Everlasting Love

Everlasting Love
Shakale Phipps
ENG/125
March 4, 2014
Melanie Novak
Everlasting Love
There are many forms of literature. Poetry just so happens to be one of them. As a poet, there are several styles of poetry, such as Haikus, freestyle, or ones that have rhythm. How a poet chooses to express himself is all up to him, and whether we understand or not does not really matter. Some poets give a clear meaning of what they are trying to convey, others, on the other hand can come off a bit complex. In the poem, "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning," by John Donne, the author's strategy used to capture the reader's attention is clear, as well as the imagery and symbolism used to communicate life and death. How a person interprets written poetry, is only up to self. There has never been a right or wrong understanding when it comes to poetry, and one's opinion about what is read is left for the reader to decide.
The speaker of Donne's poem starts off with an odd metaphor of some old man passing away. Dreamy right? He mentions the departing of his wife , and he ought to be gentle like the passing of an old man. With maturity comes a spiritual peace that one could not believe so the old man is just waiting peacefully for his time of rest. An example of this usage could be the old man, who is not fearful of death because he understands his body and soul will be returned in eternity. Even though, he and his beloved have deceased as parted, they firmly believe in love forevermore. Somehow he shifted gears and links the couple's deep love to an earthquake which causes an uproar and makes somewhat of a mess, minus the remarkable effects. When I think of an earthquake, I believe a solid, yet shaky foundation that is ready to rupture at any given moment. The couple in the poem has such fears when it comes to their relationship , but the strength of their love leaves their relationship unaffected. In the real world, most people are fearful of having distance or separation of any kind in their relationships; a much larger space than the flaws in the earth after an actual earthquake, since the love they share is based upon the physical connection they share. In fact, the distance only adds to the separation masked by the affection they share for one another, kind of like a layer of gold, melted so thin it covers a vast area more than any love focused in one place would ever.
In contrast, he compares his love to an overlooked, delicate movement of our astrological planets that help to control the outcome of each individual. I guess one could say the heavens have opened in our favor. The head over heels couple cannot stand the thought of being apart because the love they have is solely based upon the physical connection they share, but the love he has can be spread at any length because the duo's soul is shared. Is that Donne's way of attracting us? Furthermore, to prove their loves greatness, he gives yet another metaphor: a mathematical compass- nothing shouts sex appeal like a calculated contraption. When he compares his wife and him to a compass drawing a circle, I believe that one leg of the compass, perhaps Donne are traveling around, spreading himself about the heavens, looking down on his lovely bride while the other leg, his wife, stays very much in love at home, missing her husband. Ironically, the two compass legs are still considered as one unit and somehow end up together in the end. No matter the distance, the nature of their love will endure forever more. Despite the earthly detachment between the two, the fact that they are bound together, through spirituality, for life is what keeps them connected. Even after life, true love never dies.
In poetry, there are an assortment of literary conventions and poetic devices used such as imagery, meters and symbolism to communicate a poems meaning. Poet, John Donne did not write, "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning" in any particular or known form. However, that does not imply that it is not formal. There is however a particular variation that is worth noticing. The structure of the poem, however, does trail an exact structure of its own and demonstrates a minute deviation. It is made up of nine, four lined stanzas known as quatrains, each with its own alternating rhythmic pattern. Moreover, just about every formal meter has a ton of variation; however, this poem remains true to its design. The poem is fundamentally an arrangement of comparisons and metaphors, each describing an alternative way of viewing their separation, which will aid each other into avoiding the ‘forbidden mourning' of losing one another. In fact, we have more to attempts in trying to figure out what the poem's true argument is. There really is no need for a bunch of metrical foots or spondees to add onto our anxiety.
The poems devices and forms comprised of images that are seemingly aloof from its original focus of departing lovers: the passing of one, identical compasses, and godly motion. Nevertheless, each of these themes has the conjoint denominator of reunification, restoration and lastingness. In life, everyone has an expiration date; there simply is no way around it. How one defines the life they have lived or where they may go in the afterlife is an interpretation that only we as individuals can only understand. Some may believe that dying is the easy way out, love will conquer all, and that a fulfilled life while lived is all that counts. Well would you believe me if I told you that life comes full circle and what you put out is what you will receive in return? What I took from John Donne's, "A Valedictions: Forbidding Mourning", can be thought of as dark, yet colorful all in the same light. The thought of losing a loved one whom you have become one with can be a very traumatizing experience. Will you love again, is it possible to have more than one soul mate, or should you just roll over and die? True love never dies, and that is what you call an everlasting love.