The poem
Mark but this flea, and mark in this, How little that which thou deny'st me is; It sucked me first, and now sucks thee, And in this flea our two bloods mingled be; Thou know'st that this cannot be said A sin, nor shame, nor loss of maidenhead; Yet this enjoys before it woo, And pampered swells with one blood made of two, And this, alas, is more than we would do.
Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare, Where we almost, yea, more than married are. This flea is you and I, and this Our marriage bed, and marriage temple is; Though parents grudge, and you, w'are met, And cloistered in these living walls of jet. Though use make you apt to kill me, Let not to that, self-murder added be, And sacrilege, three sins in killing three.
Cruel and sudden, hast thou since Purpled thy nail in blood of innocence? Wherein could this flea guilty be, Except in that drop which it sucked from thee? Yet thou triumph'st and say'st that thou Find'st not thyself, nor me the weaker now; 'Tis true, then learn how false fears be: Just so much honor, when thou yield'st to me, Will waste, as this flea's death took life from thee.
Think of this as a dramatic monologue in three parts. It is also a seduction poem. And oh, so clever!
i think that this poem is about deception, and miss trust. i belive that the woman that he is talking about in this peom is his mistress and he is lureing her into his marrige bed by telling her that its ok and that she should trust him. The last line of the poem says 'will wast, as the fleas death tooke life from thee' i belive that this line is saying that he got what it was he wanted of her and now part of her (childhood) has been lost because this young woman has lost her vaginity to a married man.
This a carpe diem poem, like many others of his time including "To the Virigins to Make Much of Time" by Robert Herrick. He tries to influence the woman to sleep with him by rationalizing that they have already slept together because their bloods have "migled" in the flea. How could a flea sucking both of their bloods be sinful or shameful? And why would she ever hope to kill it if within it is both her and the persona in their marriage bed? This is a ridiculous concept and thus may be read as a mockery of the other Carpe Diem poems written at the time.
ne kadar ayıp! evlenmeden olmaz!
I believe this poem is about a woman that has been wooed into bed and she becomes pregnant. I think that "swelling" refers to pregnancy and "Purpled thy nail in blood of innocence" refers to abortion.
I disagree that this poem should be dismissed as, "just a carpe diem" poem. i belive that it reflects the determination and single mindedness of the man, indeed most men and boys! This poem is truthful in content and fluid and anthapological in content, I very much like it.
i loooooooooove this poem "The Flea" by john Donne !
Sprauer is the only one that comes even close to what the speaker in this poen is doing and saying. The speaker hasn't had sex with the woman yet, he isn't married and she isn't his mistress. He loves her. He wants to have sex with her but she wont because she a(and her parents) don't believe in sex before marriage. In the time that the poem was written it was common for fleas to be in the bed and bite while you lay…
Read the whole commentSprauer is the only one that comes even close to what the speaker in this poen is doing and saying. The speaker hasn't had sex with the woman yet, he isn't married and she isn't his mistress. He loves her. He wants to have sex with her but she wont because she a(and her parents) don't believe in sex before marriage. In the time that the poem was written it was common for fleas to be in the bed and bite while you lay in it. They are in his\her bed and she has just caught a flea that was biting her. (it's a seduction poem which Donne is none for doing) The speaker is trying to convince the woman that they are already more then married because their blood mingles within the body of the flea. So why not have sex. Toward the end when she kills the flea the speaker asks her why she would do that, the flea did nothing wrong, except to suck their blood. She tells him that they are not weaker or loss of a person for killing it. So, still tyring to seduce her he changes up his argument. He says will if the flea and what it represents, as I have told you, is not important then there is no sin or shame in having sex now.
I could go more into it but the is the basic idea.