BL-1

The general prologue to Canterbury tales

The Knight
The narrator begins his character portraits with the Knight. In the
narrator’s eyes, the Knight is the noblest of the pilgrims, embodying military
prowess, loyalty, honor, generosity, and good manners. The Knight conducts
himself in a polite and mild fashion, never saying an unkind word about
anyone. The Knight’s son, who is about twenty years old, acts as his father’s
squire, or apprentice. Though the Squire has fought in battles with great
strength and agility, like his father, he is also devoted to love. A strong,
beautiful, curly-haired young man dressed in clothes embroidered with
dainty flowers, the Squire fights in the hope of winning favor with his “lady.”
His talents are those of the courtly lover—singing, playing the flute, drawing,
writing, and riding—and he loves so passionately that he gets little sleep at
night. He is a dutiful son, and fulfills his responsibilities toward his father,
such as carving his meat. Accompanying the Knight and Squire is the
Knight’s Yeoman, or freeborn servant. 

Monk

The Monk is the next pilgrim the narrator describes. Extremely

handsome, he loves hunting and keeps many horses. He is an outrider at his
monastery (he looks after the monastery’s business with the external world),
and his horse’s bridle can be heard jingling in the wind as clear and loud as a
church bell. The Monk is aware that the rule of his monastic order
discourages monks from engaging in activities like hunting, but he dismisses
such strictures as worthless. The narrator says that he agrees with the Monk:
why should the Monk drive himself crazy with study or manual labor? The
fat, bald, and well-dressed Monk resembles a prosperous lord.

Merchant

Tastefully attired in nice boots and an imported fur hat, the Merchant
speaks constantly of his profits. The merchant is good at borrowing money,
but clever enough to keep anyone from knowing that he is in debt. The
narrator does not know his name. After the Merchant comes the Clerk, a
thin and threadbare student of philosophy at Oxford, who devours books
instead of food. The Man of Law, an influential lawyer, follows next. He is a
wise character, capable of preparing flawless legal documents. The Man of
Law is a very busy man, but he takes care to appear even busier than he
actually is.

Analysis
The Canterbury Tales is more than an estates satire because the characters
are fully individualized creations rather than simple good or bad examples of
some ideal type. Many of them seem aware that they inhabit a socially
defined role and seem to have made a conscious effort to redefine their
prescribed role on their own terms. For instance, the Squire is training to
occupy the same social role as his father, the Knight, but unlike his father he
defines this role in terms of the ideals of courtly love rather than crusading.
The Prioress is a nun, but she aspires to the manners and behavior of a lady
of the court, and, like the Squire, incorporates the motifs of courtly love into
her Christian vocation. Characters such as the Monk and the Friar, who
more obviously corrupt or pervert their social roles, are able to offer a
justification and a rationale for their behavior, demonstrating that they have
carefully considered how to go about occupying their professions.

Within each portrait, the narrator praises the character being

described in superlative terms, promoting him or her as an outstanding
example of his or her type. At the same time, the narrator points out things
about many of the characters that the reader would be likely to view as
flawed or corrupt, to varying degrees. The narrator’s naïve stance introduces
many different ironies into the General Prologue. Though it is not always
clear exactly how ironic the narrator is being, the reader can perceive a
difference between what each character should be and what he or she is.

The narrator is also a character, and an incredibly complex one

at that. Examination of the narrator’s presentation of the pilgrims reveals
some of his prejudices. The Monk’s portrait, in which the narrator inserts his
own judgment of the Monk into the actual portrait, is the clearest example of
this. But most of the time, the narrator’s opinions are more subtly present.
What he does and doesn’t discuss, the order in which he presents or recalls
details, and the extent to which he records objective characteristics of the
pilgrims are all crucial to our own ironic understanding of the narrator.

The Knight has fought in crusades the world over, and comes as
close as any of the characters to embodying the ideals of his vocation. But
even in his case, the narrator suggests a slight separation between the
individual and the role: the Knight doesn’t simply exemplify chivalry, truth,
honor, freedom, and courtesy; he “loves” them. His virtues are due to his
self-conscious pursuit of clearly conceived ideals. Moreover, the Knight’s
comportment is significant. Not only is he a worthy warrior, he is prudent in
the image of himself that he projects. His appearance is calculated to express
humility rather than vainglory.

The narrator’s admiring description of the Monk is more

conspicuously satirical. The narrator zeroes in on the Monk with a vivid
image: his bridle jingles as loud and clear as a chapel bell. This image is
pointedly ironic, since the chapel is where the Monk should be but isn’t. To a
greater degree than the Squire or the Prioress, the Monk has departed from
his prescribed role as defined by the founders of his order. He lives like a
lord rather than a cleric. Hunting is an extremely expensive form of leisure,
the pursuit of the upper classes. The narrator takes pains to point out that
the Monk is aware of the rules of his order but scorns them.

 the Merchant evidently taxes his ability to do so. The Merchant

is in debt, apparently a regular occurrence, and his supposed cleverness at
hiding his indebtedness is undermined by the fact that even the naïve
narrator knows about it. Though the narrator would like to praise him, the
Merchant hasn’t even told the company his name.

The Knight

The Knight rides at the front of the procession described in the

General Prologue, and his story is the first in the sequence. The Host clearly
admires the Knight, as does the narrator. The narrator seems to remember
four main qualities of the Knight. The first is the Knight’s love of ideals
—“chivalrie” (prowess), “trouthe” (fidelity), “honour” (reputation), “fredom”
(generosity), and “curteisie” (refinement) (General Prologue, 45–46).
 The second is the Knight’s impressive military career. The Knight has
fought in the Crusades, wars in which Europeans traveled by sea to non-
Christian lands and attempted to convert whole cultures by the force of their
swords. By Chaucer’s time, the spirit for conducting these wars was dying
out, and they were no longer undertaken as frequently. The Knight has
battled the Muslims in Egypt, Spain, and Turkey, and the Russian Orthodox
in Lithuania and Russia. He has also fought in formal duels.

The third quality the narrator remembers about the Knight is his meek,
gentle, manner. And the fourth is his “array,” or dress. The Knight wears a
tunic made of coarse cloth, and his coat of mail is rust-stained, because he
has recently returned from an expedition.

The Knight’s interaction with other characters tells us a few additional facts
about him. In the Prologue to the Nun’s Priest’s Tale, he calls out to hear
something more lighthearted, saying that it deeply upsets him to hear stories
about tragic falls. He would rather hear about “joye and greet solas,” about
men who start off in poverty climbing in fortune and attaining wealth (Nun’s
Priest’s Prologue, 2774). The Host agrees with him, which is not surprising,
since the Host has mentioned that whoever tells the tale of “best sentence
and moost solaas” will win the storytelling contest (General Prologue, 798).

At the end of the Pardoner’s Tale, the Knight breaks in to stop the
squabbling between the Host and the Pardoner, ordering them to kiss and
make up. Ironically, though a soldier, the romantic, idealistic Knight clearly
has an aversion to conflict or unhappiness of any sort.

The Monk

When one thinks of a monk, he may imagine someone who studies, prays,
and performs manual labor. The Monk, one of the thirty pilgrims travelling
on a pilgrimage to Canterbury in The Canterbury Tales, is nothing like the
usual monk many people imagine. He is rebellious, ignores rules, and lives
and controls his own life. Chaucer, the narrator and author of The
Canterbury Tales, shows these characteristics in the way the Monk looks, the
things he says and does, and in the things the host, a character in "The
Monk's Prologue," and Chaucer say about him.
The Monk is nothing like the usual monk many people imagine. He hunts
hares and rides horses instead of studying, praying, and working. He does
not follow the rules of the monastery which say that monks should not hunt,
be reckless, nor leave the monastery. Instead,they should study and perform
manual labor. The Monk ignores these rules. Chaucer shows that the Monk
does not care about the rules when he says, "He yaf nought of that text a
pulled hen"(Norton, p.85) and when he says, "Of priking and of hunting for
the hare was al his lust, for no cost wolde he spare"(191-192). The Monk will
never follow the rules because they are against what he loves to do. He may
want to have the title of "monk" but does not want to do what it takes to be a
monk, which is to quit riding and hunting and start studying, praying, and
performing manual labor. He has control over his life since he does not let
the rules dictate what he should or should not do.

The Monk's robe is different from that of other monks. Monks usually wear
plain habits with hoods. This Monk has gray fur on the sleeves of his cope
and a gold pin with a love knot at the end of the hood. This indicates that he
is not religious because instead of the gold pin, he should have a rosary. He
is in good shape unlike other monks who are thin because they fast often. He
is bald and has a shiny head and face.

He probably did not want to become a monk but decided to be one anyway
because the monastery provides a cloistered environment, away from the
betrayal of people and of women. In "The Monk's Tale," he talks about
different men who died because they were betrayed by their loved ones.
Hercules, for example, died after being poisoned by a shirt his girlfriend gave
him, and Samson killed himself because his wife gave his secret away to his
enemies, who, in turn, tortured him. Since women betrayed these men, the
Monk does not trust them.

The host, who appears in "The Monk's Prologue" as well as other Canterbury

Tales and in "The General Prologue," notices that the Monk does not belong
in the monastery and says, "God confound him, I pray, whoever first led you
to take up monastic life, you'd have been a rare cock with the hens" (Wright,
p.177). The host also reveals a new characteristic of the Monk when he says,
"If you had the freedom, as you have the power, to copulate as much as you
desire, a fellow like you would have fathered dozens!" (Wright, p. 177). This
indicates that the Monk is lustful. Since monks are not supposed to think
about women, he is committing a sin.

Chaucer likes the Monk and seems to agree with his way of life. He says, in
"The General Prologue", that the monk is "fair for the maistrye, an
outridere...a manly man, to been an abbot worthy" (Norton,p. 85). He
probably says this because the Monk has leadership skills since he dictates
his life by ignoring the rules of the monastery.

Chaucer shows the Monk's characteristics in the way he looks, the things he
says and does, and in the things the host and Chaucer say about him.
Chaucer says that the Monk's lust is for riding and hunting while the host
says it is for women. The Monk is honest with himself. He is very modern
since he ignores the rules of the monastery and wears his robe with gray fur
lining at the sleeves. He also seems like he is more of a regular person than a
monk.

Merchant

The Merchant outfits himself in fashionable attire, with his multicolored

cloak and his forked beard. He is a member of the new, rising middle class
that Chaucer the author belongs to. Chaucer says that the Merchant hides
being in debt by wearing fancy clothes, but the fact that even Chaucer, a
stranger among the company, knows the Merchant’s financial troubles
indicates that the Merchant does not hide his secrets as well as he thinks he
does.

Come Sleep, O Sleep by Sir Philip Sidney

“Come Sleep, O Sleep” is one of the 108 sonnets published by Sir Philip

Sidney in his collection “Astrophil and Stella” published around 1582. The
songs and sonnets in this collection tell the story of Astrophil (star-lover),
and his hopeless passion for Stella (star). The 39th sonnet, “Come Sleep, O
Sleep” tells us about sleep and its effects on men. It concludes with how
Astrophil sees Stella clearly in a dream while sleeping
 “Come Sleep, O Sleep” by Sir Philip Sidney is the second of three
sonnets about sleep and going to bed in “Astrophil and Stella”.
The speaker is unable to sleep, so he invites sleep as if inviting a person,
using all kinds of flattery. He praises sleep for all is quality, and for being an
unbiased leveler who goes without minding whether rich or poor. Sydney
explains sleep to a land of peace and tries to find peace and solace. Further,
he describes sleep as a place of escape from the noise, light, and everything
that make men weary. Finally, he concludes stating that sleep is livelier than
reality, for he (Astrophel) can see Stella clearly

Form and Structure of Come Sleep, O Sleep

“Come Sleep! O Sleep” is a sonnet of 14 lines. Following the best known

Petrarchan or Italian sonnet form there is a shift after octave in rhyme and in
the subject matter. In the octave, the poet discusses what all things sleep
offers to people. But, in the sestet, he discusses the possible things he can
offer sleep it comes. In the concluding couple, he comes to an agreement
with sleep to share the image of Stella, livelier in his sleep than in reality.
The sonnet is written in Iambic pentameter. Though it follows the structure
of a Petrarchan sonnet, the rhyme scheme is of the Shakespearean
sonnet form with ABABABAB, CDCDEFEFGG.

Literary/ Poetic Devices Used in Come Sleep, O Sleep

Sidney uses poetic devices like Apostrophe, Personification, Paradox,

and Metaphor, etc in the sonnet “Come Sleep, O Sleep”.

Apostrophe

An apostrophe is used in the title itself to make this poem sound more like
a conversation between the speaker and “Sleep”. In the first line of the poem,
the speaker directly addresses sleep, as if it is standing in front of him and
willing not to come. He tries to convince as if one convinces a friend.
Personification

In the poem, “Sleep” is personified like a man who makes his choices. At the
beginning of the poem, sleep has made up its mind not to come. Poet is
desperate without sleep, so he had to uses whatever way sounds possible for
him to lull sleep.

Metaphor

The poet has used several “Metaphors” to describe the quality and nature of
sleep. The following metaphors like “certain knot of peace”, “baiting-place
of wit”, “balm of woe”, “poor man’s wealth”, “prisoner’s release”, and
“indifferent judge” are found in the first quatrain of the poem. The poet
compares sleep to a judge who makes no distinction while making a
judgment.  Sleep is equally available to all despite their socio-economical
situation.

Imagery

The poet uses the poetic technique “Imagery” while describing the inviting
bed Chamber.  It has “smooth pillows” and “sweetest bed”. It is also free from
the “noise” and “light”. Ironically, he has everything that is needed for a
comfortable sleep, yet he has no sleep. This gives a picture of a man lying in
the tossing around without sleep.

Paradox

In the third line of the poem “Come Sleep, O Sleep”, the poet paradoxically
uses the terms “poor man”, “wealth”, “prisoner”, and “release”. The word
‘poor’ lexically means a person who has a little, and Prisoner, someone who
is bound by the four walls of a prison. But here the poet remarks Sleep to be
a wealth of a poor, and freedom from the world of prison to a prisoner.
Analysis of Come Sleep! O Sleep

Lines 1 to 4

Come Sleep! O Sleep, the certain knot of peace,

The baiting-place of wit, the balm of woe,

The poor man’s wealth, the prisoner’s release,

Th’ indifferent judge between the high and low.

The sonnet Come Sleep! O Sleep begins with the speaker inviting the
sleep to come. It looks like the sleep is not coming so he cajoling it to come
using a lot of flattery. He uses expensive epithets like “certain knot of peace”,
“baiting-place of wit”, “balm of woe”, “poor man’s wealth”, “prisoner’s
release”, and “indifferent judge” to flatter Sleep. Sleep seems to be the place
that is directly connected to peace. And also it is a place that lulls knowledge
and wisdom. In the lines following, the poet paradoxically uses sleep as “poor
man’s wealth” and “prisoner’s release”, for it gives them relief from reality.
Seep is being a leveler, as death is a leveler in James Shirley’s poem “Death
the Leveller”. Sleep comes equally to both rich and poor, to make everything
even. Though Rich people can buy a lot of comforting things for sleep, the
sleep they get is common.

Lines 5 to 8

With shield of proof shield me from out the prease

Of those fierce darts despair at me doth throw:

O make in me those civil wars to cease;

I will good tribute pay, if thou do so.

In the second quatrain of the poem “Come Sleep, O Sleep” the poet or
speaker seems to be desperate for sleep. He calls upon sleep to protect him
with its ‘shield of proof’ from the “fierce darts” being thrown at him. Since
the speaker of the poem is Astrophel the darts could be the ones from cupid,
for he is love, that doesn’t allow him to get sleep. His love for the Stella is
causing civil wars within him, so he expects the sleep to come and put an
end to it. The fine line shows how desperate he is for sleep because he is
even willing to bribe the sleep to come.

Lines 9 to 14

Take thou of me smooth pillows, sweetest bed,

A chamber deaf to noise and blind to light,

A rosy garland and a weary head:

And if these things, as being thine by right,

Move not thy heavy grace, thou shalt in me,

Livelier than elsewhere, Stella’s image see.

In the sestet of “Come Sleep, O Sleep” the speaker offers smooth
pillows, sweetest bed, and a chamber, immune to sound and light to induce
sleep. He readily offers “a rosy garland” and “weary head” too. To an ordinary
person, this may be a tempting offer but to sleep, they are not. Logically,
they are already the properties of sleep. At this time, the speaker realizes
that they may not be sufficient to convince sleep. Ultimately, he gets an idea
in the final couplet, and speaks confidently to “sleep”, if it agrees to come, he
will grant an ultimate reward of seeing ‘Stella’.

Epithalamion

Epithalamion is an ode written by Edmund Spenser as a gift to his

bride, Elizabeth Boyle, on their wedding day. The poem moves through the
couples' wedding day, from the groom's impatient hours before dawn to the
late hours of night after the husband and wife have consummated their
marriage. Spenser is very methodical in his depiction of time as it passes,
both in the accurate chronological sense and in the subjective sense of time
as felt by those waiting in anticipation or fear.

As with most classically-inspired works, this ode begins with an invocation

to the Muses to help the groom; however, in this case they are to help him
awaken his bride, not create his poetic work. Then follows a growing
procession of figures who attempt to bestir the bride from her bed. Once the
sun has risen, the bride finally awakens and begins her procession to the
bridal bower. She comes to the "temple" (the sanctuary of the church
wherein she is to be formally married to the groom) and is wed, then a
celebration ensues. Almost immediately, the groom wants everyone to leave
and the day to shorten so that he may enjoy the bliss of his wedding night.
Once the night arrives, however, the groom turns his thoughts toward the
product of their union, praying to various gods that his new wife's womb
might be fertile and give him multiple children.

Stanza 1

Summary

The groom calls upon the muses to inspire him to properly sing the praises
of his beloved bride. He claims he will sing to himself, "as Orpheus did for
his own bride." As with most of the following stanzas, this stanza ends with
the refrain "The woods shall to me answer and my Eccho ring."

Analysis

In the tradition of classical authors, the poet calls upon the muses to inspire
him. Unlike many poets, who called upon a single muse, Spenser here calls
upon all the muses, suggesting his subject requires the full range of mythic
inspiration. The reference to Orpheus is an allusion to that hero's luring of
his bride's spirit from the realm of the dead using his beautiful music; the
groom, too, hopes to awaken his bride from her slumber, leading her into
the light of their wedding day.

Stanza 2

Summary
Before the break of day, the groom urges the muses to head to his beloved's
bower, there to awaken her. Hymen, god of marriage, is already awake, and
so too should the bride arise. The groom urges the muses to remind his bride
that this is her wedding day, an occasion that will return her great delight for
all the "paynes and sorrowes past."

Analysis

Another classical figure, Hymen, is invoked here, and not for the last time. If
the god of marriage is ready, and the groom is ready, then he expects his
bride to make herself ready as well. The focus is on the sanctity of the
wedding day--this occasion itself should urge the bride to come celebrate it
as early as possible. Here it is the marriage ceremony, not the bride (or the
groom) which determines what is urgent.

Stanza 3

Summary

The groom instructs the muses to summon all the nymphs they can to
accompany them to the bridal chamber. On their way, they are to gather all
the fragrant flowers they can and decorate the path leading from the "bridal
bower," where the marriage ceremony is to take place, to the door of the
bride's chambers. If they do so, she will tread nothing but flowers on her
procession from her rooms to the site of the wedding. As they adorn her
doorway with flowers, their song will awaken the bride

Analysis

This celebration of Christian matrimony here becomes firmly entrenched in

the classical mythology of the Greeks with the summoning of the nymphs.
No more pagan image can be found than these nature-spirits strewing the
ground with various flowers to make a path of beauty from the bride's
bedchamber to the bridal bower. Although Spenser will later develop the
Protestant marriage ideals, he has chosen to greet the wedding day morning
with the spirits of ancient paganism instead.

Stanza 4

Summary
Addressing the various nymphs of other natural locales, the groom asks that
they tend to their specialties to make the wedding day perfect. The nymphs
who tend the ponds and lakes should make sure the water is clear and
unmolested by lively fish, that they may see their own reflections in it and so
best prepare themselves to be seen by the bride. The nymphs of the
mountains and woods, who keep deer safe from ravening wolves, should
exercise their skills in keeping these selfsame wolves away from the bride
this wedding day. Both groups are to be present to help decorate the
wedding site with their beauty.

Analysis

Here Spenser further develops the nymph-summoning of Stanza 3. That he

focuses on the two groups' abilities to prevent disturbances hints that he
foresaw a chance of some misfortune attending the wedding. Whether this is
conventional "wedding day jitters" or a more politically-motivated concern
over the problem of Irish uprisings is uncertain, but the wolves mentioned
would come from the forests--the same place Irish resistance groups use to
hide their movements and strike at the occupying English with impunity.

Stanza 5

Summary

The groom now addresses his bride directly (even if she is not present) to
urge her to awaken. Sunrise is long since gone and Phoebus, the sun-god, is
showing "his glorious hed." The birds are already singing, and the groom
insists their song is a call to joy directed at the bride.

Analysis

The mythical figures of Rosy Dawn, Tithones, and Phoebus are here invoked
to continue the classical motif of the ode. Thus far, it is indistinguishable in
content from a pagan wedding-song. That the groom must address his bride
directly demonstrates both his impatience and the ineffectiveness of relying
on the muses and nymphs to summon forth the bride.

Stanza 6

Summary
The bride has finally awakened, and her eyes likened to the sun wit their
"goodly beams/More bright then Hesperus." The groom urges the "daughters
of delight" to attend to the bride, but summons too the Hours of Day and
Night, the Seasons, and the "three handmayds" of Venus to attend as well.
He urges the latter to do for his bride what they do for Venus, sing to her as
they help her dress for her wedding.

Analysis

There is a second sunrise here as the "darksome cloud" is removed from the
bride's visage and her eyes are allowed to shine in all their glory. The
"daughters of delight" are the nymphs, still urged to attend on the bride, but
here Spenser introduces the personifications of time in the hours that make
up Day, Night, and the seasons. He will return to this time motif later, but it
is important to note that here he sees time itself participating as much in the
marriage ceremony as do the nymphs and handmaids of Venus.

Stanza 7

Summary

The bride is ready with her attendant virgins, so now it is time for the
groomsmen and the groom himself to prepare. The groom implores the sun
to shine brightly, but not hotly lest it burn his bride's fair skin. He then prays
to Phoebus, who is both sun-god and originator of the arts, to give this one
day of the year to him while keeping the rest for himself. He offers to
exchange his own poetry as an offering for this great favor.

Analysis

The theme of light as both a sign of joy and an image of creative prowess
begins to be developed here, as the groom addresses Phoebus. Spenser refers
again to his own poetry as a worthy offering to the god of poetry and the
arts, which he believes has earned him the favor of having this one day
belong to himself rather than to the sun-god.

Stanza 8

Summary
The mortal wedding guests and entertainment move into action. The
minstrels play their music and sing, while women play their timbrels and
dance. Young boys run throughout the streets crying the wedding song
"Hymen io Hymen, Hymen" for all to hear. Those hearing the cries applaud
the boys and join in with the song.

Analysis

Spenser shifts to the real-world participants in the wedding ceremony, the

entertainment and possible guests. He describes a typical (if lavish)
Elizabethan wedding complete with elements harking back to classical
times. The boys' song "Hymen io Hymen, Hymen" can be traced back to
Greece, with its delivery by Gaius Valerius Catullus in the first century B.C.

Stanza 9

Summary

The groom beholds his bride approaching and compares her to Phoebe
(another name for Artemis, goddess of the moon) clad in white "that seemes
a virgin best." He finds her white attire so appropriate that she seems more
angel than woman. In modesty, she avoids the gaze of the myriad admirers
and blushes at the songs of praise she is receiving.

Analysis

This unusual stanza has a "missing line"-- a break after the ninth line of the
stanza (line 156). The structure probably plays into Spenser's greater
organization of lines and meter, which echo the hours of the day with great
mathematical precision. There is no aesthetic reason within the stanza for
the break, as it takes place three lines before the verses describing the bride's
own reaction to her admirers.

The comparison to Phoebe, twin sister of Phoebus, is significant since the

groom has essentially bargained to take Phoebus' place of prominence this
day two stanzas ago. He sees the bride as a perfect, even divine, counterpart
to himself this day, as Day and Night are inextricably linked in the passage of
time.

Stanza 10
Summary

The groom asks the women who see his bride if they have ever seen anyone
so beautiful in their town before. He then launches into a list of all her
virtues, starting with her eyes and eventually describing her whole body. The
bride's overwhelming beauty causes the maidens to forget their song to stare
at her.

Analysis

Spenser engages the blason convention, in which a woman's physical

features are picked out and described in metaphorical terms. Unlike his
blasons in Amoretti, this listing has no overarching connection among the
various metaphors. Her eyes and forehead are described in terms of valuable
items (sapphires and ivory), her cheeks and lips compared to fruit (apples
and cherries), her breast is compared to a bolw of cream, her nipples to the
buds of lilies, her neck to an ivory tower, and her whole body compared to a
beautiful palace.

Stanza 11

Summary

The groom moves from the external beauty of the bride to her internal
beauty, which he claims to see better than anyone else. He praises her lively
spirit, her sweet love, her chastity, her faith, her honor, and her modesty. He
insists that could her observers see her inner beauty, they would be far more
awestruck by it than they already are by her outward appearance.

Analysis

Although not a blason like the last stanza, this set of verses is nonetheless a
catalogue of the bride's inner virtues. Spenser moves for a moment away
from the emphasis on outward beauty so prominent in this ode and in pagan
marriage ceremonies, turning instead to his other classical influence:
Platonism. He describes the ideal woman, unsullied by fleshly weakness or
stray thoughts. Could the attendants see her true beauty--her absolute
beauty--they would be astonished like those who saw "Medusaes mazeful
hed" and were turned to stone.
Stanza 12

Summary

The groom calls for the doors to the temple to be opened that his bride may
enter in and approach the altar in reverence. He offers his bride as an
example for the observing maidens to follow, for she approaches this holy
place with reverence and humility.

Analysis

Spenser shifts the imagery from that of a pagan wedding ceremony, in which
the bride would be escorted to the groom's house for the wedding, to a
Protestant one taking place in a church (although he describes it with the
pre-Christian term "temple"). The bride enters in as a "Saynt" in the sense
that she is a good Protestant Christian, and she approaches this holy place
with the appropriate humility. No mention of Hymen or Phoebus is made;
instead the bride approaches "before th' almighties vew." The minstrels have
now become "Choristers" singing "praises of the Lord" to the accompaniment
of organs.

Stanza 13

Summary

The bride stands before the altar as the priest offers his blessing upon her
and upon the marriage. She blushes, causing the angels to forget their duties
and encircle here, while the groom wonders why she should blush to give
him her hand in marriage.

Analysis

Now firmly entrenched in the Christian wedding ceremony, the poem dwells
upon the bride's reaction to the priest's blessing, and the groom's reaction to
his bride's response. Her blush sends him toward another song about her
beauty, but he hesitates to commit wholly to that. A shadow of doubt crosses
his mind, as he describes her downcast eyes as "sad" and wonders why
making a pledge to marry him should make her blush.

Stanza 14
Summary

The Christian part of the wedding ceremony is over, and the groom asks that
the bride to be brought home again and the celebration to start. He calls for
feasting and drinking, turning his attention from the "almighty" God of the
church to the "God Bacchus," Hymen, and the Graces.

Analysis

Spenser slips easily (perhaps even hastily) away from teh Protestant wedding
ceremony back to the pagan revelries. Forgotten is the bride's humility at the
altar of the Christian God; instead he crowns Bacchus, god of wine and
revelry, and Hymen was requesting the Graces to dance. Now he wants to
celebrate his "triumph" with wine "poured out without restraint or stay" and
libations to the aforementioned gods. He considers this day to be holy for
himself, perhaps seeing it as an answer to his previous imprecation to
Phoebus that this day belong to him alone.

Stanza 15

Summary

The groom reiterates his affirmation that this day is holy and calls everyone
to celebrate in response to the ringing bells. He exults that the sun is so
bright and the day so beautiful, then changes his tone to regret as he realize
his wedding is taking place on the summer solstice, the longest day of the
year, and so his nighttime nuptial bliss will be delayed all the longer, yet last
only briefly.

Analysis

By identifying the exact day of the wedding (the summer solstice, June 20),
Spenser allows the reader to fit this poetic description of the ceremony into a
real, historical context. As some critics have noted, a timeline of the day
superimposed over the verse structure of the entire ode produces an
accurate, line-by-line account of the various astronomical events (sunrise,
the position of the stars, sunset).

Stanza 16
Summary

The groom continues his frustrated complaint that the day is too long, but
grows hopeful as at long last the evening begins its arrival. Seeing the
evening start in the East, he addresses is as "Fayre childe of beauty, glorious
lampe of loue," urging it to come forward and hasten the time for the
newlyweds to consummate their marriage.

Analysis

Again focused on time, the speaker here is able to draw hope from the
approach of twilight. He is eager to be alone with his bride, and so invokes
the evening star to lead the bride and groom to their bedchamber.

Stanza 17

Summary

The groom urges the singers and dancers to leave the wedding, but take the
bride to her bed as they depart. He is eager to be alone with his bride, and
compares the sight of her lying in bed to that of Maia, the mountain goddess
with whom Zeus conceived Hermes.

Analysis

The comparison to Zeus and Maia is significant in that it foreshadows

another desire of the groom, procreation. Besides being eager to make love
to his new bride, the speaker is also hoping to conceive a child. According to
legend and tradition, a child conceived on the summer solstice would grow
into prosperity and wisdom, so the connection to the specific day of the
wedding cannot be ignored.

Stanza 18

Night has come at last, and the groom asks Night to cover and protect them.
He makes another comparison to mythology, this time Zeus' affair with
Alcmene and his affair with Night herself.

Analysis
Here again Spenser uses a classical allusion to Zeus, mentioning not only the
woman with whom Zeus had relations, but also their offspring. Alcmene was
a daughter of Pleiades and, through Zeus, became the mother of Hercules.
The focus has almost shifted away from the bride or the act of
consummation to the potential child that may come of this union.

Stanza 19

Summary

The groom prays that no evil spirits or bad thoughts would reach the
newlyweds this night. The entire stanza is a list of possible dangers he pleads
to leave them alone.

Analysis

At the moment the bride and groom are finally alone, the speaker shifts into
an almost hysterical litany of fears and dreads. From false whispers and
doubts, he declines into superstitious fear of witches, "hob Goblins," ghosts,
and vultures, among others. Although some of these night-terrors have
analogs in Greek mythology, many of them come from the folklore of the
Irish countryside. Spenser reminds himself and his readers that, as a landed
Englishman on Irish soil, there is danger yet present for him, even on his
wedding night.

Stanza 20

Summary

The groom bids silence to prevail and sleep to come when it is the proper
time. Until then, he encourages the "hundred little winged loues" to fly
about the bed. These tiny Cupids are to enjoy themselves as much as
possible until daybreak.

Analysis

The poet turns back to enjoying his beloved bride, invoking the "sonnes of
Venus" to play throughout the night. While he recognizes that sleep can and
must come eventually, he hopes to enjoy these "little loves" with his bride as
much as possible.
Stanza 21

Summary

The groom notices Cinthia, the moon, peering through his window and
prays to her for a favorable wedding night. He specifically asks that she make
his bride's "chaste womb" fertile this night.

Analysis

Spenser continues his prayer for conception, this time addressing Cinthia,
the moon. He asks her to remember her own love of the "Latmian shephard"
Endymion--a union that eventually produced fifty daughters, the phases of
the moon. He specifically calls a successful conception "our comfort," placing
his emotional emphasis upon the fruit of the union above the act of union
itself. The impatient lover of the earlier stanzas has become the would-be
father looking for completion in a future generation.

Stanza 22

Summary

The groom adds more deities to his list of patron. He asks Juno, wife of Zeus
and goddess of marriage, to make their union strong and sacred, then turns
her attention toward making it fruitful. So, too, he asks Hebe and Hymen to
do the same for them.

Analysis

While asking Juno to bless the marriage, the speaker cannot refrain from
asking for progeny. So, too, he invokes Hebe (goddess of youth) and Hymen
to make their wedding night one of fortunate conception as well as wedded
bliss. While he does return to the hope or prayer that the marriage will
remain pure, the speaker still places conception as the highest priority of the
night.

Stanza 23

Summary
The groom utters and all-encompassing prayer to all the gods in the heavens,
that they might bless this marriage. He asks them to give him "large
posterity" that he may raise up generations of followers to ascend to the
heavens in praise of the gods. He then encourages his bride to rest in hope of
their becoming parents.

Analysis

Spenser brings this ode to a major climax, calling upon all the gods in the
heavens to bear witness and shower their blessings upon the couple. He
states in no uncertain terms that the blessing he would have is progeny--he
wishes nothing other than to have a child from this union. In typical pagan
bargaining convention, the speaker assures the gods that if they give him
children, these future generations will venerate the gods and fill the earth
with "Saints."

Stanza 24

Summary

The groom addresses his song with the charge to be a "goodly ornament" for
his bride, whom he feels deserves many physical adornments as well. Time
was too short to procure these outward decorations for his beloved, so the
groom hopes his ode will be an "endlesse moniment" to her.

Analysis

Spenser follows Elizabeth convention in returning to a self-conscious

meditation upon his ode itself. He asks that this ode, which he is forced to
give her in place of the many ornaments which his bride should have had,
will become an altogether greater adornment for her. He paradoxically asks
that it be "for short time" and "endless" monument for her, drawing the
reader's attention back to the contrast between earthly time, which
eventually runs out, and eternity, which lasts forever in a state of perfection.

“The Canonization”
Summary
The speaker asks his addressee to be quiet, and let him love. If the addressee
cannot hold his tongue, the speaker tells him to criticize him for other
shortcomings (other than his tendency to love): his palsy, his gout, his “five
grey hairs,” or his ruined fortune. He admonishes the addressee to look to
his own mind and his own wealth and to think of his position and copy the
other nobles (“Observe his Honour, or his Grace, / Or the King’s real, or his
stamped face / Contemplate.”) The speaker does not care what the addressee
says or does, as long as he lets him love.

The speaker asks rhetorically, “Who’s injured by my love?” He says that his
sighs have not drowned ships, his tears have not flooded land, his colds have
not chilled spring, and the heat of his veins has not added to the list of those
killed by the plague. Soldiers still find wars and lawyers still find litigious
men, regardless of the emotions of the speaker and his lover.

The speaker tells his addressee to “Call us what you will,” for it is love that
makes them so. He says that the addressee can “Call her one, me another
fly,” and that they are also like candles (“tapers”), which burn by feeding
upon their own selves (“and at our own cost die”). In each other, the lovers
find the eagle and the dove, and together (“we two being one”) they
illuminate the riddle of the phoenix, for they “die and rise the same,” just as
the phoenix does—though unlike the phoenix, it is love that slays and
resurrects them.

He says that they can die by love if they are not able to live by it, and if their
legend is not fit “for tombs and hearse,” it will be fit for poetry, and “We’ll
build in sonnets pretty rooms.” A well-wrought urn does as much justice to a
dead man’s ashes as does a gigantic tomb; and by the same token, the poems
about the speaker and his lover will cause them to be “canonized,” admitted
to the sainthood of love. All those who hear their story will invoke the lovers,
saying that countries, towns, and courts “beg from above / A pattern of your
love!”

Form
The five stanzas of “The Canonization” are metered in iambic lines ranging
from trimeter to pentameter; in each of the nine-line stanzas, the first, third,
fourth, and seventh lines are in pentameter, the second, fifth, sixth, and
eighth in tetrameter, and the ninth in trimeter. (The stress pattern in each
stanza is 545544543.) The rhyme scheme in each stanza is ABBACCCDD.
Commentary
This complicated poem, spoken ostensibly to someone who disapproves of
the speaker’s love affair, is written in the voice of a world-wise, sardonic
courtier who is nevertheless utterly caught up in his love. The poem
simultaneously parodies old notions of love and coins elaborate new ones,
eventually concluding that even if the love affair is impossible in the real
world, it can become legendary through poetry, and the speaker and his
lover will be like saints to later generations of lovers. (Hence the title: “The
Canonization” refers to the process by which people are inducted into the
canon of saints).

In the first stanza, the speaker obliquely details his relationship to the world
of politics, wealth, and nobility; by assuming that these are the concerns of
his addressee, he indicates his own background amid such concerns, and he
also indicates the extent to which he has moved beyond that background. He
hopes that the listener will leave him alone and pursue a career in the court,
toadying to aristocrats, preoccupied with favor (the King’s real face) and
money (the King’s stamped face, as on a coin). In the second stanza, he
parodies contemporary Petrarchan notions of love and continues to mock
his addressee, making the point that his sighs have not drowned ships and
his tears have not caused floods. (Petrarchan love-poems were full of claims
like “My tears are rain, and my sighs storms.”) He also mocks the operations
of the everyday world, saying that his love will not keep soldiers from
fighting wars or lawyers from finding court cases—as though war and legal
wrangling were the sole concerns of world outside the confines of his love
affair.

In the third stanza, the speaker begins spinning off metaphors that will help
explain the intensity and uniqueness of his love. First, he says that he and his
lover are like moths drawn to a candle (“her one, me another fly”), then that
they are like the candle itself. They embody the elements of the eagle (strong
and masculine) and the dove (peaceful and feminine) bound up in the image
of the phoenix, dying and rising by love. In the fourth stanza, the speaker
explores the possibility of canonization in verse, and in the final stanza, he
explores his and his lover’s roles as the saints of love, to whom generations of
future lovers will appeal for help. Throughout, the tone of the poem is
balanced between a kind of arch, sophisticated sensibility (“half-acre tombs”)
and passionate amorous abandon (“We die and rise the same, and prove /
Mysterious by this love”).

“The Canonization” is one of Donne’s most famous and most written-about

poems. Its criticism at the hands of Cleanth Brooks and others has made it a
central topic in the argument between formalist critics and historicist critics;
the former argue that the poem is what it seems to be, an anti-political love
poem, while the latter argue, based on events in Donne’s life at the time of
the poem’s composition, that it is actually a kind of coded, ironic rumination
on the “ruined fortune” and dashed political hopes of the first stanza. The
choice of which argument to follow is largely a matter of personal
temperament. But unless one seeks a purely biographical understanding of
Donne, it is probably best to understand the poem as the sort of droll,
passionate speech-act it is, a highly sophisticated defense of love against the
corrupting values of politics and privilege.

Paradise Lost Book IX

Summary
With Raphael’s departure for Heaven, the story no longer consists of
conversations between heavenly beings and humankind. Milton explains
that he must now turn to Adam and Eve’s actual act of disobedience. The
poem must now turn tragic, and Milton asserts his intention to show that
the fall of humankind is more heroic than the tales of Virgil and Homer. He
invokes Urania, the “Celestial Patroness” (IX.21) and muse of Christian
inspiration, and asks for her to visit him in his sleep and inspire his words,
because he fears he is too old and lacks the creative powers to accomplish
the task himself. He hopes not to get caught up in the description of
unimportant items, as Virgil and Homer did, and to remain focused on his
ultimate and divine task.
Satan returns to the Garden of Eden the night after Raphael’s
departure. Satan’s return comes eight days after he was caught and banished
by Gabriel. He sneaks in over the wall, avoiding Gabriel and the other
guards. After studying all the animals of the Garden, Satan considers what
disguise he should assume, and chooses to become a snake. Before he can
continue, however, he again hesitates—not because of doubt this time, but
because of his grief at not being able to enjoy this wondrous new world. He
struggles to control his thoughts. He now believes that the Earth is more
beautiful than Heaven ever was, and becomes jealous of Adam and Eve and
their chosen status to occupy and maintain Paradise. He gripes that the
excess beauty of Earth causes him to feel more torment and anguish.
Gathering his thoughts into action, he finds a sleeping serpent and enters its
body.

The next morning, Adam and Eve prepare for their usual morning labors.
Realizing that they have much work to do, Eve suggests that they work
separately, so that they might get more work done. Adam is not keen on this
idea. He fears that they will be more susceptible to Satan’s temptation if they
are alone. Eve, however, is eager to have her strength tested. After much
resistance, Adam concedes, as Eve promises Adam that she will return to
their bower soon. They go off to do their gardening independently.

Analysis
Milton begins Book IX as he began Books I and VII: with an invocation and
plea for guidance, as well as a comparison of his task to that of the great
Greek and Roman epics, the Iliad, Odyssey, and the Aeneid. Milton explains
by way of this invocation that Adam and Eve’s fall is the major event that
occurs in Paradise Lost. Their fall is the poem’s climax, even though it comes
as no surprise. By describing the fall as tragic, Milton conveys the gravity and
seriousness of this catastrophe for all of humankind, but he also situates
Adam and Eve’s story within the literary conventions of tragedy, in which a
great man falls because of a special flaw within his otherwise larger-than-life
character. The fall paves the way for humankind’s ultimate redemption and
salvation, and thus Milton can claim that his epic surpasses Homer’s and
Virgil’s because it pertains to the entire human race, not one hero or even
one nation.
Milton mocks the knightly romances of the Middle Ages on the grounds that
they applaud merely superficial heroism. The idea of the chivalrous warrior
was an oxymoron in Milton’s view. Milton presents his hero as a morally
powerful person—Adam’s strength and martial prowess are entirely
irrelevant. Milton voices doubts about whether his society will appreciate a
real Christian hero, or whether he himself is still skilled enough or young
enough to complete his literary task, balancing his confidence in his own
ability with the humility appropriate to a Christian poet.
Satan’s return to the story presents him as a changed and further
degenerated character. Before the temptation of Eve, we see Satan go
through another bit of soul-searching. This time, however, he does not waver
in his determination to ruin humankind, but only makes a cold expression of
regret for things that might have been. Milton notes that Satan is driven to
action by the grief and turmoil he feels inside and by his wounded sense of
pride. It is clear now that Satan’s decision to corrupt humankind is final, yet
he still thinks about how he would have enjoyed the beauty of Earth if he
had not rebelled. Milton displays the internal agony that results from the sin
of despair: Satan can clearly see, despite all his previous arguments, that it
would have been better to remain good. However, he has forbidden himself
from even considering the possibility of repentance. As a result, he
degenerates further and further, making his mind and body his own personal
Hell.

Milton has given absolute power to the reason and free will of both men and
Satan, only to show that the mind can defeat itself—using reason to arrive at
an unreasonable position. Satan’s thoughts are increasingly contradictory
and confusing, becoming hard for us, and perhaps for himself, to follow.
Satan comes to believe his own faulty logic and his own lies. In Books I and
II, his ability to reason is strong, but now in Book IX he can hardly form a
coherent argument. Ironically, Satan has proved the truth of his own earlier
statement that the mind can make a heaven of hell or a hell of heaven. Satan
intended to make a heaven out of Hell, where he would be an evil version of
God. Instead, he has brought his torture with him, and made a hell out of the
earth that, but for him, would be heavenly.

Summary
Satan, in the form of the serpent, searches for the couple. He is delighted to
find Eve alone. Coiling up, he gets her attention, and begins flattering her
beauty, grace, and godliness. Eve is amazed to see a creature of the Garden
speak. He tells her in enticing language that he gained the gifts of speech
and intellect by eating the savory fruit of one of the trees in the garden. He
flatters Eve by saying that eating the apple also made him seek her out in
order to worship her beauty.
Eve is amazed by the power that this fruit supposedly gives the snake.
Curious to know which tree holds this fruit, Eve follows Satan until he brings
her to the Tree of Knowledge. She recoils, telling him that God has forbidden
them to eat from this tree, but Satan persists, arguing that God actually
wants them to eat from the tree. Satan says that God forbids it only because
he wants them to show their independence. Eve is now seriously tempted.
The flattery has made her desire to know more. She reasons that God
claimed that eating from this tree meant death, but the serpent ate (or so he
claims) and not only does he still live, but can speak and think. God would
have no reason to forbid the fruit unless it were powerful, Eve thinks, and
seeing it right before her eyes makes all of the warnings seem exaggerated. It
looks so perfect to Eve. She reaches for an apple, plucks it from the tree, and
takes a bite. The Earth then feels wounded and nature sighs in woe, for with
this act, humankind has fallen.

Eve’s first fallen thought is to find Adam and to have him eat of the
forbidden fruit too so that they might be equal. She finds him nearby, and in
hurried words tells him that she has eaten the fruit, and that her eyes have
been opened. Adam drops the wreath of flowers he made for her. He is
horrified because he knows that they are now doomed, but immediately
decides that he cannot possibly live without Eve. Eve does not want Adam to
remain and have another woman; she wants him to suffer the same fate as
she. Adam realizes that if she is to be doomed, then he must follow. He eats
the fruit. He too feels invigorated at first. He turns a lustful eye on Eve, and
they run off into the woods for sexual play.

Adam and Eve fall asleep briefly, but upon awakening they see the world in a
new way. They recognize their sin, and realize that they have lost Paradise.
At first, Adam and Eve both believe that they will gain glorious amounts of
knowledge, but the knowledge that they gained by eating the apple was only
of the good that they had lost and the evil that they had brought upon
themselves. They now see each other’s nakedness and are filled with shame.
They cover themselves with leaves. Milton explains that their appetite for
knowledge has been fulfilled, and their hunger for God has been quenched.
Angry and confused, they continue to blame each other for committing the
sin, while neither will admit any fault. Their shameful and tearful argument
continues for hours.
Analysis
The ease with which Satan persuades Eve to sin paints an unflattering
portrayal of woman, one that accords with Milton’s portrayal throughout the
poem of women as the weaker sex. Eve allows the serpent’s compliments to
win her over, demonstrating that she cares more about superficial things
such as beauty than profound things such as God’s grace. Furthermore, that
Eve gives in to the serpent after only a few deceptive arguments reveals her
inability to reason soundly. Not only is she herself corruptible, however, but
she also seeks to corrupt others: her immediate reaction upon discovering
her sin is to lure Adam into her fate. Rather than repent and take full
responsibility for her actions, she moves instinctively to drag Adam down
with her to make him share her suffering. Eve thus comes across as an
immoral and harmful being, one whose values are skewed and who has a bad
influence on others.

Satan’s argument that knowledge is good because knowing what is good and
evil makes it easier to do what is good wrongfully assumes that knowledge is
always good. This flaw in his argument is the theological thrust of this book:
though the intellect is powerful and god-like, obeying God is a higher
priority than feeding the intellect. Milton believes that one cannot first obey
reason and then obey God; rather one must trust God and then trust reason.
Raphael’s wise argument from Book VIII about the limitations of human
knowledge and the need to feel comfortable with this limited knowledge, is
blatantly neglected or forgotten. If Eve had stayed to listen to Raphael and
Adam’s discussion and had recognized the dangers of working separately,
then she could have been safer from Satan’s temptation. Or if Adam had
relayed Raphael’s warning message to Eve more thoroughly and persuasively,
and if he had denied Eve’s suggestion that they work separately, then the fall
might have been avoidable. Eve overestimates the powers of her ability to
protect herself and to resist temptation, and Adam underestimates the need
to protect Eve and share his knowledge with her. Both must suffer from each
other’s shortfalls.

Adam sins not out of a desire to gain the knowledge from eating the fruit,
but out of recognition that Eve has left him with little or no alternative.
Adam needs even less persuading than Eve to eat the apple, and does so
knowing that he is disobeying God. He knows that he could not be happy if
Eve were banished, and his desire to stay with Eve overwhelms his desire to
obey God. Adam’s sin of temptation is choosing Eve over God, letting
physical and emotional impulses overtake reason. The wreath of flowers he
makes for Eve symbolizes his love for her. When he sees that she has eaten
from the Tree of Knowledge, he drops the wreath, symbolizing her fallen
state. The dropping of the wreath may also hint at Adam’s disappointment in
Eve as a spiritual lover and companion, and even his falling out of pure love
with her. After Adam eats from the apple, his attraction to Eve changes
subtly, and he looks at her more like a connoisseur, eager to indulge. The
sexuality the two display is now perverted, their love in the dark forest more
lustful and animal-like than their earlier love in the lush, bright bower. Their
arguing and blaming of each other demonstrate their lack of unity and
peace, and demonstrate, as does the Earth’s sighing, their fallen state.

OF PARENTS AND CHILDREN

All kinds of emotions and feelings of parents for their children, whether it is
joy, grief, or fear, are private and personal that they don’t share with others.
Having children make it easier for the parents to tolerate the hard labor that
will benefit their children and ensures their prosperous future. However, for
the parents, it is hard to tolerate the hardships since they think that these
hardships or calamities will hinder their children’s well-being. Fretfulness is
amplified by having children nevertheless this remunerated by the
supposition that their commemorations will be preserved and prolonged
through their offspring and this too leads the thought of death at ease.

It is an inherent quality inside every living species to reproduce and extend

its species, however, it is only the man who is attributed with the quality of
scholarly attainments and memorization. Bacon illustrates one advantage of
not having children. As per him, a person who doesn’t have children are
inclined to do more deeds. As they have nothing to leave behind them, they
want to leave their good deed and benefit the mankind with their deeds.

It is sometimes observed that parents don’t treat their all children with an
equal affection; they discriminate between them which is not preferred,
especially on the behalf of the mother. Bacon baked this argument with a
quotation from Salomon that if a son does something appreciating, he is
father’s son but if a son does something shameful, he is mother’s son. In a
family comprised of many children, the elder one gets the more respect and
attention while the young ones are spoiled by excessive love. However, the
middle ones, the most ignored ones are often proved to be the best.

Parents, while giving the pocket allowance to their children, should not be
the miser as they will turn to bent and deceitful which is harmful. In
addition to this, they will open themselves to over lenience in spending
money when they have plenty in future. Parents should exercise their
authority but it should be under liberty.

Another fault of parents towards their children is they inspire the spirit of
competition among the children which is a cause of future conflicts in the
family when they grow up.

It is often observed that the Italian makes no dissimilarity among their own
children and their nephews. They care for them as much as they do for their
own children. This can be justified since the nephew sometimes endures a
great resemblance to his uncle than their own children.

It is the duty of the parents to choose a right profession for their children as
soon as possible. However, if a child grows and shows interest in a totally
different profession, the parents shouldn’t impose their selection on them.
They should allow them to go on their own way.

Younger children are generally fortunate since they get a strong motivation
for the hard work by their elder brothers. However, the motivation to hard
work declines where the elder brother is disinherited and the young child
hopes to get all the beneficiary of wealth from parents.

OF PARENTS AND CHILDREN LITERARY ANALYSIS

Francis Bacon is one of the world most famous essayists whose work is still
considered a work of literary genius. He was a scientist and a lawyer and was
therefore well-versed in the matters of objective realities and the methods of
arguing and persuasion. It was the reason why all of his essays are focused on
objective realities and have all the qualities of apt persuasion and arguing.
His style was unique with short and witty sentences embedded with cannons
of knowledge. At the same time, he did not shy from giving other prominent
philosophers and scholars due credit in his essays and used their quotes as
evidence in his essays.
Of parents and children is the argumentative essay by Francis bacon. In this
essay, he argues about the relationship between parents and children along
with the pons and cons of having children.

This essay by Francis bacon is comparatively short and focused on a subject-

matter which cannot be extended a lot, however, it is loaded with meaning.
Therefore, he has discussed all the aspects of the topic in a very compact yet
explanatory style.

Brevity, directness, wit, and to the point arguments are one of the qualities
that Bacon’s essay contain. The systematic way of writing makes bacon’s
essay to move from one point to another logically. Moreover, the subject
matters he discusses in his writing style are all based on the real life and the
reader found an epigrammatic wisdom in it. With the use of metaphors,
similes referring to various historical stories makes his essay comprehensible
and agreeable.

This essay fits into the group of essays in which Bacon creates the relation of
a man with his society. The subject of this essay general and of widespread
interest. Bacon, in the essay, also advises the reader on the topic of bringing
of the children. Bacon could easily deal with the subject nostalgically,
however, he preferred to deal it unsystematically with rational and logical
arguments.

In this essay, we find the epigrammatic sentences that can be quoted easily.
The essay is enriched by the quotation of from Solomon Plutarch. Though
the last line of the essay has too much reduction that leads ambiguousness.
The unique structure of the sentences in the essay are cast in the
“distinguishing Baconian growth of stability and contrast”.

OF DELAY
Bacon opens the essay with a term “fortune” and associates it with a market,
where the prizes might fall if you wait. It is just like nowadays “sale” in a
market. But this is not the case every time. Good luck or fortune not always
come with delaying. Delaying, sometimes, may also cause a serious loss. To
explain the outburst of delaying, he refers to the Sibyl of Cumae, the wisest
woman in Italy and her offer to Tarquin the proud. Sibyl offered Tarquin her
nine books for sale that he refused. She, then, removed three books and
again offered him the remaining six books with the same price that was for
the nine books. He again refused to buy them. She, then, remove three more
books from and offered Tarquin the remaining three books with the original
price. Now, without understanding Sibyl’s demand and haggling, Tarquin
bought the three books. These three books were worth reading and were
kept with a great care in Rome. These books were accessed time and again in
the course of Senate.

Bacon, moreover, refers to Spenser’s description of “occasion” to explain that

opportunity once missed cannot get back. Spenser, in his common verse,
relates occasion (opportunity) to an old woman, who has one leg. Her hair
falls down on her face so that no one can recognize her until she is dead (just
like we don’t recognize the opportunity before it is gone); while at the back,
she has no hair, so that once she is passed no one can grab her from behind
(i.e. we cannot grab the opportunity once it is gone). Bacon argues that
opportunity is just like a bottle, better to receive it from handle (to avail the
opportunity at the start), the belly come after which is difficult to clasp
(delaying an opportunity would make difficulties for us to avail it afterward).
He says that the wisdom is only if you avail the opportunities on time.

Furthermore, Bacon argues that nothing in the life is easy coming. One has
to face the challenges of life. In order to avail opportunities or desired goals,
it is better to face the dangers in the path, rather than watching it from a
long distance. Watching challenges from the distance will make you coward,
consequently, you will fall asleep. However, it doesn’t mean that one should
deceive themselves with the shadows of enemies and shoot them before time
(meaning not to act before time or make difficulties for yourself). It is
something like early buckling. Both of the situations are the two extreme
conditions. One should adopt the mediocre mode, i.e. not delaying thing for
a long time and not acting before the time.

The fruitfulness and unfruitfulness of an opportunity (occasion) should be

weight before availing it. Before the start, plan well but once you started, get
stunning. Bacon relates this phenomenon to Argos, a hundred-eyed monster.
Some of his eyes were always awake. Hera appointed him to protect lo.
However, he was killed by Hermes. After his death, his eyes were transferred
to the tail of peacock that resulted in fifty head Bariareus, with hundred
hands.
Bacon ends the essay by advising that once you have made up your mind to
do something, do it faster than a bullet before anyone bumps into you and
hinders your work. He gives the example of the Pluto’s helmet that makes
the wearer invisible. By alluding to this, Bacon argues that one should work
as if he is invisible without making anyone aware of it and faster than the
bullet before anyone encounters him.

OF DELAY ANALYSIS
GENRE:

“Of Delay” is an argumentative essay by Francis Bacon in which he argues

about delaying in availing opportunities. He argues that it could be one’s
good fortune that by delaying offers he might get the better one at the end
but that’s not the case every time. Most of the time, delaying may cause you
serious loss.

OF DELAY CRITICAL APPRECIATION:

Bacon wrote this essay with the interest to considerate the reasoning of
deliberate delay. Though he alludes to delay with danger, however, he
admits the point that some circumstances or states of affairs can be observed
with changed significance and priority and evaluate the strength of the
delay.

The main resolution of this composition is to consider the expected

reactions and outcomes of delays to instruct the readers. Bacon tries to
outline the standard for the effects of delay and its consequences, by
decoding the man’s mind.

The readers of this essay of bacon would most likely be those who are
interested in the attitude of delays. Bacon’s references, in the essays, to
mythical personalities, when interpreted by the common community point
out this essay is in particular form educated and possibly religious. He, by
the use of metaphors that are understandable to an average man, directs the
thoughts of ordinary people towards the social status

The positive and negative aspects of delay are best described by the
indecisive writing that pre-dominates the style of writing. Through the use of
parallel structures in the essay, Bacon builds a balance between his
arguments regarding the delay, which indicates that he is neither praising it
not condemning it.

Throughout the essay, Bacon’s writing contains a philosophical tone. He,

time and again, employs metaphors to fund his wisdom and make his
supposition seem precise. Moreover, bacon also personifies the danger to
troupe man in contradiction of a figure with delay as the ambition of their
assembly.

Bacon divides the essay into four parts, each part refers to some methodical
figure. These are as follows

1. Wait and things will get worse:

In this part, Bacon refers to the story of Sibyl of Cumae in Italy and her offers
to Tarquin. It implies that the offer that offers full commodity at the start,
reduced to 2/3 by delay, while it further reduced to 1/3 with the price
remained unchanged. Bacon argues that “fortune” is just like waiting in a
market, where the prizes might fall if you wait. It is just like nowadays “sale”
in the market. But this is not the case every time. Good luck or fortune not
always come with delaying. Delaying, sometimes, may also cause a serious
loss.

2. Time’s bald head:

In this part, Bacon refers to Spencer’s common verse in which he associates

occasion (opportunity) to an old woman with one leg. She hangs down her
hair on the face so that no one can recognize her until she is dead. Moreover,
she is bald from the back that no wan can grab her from the back when she
dies. This is a beautiful illustration to explain that no one recognizes the
opportunity in the start until it is gone. And the opportunity is bald from the
back that after it is gone, no one can grab it from the back.

3. Eyes forward:

In this part, Bacon refers to the Argos, a hundred-eyed monster, who was
appointed as a guard for Lo. When Hermes shot him, his eyes were
transferred to peacock’s tail and it turned to a fifty head Biareus. This
symbolizes that before availing opportunity, weigh it. Once you started it,
get rocking,

4. Work faster than a speeding bullet:

In this part, Bacon gives an example of the Pluto’s helmet that makes the
wearer invisible. By alluding to this, Bacon argues that one should work as if
he is invisible without making anyone aware of it and faster than the bullet
before anyone encounters him.

OF EXPENSES
Money and wealth are to be spent one day. People spend money for
enhancement of one’s own standing in society and for better living. Money is
also spent for charity, social good, and other such benevolent causes. While
spending large sums of money or investing a god amount of wealth, one
must weigh the wisdom of such parting of resources. Spending for the cause
of one’s country, or for noble and lofty causes can be justified as good
enough reasons.
 Normal day-to-day expenses of the apparently routine type need to be
done commensurate with one’s income and assets. No money should be
spent for furthering dishonest and immoral causes. Servants are valued
human assets, and the employer must never spent any money to dishonor or
humiliate them. Expenses must be less than the income, and should not
exceed it.
Ideally, expenses must be around half of one’s income. For those who
want to become rich, their expenses should be a third f their incomes. To be
calculative and cautious in spending is not a mean thing. Keeping an eye on
the income while spending is a prudent policy.
Some people do not stick to these principles of judicious spending not
only out of negligence, but also for the fear of feeling sad. Inevitably,
abandoning caution in spending leads to their financial ruin. If a ruined man
wants to rebuild his finances, he must entrust the job of scrutinizing his
budget to someone else, who can do the job dispassionately. A person can’t
scrutinize his own spending pattern himself, because he will be biased. Even,
the ‘Finance Manager’ brought in to restore the health of the finances needs
to be replaced periodically. This is because, a newly-recruited Finance
Manager will tend to be very alert and strict.
A person who is too pre-occupied to manage his own business,
property and wealth, must hand over this charge to an outsider who knows
the job better. Due to certain circumstances, if a person over-spends on
something, he should cut his expenses on other items to neutralize the
excess outgo of funds. For example, if he spends too much on food, he must
economize on his clothing expenses. In the same way, if a person spends
excess amounts in furnishing his living quarters, he must spend much less
on building his stable.
A man who spends without restraint, is bound to come to grief, sooner
than later. Consequently, he may impulsively sell his estate, or liquidate any
such wealth to free himself from the creditors. Such sudden action is really
very harmful to his long term interests
The man who frees himself from his debts so suddenly will revert to
his of ways of extravagant spending. This is devastating. On the other hand,
a debt-ridden person who liquidates his loans gradually by incremental cut
in his expenses, will be really happy in the long run. This is because, the
period of contoled spending will change his extravagant habits, and he will
imbibe the habits of thrift and caution.
Lastly, it is much less embarrassing to make small cuts in one’s
expenses, than to become a bankrupt, and invite ridicule from the society. A
man in such distress might resort to petty and often criminal ways to get
some money. This is the worst case scenario. A man who judiciously steers
clear of such pitfalls will be treated with respect by the society.

Of Beauty
“Of Beauty” is one of those essays where Bacon gives a new insight to
look into the quality of beauty and its advantages in life. The writer says
that virtues are like a precious stone which looks best when set in a plain
background. It becomes much glorious when it is found in a simple and
dignified person but Bacon thinks that a very beautiful person is generally
not very virtuous. It seems that nature was interested in making their
appearance perfect and did not bother about making their inner spirit.
However, there is some historical person who possesses
both beauty and virtue in equal measure. These person such as
“Augustus Caeser”, “Edward The Fourth” are exceptions because they
got an abundance of grace, benevolence, and beauty. Bacon paints out
that beauty of features is more attractive than the beauty of color but
graceful movement has an age over both features and colors.
True beauty has some strangeness in the proportions.
About paintings and portraits and which are works of art, the writer
holds the view that they are the result of inspirations rather than the
imitation of certain rules. Some painters paint a beautiful person by taking
the best part out of different beautiful faces but these can please none but
the painters. Beauty comes from the whole, if seen imparts or analyze
every organ one by one, even the most beautiful faces will lose its charm
and attraction. In this regards science has done great harm. Thus, a
beautiful flower is anatomized and separated into sepals petals and poly
grains. Thus, the flower is completely defaced and beauty is lost in this
study.
The writer is of the opinion that a person appears more beautiful
advanced in his age. Beauty is like the summer fruits that not easy and
can not last as long. If a beautiful person is virtuous as well as virtue
appears more and make a vicious person assumed of his vices.
The essay is remarkable for its brevity sentences are loaded with
meaning. The characteristic Baconian model of balance and antithesis is a
striking feature of the essay. Bacon sources a keen knowledge of the
subject and a deep understanding of human nature. His command over
and the abstract subject is noteworthy. Though Bacon’s essays have a
strong utilitarians approach, some of them like “Of Beauty” and “Of
Gardens” unravel his artistic bent of mind as well as aesthetic taste.