Analysis of John Donne’s "The Sunne Rising" as a Metaphysical Love Poem

In Metaphysical poetry John Donne is an outstanding name. He is regarded as the leader and master of this. The novelty of John Donne's metaphysical poetry is marked specifically in his love poems which perfectly balance impulse and intellectual basis in his hand. In this respect The Sunne Rising is a characteristic work from John Donne.

The poem The Sunne Rising is on Doone's joyous fulfilled love for Anne Moore. The lover’s mood is self complacent absolutely satisfied with his love that he extols over all other things. His sense of pleasure feed him to challenge the sun and claims that his love is not subjected to the mere laws of Nature. The intensity of the poetic emotion is echoed in the lover's excited assertion ------  

“Love all alike no season knows not clime ,

Not hours, days, monthes, which are the rags of time.”

Yet the poem contains the characteristic paradox of John Donne metaphysical love poetry. While emphasizing that nothing exist to a lover, apart from the experience of love, the poet has a lively and humorous approach and speaks sardonically of those who are involved in matter other than love. In a mock witty vain he counsels the old busy sun to remind the late going school boy's sour apprentices:

"Must to thy motions lovers' seasons run?

Saucy pedantic wretch, go chide

Late schoolboys and sour prentices,"

The speaker lover questions why the sun's movements dictate the timing of lovers' activities. They dismissively refer to the sun as a "saucy pedantic wretch" and suggest that it should instead scold schoolboys and apprentices who are tardy or ill-tempered.

Then the Speaker lover addressing him as royal to  court huntsman and country ants of their tasks. Again the use of the expression call country ants in hardest offices is the Metaphoric suggestion of form laborers engaged in harvesting: 

"Go tell court-huntsmen that the king will ride,

Call country ants to harvest offices;

Love, all alike, no season knows nor clime,"

The speaker sarcastically instructs the sun to inform court-huntsmen that the king will go riding, or to summon ants from the countryside to carry out their work in the offices. This dismissive tone emphasizes the speaker's belief that love transcends such trivial concerns. The lines also hints at Playful Tone and Verbal Wit. The speaker's sarcastic and dismissive language towards the sun, referring to it as a "saucy pedantic wretch" and instructing it to perform menial tasks like "go", "call", reflects this characteristic wit and humor.

The speaker addresses the sun's rays, acknowledging their reverence and strength. The sun's beams seem to question or doubt the speaker's capability to overshadow them. In response, the speaker confidently asserts that they could effortlessly overshadow the sun's rays by closing their eyes briefly. However, they express their unwillingness to do so, as they do not want to lose sight of their beloved, even for a short period of time. This further emphasizes the speaker's devotion and prioritization of their love over any external force, such as the sun:

    "   Thy beams, so reverend and strong

               Why shouldst thou think?

I could eclipse and cloud them with a wink,

But that I would not lose her sight so long;"

 Moreover intellectual flashes are not unmarked in the lovers' diverting assertion to the sun:

"Thou, sun, art half as happy as we,

               In that the world's contracted thus.

         Thine age asks ease, and since thy duties be

         To warm the world, that's done in warming us."

The sun is only half as happy as the lovers are because their world is confined to the intimate space they share. This paradoxical statement reflects the speaker's belief in the extraordinary power and happiness derived from their love. They imply that the sun's duty to warm the entire world is fulfilled by warming the lovers' intimate space.  

  The reference in "both the Indies of spice and mine” equally sounds the intellectual depth of Donne's metaphysical poetry. All the same time, There is heard the emotional emphasis of love -- ' All here in one bed '.

  

Metaphysical poetry is essentially concise. The compression of Imagery and expression as untied in --

           "She's all states, and all princes, I,

               Nothing else is"

Nothing else is -- is conventional tone that is dominant in the poem, is also typical of the metaphysical character of the poem. Again, the conventional tone that is dominant in the poem , is also typical of the metaphysical character of the poem. Donne's metaphysical poetry often revolves around the theme of love, particularly intense and spiritual love. The speaker in these lines also expresses their devotion to their beloved and their desire to be undisturbed in their intimate space. They dismiss the sun's influence on lovers' seasons, suggesting that love is not bound by external factors. They are the complete kingdom, a whole sphere. 

In the connection the dramatic beginning of the poem is also worth noting. The sun is sharply - rebuked as a fool and intruder. We see examples of conceits such as addressing the sun as a "busy old fool" and an "unruly sun." These unconventional metaphors convey the speaker's frustration with the sun's interference and elevate the language beyond literal descriptions.:-

 " Busie old fool unruly sunne,

Why does thou thus

 Through window's and through curtains call on us?"

 Moreover, the entire theme of the poem is expressed in a starkly singular and suggestive way. The novelty of metaphysical love poetry, as of Donne consists here in. In fact the essence metaphysical poetry lies not in the matter but in the manner of expressions. What count here most in the manner in which this theme of happy love is brought by the very craft that is unconventional and rather radical for Donne’s age. 

The diction of the poem is typical of John Donne's metaphysical poetry. This is simple and pointed and full of metaphors. The poet’s versification is in tune with the singularization of his mood and felling. The metrical swing in steered not by impulsive urge but regular by intellectual originality. The intellectual beat of the poet’s rhythm is too original enough, and heard distinctly not seldom in the poem. A single instance may be quoted in this context to affirm the contention --

                            “She is all states, and all princes, I,
Nothing else is.”

Donne's metaphysical poetry often blurs the boundaries between the physical and spiritual realms. In  The Sunne Rising , the speaker suggests that their love transcends time, seasons, and physical locations. They challenge the sun's significance by asserting that their intimate space is the center of the universe and that the sun's duty to warm the world is fulfilled by warming their love. This blending of physical and spiritual realms is truly metaphysical.

Key Points:

1. The poem uses conceits, or extended metaphors, to explore the nature of love.
2. The speaker compares the sun to a jealous lover who wants to separate the speaker and his beloved.
3. The poem argues that love is stronger than the sun and that it can overcome any obstacle.
4. The use of conceits is a characteristic of Metaphysical poetry, which often used intellectual wordplay and complex imagery to explore abstract concepts.
5. The poem's comparison of the sun to a jealous lover is a clever conceit that captures the intensity of the speaker's love.
6. The poem's argument that love is stronger than the sun is a bold statement that challenges traditional notions of love and power.

Ardhendu De              

Ref: 

1.  Kolin, P. C. (1983). Love’s Wealth in “The Sunne Rising.” The South Central Bulletin, 43(4), 112–114. https://doi.org/10.2307/3187251

2. The Sun Rising (poem) - Wikipedia. (2019, April 1). The Sun Rising (Poem) - Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sun_Rising_(poem)