A Valediction of Weeping by John Donne Revision Notes for Edexcel A-Level English Literature

A Valediction of Weeping by John Donne

Context

A Valediction: Of Weeping by John Donne reflects the poet's metaphysical style, written during a period of personal and societal upheaval in the late 16th and early 17th centuries.
Donne was a prominent figure in the metaphysical poetry movement, known for his complex imagery and elaborate conceits.
This poem captures the intense emotions of parting, as the speaker prepares to leave on a long sea voyage, a dangerous and uncertain journey during Donne's time.

Structure and Form

Form, Metre, and Rhyme

The poem consists of three nine-line stanzas.
The rhyme scheme is ABBA CC DDD.
It employs a mix of iambic dimeter, pentameter, and hexameter, creating a varied and dynamic rhythm.
The alternating line lengths reflect the speaker's fluctuating emotional state, shifting between stabs of pain and contemplative reflections on love and grief.

Speaker and Setting

The speaker, preparing for a sea voyage, is addressing his beloved in a deeply emotional farewell.
The setting is intimate and poignant, as the couple shares a tearful embrace before the impending separation.

Poetic Devices

Conceit**:** The poem is rich in elaborate conceits, comparing the speaker's tears to coins, pregnant wombs, and even globes.
Metaphor**:** Metaphors such as tears being the "fruits of much grief" and "emblems of more" are used to convey the depth of the speaker's sorrow.
Enjambment**:** The use of enjambment mirrors the overflow of emotions, as sentences spill over from one line to the next.
Assonance**:** The poem employs assonance to create a melodious and mournful tone, enhancing the emotional impact.
Allusion**:** References to contemporary exploration and the biblical flood underscore the gravity and universality of the speaker's experience.

Key Themes

The Pains of Parting

The poem explores the acute sorrow of separation, as the speaker's tears symbolise the pain of leaving and the fear of never meeting again.

"When a tear falls, that thou falls which it bore, / So thou and I are nothing then, when on a diverse shore." (Lines 8-9)

Love and Connection

The intense bond between the speaker and his beloved is highlighted, suggesting that their connection transcends physical distance.

"Since thou and I sigh one another's breath, / Whoe'er sighs most is cruellest, and hastes the other's death." (Lines 26-27)

Similar Poems

"To His Coy Mistress" by Andrew Marvell: Uses wit and elaborate arguments to address themes of love and separation.

Line by Line Analysis

Lines 1-4

Let me pour forth

My tears before thy face whilst I stay here,

For thy face coins them, and thy stamp they bear,

And by this mintage they are something worth,

"Let me pour forth / My tears before thy face whilst I stay here,"

The speaker asks to weep in his beloved's presence, suggesting the cathartic need to express sorrow while still together.

"For thy face coins them, and thy stamp they bear,"

The tears are metaphorically "coined" by the beloved's face, making them valuable and significant.

Lines 5-9

For thus they be

Pregnant of thee;

Fruits of much grief they are, emblems of more,

When a tear falls, that thou falls which it bore,

So thou and I are nothing then, when on a diverse shore.

"For thus they be / Pregnant of thee;"

The tears are described as being "pregnant" with the beloved's image, indicating their deep emotional significance.

"Fruits of much grief they are, emblems of more,"

The tears are both the result of current grief and symbols of future sorrow.

"When a tear falls, that thou falls which it bore,"

The fall of each tear symbolises the fall of the beloved's reflexion within it, highlighting the loss experienced through separation.

Lines 10-16

On a round ball

A workman that hath copies by can lay

An Europe, Afric, and an Asia,

And quickly make that, which was nothing, all;

So doth each tear

Which thee doth wear,

A globe, yea world, by that impression grow,

"On a round ball / A workman that hath copies by can lay / An Europe, Afric, and an Asia,"

The speaker compares the transformation of a plain sphere into a globe with the continents inscribed on it to his tears reflecting the beloved's image.

"So doth each tear / Which thee doth wear, / A globe, yea world, by that impression grow,"

Each tear, reflecting the beloved, becomes a microcosm, symbolising the entire world.

Lines 17-18

Till thy tears mixed with mine do overflow

This world; by waters sent from thee, my heaven dissolvèd so.

"Till thy tears mixed with mine do overflow / This world;"

The blending of their tears creates a flood, symbolising the overwhelming sorrow of their parting.

Lines 19-22

O more than moon,

Draw not up seas to drown me in thy sphere;

Weep me not dead in thine arms, but forbear

To teach the sea what it may do too soon.

"O more than moon, / Draw not up seas to drown me in thy sphere;"

The beloved is compared to the moon, which controls the tides.
The speaker pleads for her not to cause a flood of tears.

Lines 23-27

Let not the wind

Example find,

To do me more harm than it purposeth;

Since thou and I sigh one another's breath,

Whoe'er sighs most is cruellest, and hastes the other's death.

"Let not the wind / Example find,"

The speaker fears that his beloved's sighs might teach the wind to blow more fiercely, causing him harm.

"Since thou and I sigh one another's breath,"

The lovers are so connected that they share each other's breath, making their sighs a mutual act.

"Whoe'er sighs most is cruellest, and hastes the other's death."

Excessive sighing, or sorrow, hastens their mutual destruction, emphasising the profound impact of their emotional bond.

A Valediction of Weeping by John Donne (Edexcel A-Level English Literature): Revision Notes