betrayal.
Donne's secret marriage to Anne More resulted in his imprisonment and a subsequent struggle for financial stability, likely contributing to his complex and often conflicted views on love and fidelity.

Literary Context:

The poem is a part of Donne's Songs and Sonnets, a collection that showcases his skill in blending wit with deep emotional and intellectual insights. The collection often explores themes of love, betrayal, and the nature of human relationships.
As a metaphysical poet, Donne employed complex imagery and intellectual playfulness. Song: 'Go and catch a falling star' uses fantastical and impossible tasks as metaphors to illustrate the poem's cynical message about the impossibility of finding a faithful woman.
The poem fits within the tradition of Renaissance poetry that frequently explored themes of love and fidelity but stands out for its uniquely sceptical and satirical tone.

Historical and Political Background:

The early 17th century was a period of social and political upheaval in England, including the tension between Protestant and Catholic factions. Donne's conversion from Catholicism to Anglicanism and his subsequent career in the Church of England reflect the broader religious conflicts of the time.
The Renaissance era's emphasis on exploration, discovery, and the questioning of traditional beliefs is mirrored in the poem's imaginative and questioning tone. The poem's fantastical imagery of impossible tasks reflects the era's spirit of inquiry and scepticism.
Donne's work was also influenced by the courtly love tradition, though he often subverted its conventions. In Song: 'Go and Catch a falling star', he challenges the idealised view of women and romantic love, offering a more jaded perspective that contrasts with the more optimistic or idealised depictions common in earlier Renaissance literature.

Structure and Form

Form, Metre, and Rhyme

The poem consists of three nine-line stanzas.
The rhyme scheme is consistent throughout, following an ABABCCDDD pattern.
The predominant metre is a trochaic tetrameter, with variations that include lines in iambic monometers.
The use of triplets at the end of each stanza, rather than the more common couplets, adds a distinctive rhythm to the poem.

Speaker and Setting

The speaker is a man disillusioned with romantic relationships, addressing an imaginary listener.
The setting is not specified but evokes a sense of a philosophical or contemplative space where the speaker reflects on the impossibility of finding a faithful woman.

Poetic Devices

Conceit: The poem employs a series of hyperbolic and fantastical tasks to illustrate the impossibility of finding a faithful woman.
Allusion: References to folklore and mythology, such as mandrake roots, mermaids, and the devil, enhance the poem's themes of deceit and impossible quests.
Alliteration and Consonance: These devices create a musical quality, adding to the poem's lively and energetic tone.
Assonance: Used subtly to create a smooth, enchanting sound that contrasts with the speaker's cynical message.
Enjambment: The use of enjambment in the closing lines of each stanza builds suspense and emphasises the poem's key points.
Sibilance: The use of sibilance enhances the poem's mystical and magical atmosphere, especially in the second stanza.
Hyperbole: The speaker's exaggerated claims about the impossibility of finding a faithful woman underscore his cynicism and bitterness.
Irony: The poem's ironic tone, contrasting the magical and mundane, highlights the speaker's jaded perspective on romantic fidelity.
Repetition: The poem employs parallelism and anaphora to reinforce the speaker's arguments and add a rhetorical punch.

Key Themes

Women's Infidelity

"No where / Lives a woman true, and fair." (Lines 17-18)

The poem explores the theme of women's romantic infidelity, suggesting that finding a faithful woman is as impossible as the fantastical tasks listed by the speaker.

Impossible Tasks

"Go and catch a falling star, / Get with child a mandrake root," (Lines 1-2)

The poem opens with a series of impossible commands, setting the tone for the speaker's argument about the unattainability of certain ideals.

Disillusionment and Cynicism

"Yet she / Will be / False, ere I come, to two, or three." (Lines 25-27)

The speaker's cynicism about romantic relationships is evident throughout, culminating in his belief that even the most seemingly faithful woman will eventually be unfaithful.

Line by Line Analysis

Lines 1-4

Go and catch a falling star,

Get with child a mandrake root,

Tell me where all past years are,

Or who cleft the devil's foot,

"Go and catch a falling star,"

The speaker opens with an impossible command, setting the tone for the rest of the poem.

"Get with child a mandrake root,"

Another impossible task, as mandrake roots were believed to have magical properties but could not be impregnated.

"Tell me where all past years are,"

Reflects a longing for lost time and the impossibility of reclaiming it.

"Or who cleft the devil's foot,"

Introduces a note of religious unease and deceit, fitting the theme of infidelity.

Lines 5-6

Teach me to hear mermaids singing,

Or to keep off envy's stinging,

"Teach me to hear mermaids singing,"

Mermaids symbolise dangerous and deceptive allure, furthering the theme of impossible tasks.

_"_Or to keep off envy's stinging,"

Suggests the speaker's own experiences with jealousy and romantic disappointment.

Lines 7-9

And find

What wind

Serves to advance an honest mind.

"And find / What wind / Serves to advance an honest mind."

The final lines of the stanza shift to a quieter, more contemplative tone, questioning the rewards for honesty in a deceptive world.

Lines 10-13

If thou be'st born to strange sights,

Things invisible to see,

Ride ten thousand days and nights,

Till age snow white hairs on thee,

"If thou be'st born to strange sights,"

Imagines the listener has the power to see the impossible.

"Things invisible to see,"

Reinforces the idea of seeking the unattainable.

"Ride ten thousand days and nights,"

Hyperbolic journey, emphasising the length and difficulty of the quest.

"Till age snow white hairs on thee,"

The journey is so long it lasts a lifetime, symbolising wasted years in search of the impossible.

Lines 14-18

Thou, when thou return'st, wilt tell me,

All strange wonders that befell thee,

And swear,

No where

Lives a woman true, and fair.

"Thou, when thou return'st, wilt tell me,"

The speaker anticipates the listener's return from the impossible quest.

"All strange wonders that befell thee,"

Suggests the listener will have many fantastical stories.

"And swear, / No where / Lives a woman true, and fair."

The speaker's ultimate point: even with all the wonders seen, a faithful woman is not among them.

Lines 19-20

If thou find'st one, let me know,

Such a pilgrimage were sweet;

"If thou find'st one, let me know,"

The speaker sarcastically suggests he would like to know if a faithful woman is found.

"Such a pilgrimage were sweet;"

Compares the search for a faithful woman to a sacred pilgrimage.

Lines 21-22

Yet do not, I would not go,

Though at next door we might meet;

"Yet do not, I would not go,"

The speaker retracts his previous statement, expressing cynicism.

"Though at next door we might meet;"

Even if the faithful woman were nearby, the speaker would not bother to meet her.

Lines 23-27

Though she were true, when you met her,

And last, till you write your letter,

Yet she

Will be

False, ere I come, to two, or three.

"Though she were true, when you met her,"

The speaker acknowledges the possibility of initial faithfulness.

"And last, till you write your letter,"

Suggests she might remain faithful for a short time.

"Yet she / Will be / False, ere I come, to two, or three."

Concludes that any woman's faithfulness is temporary and she would be unfaithful before the speaker arrives.

Song ('Go and catch a falling star') (Edexcel A-Level English Literature): Revision Notes