Monday, January 12, 2015

John Donne's "The Flea"






John Donne's "The Flea" is a poem clearly about sex. Though it is kind of a gross description using the imagery of a disgusting creature like the flea having two peoples blood mixing inside them.  The guy appears to be trying to convince the girl to have sex with him saying that they are pretty much already married in the flea. The line "three lives in one flea spare" could indicate making a baby. Then when he says "wherein could this flea guilty be" after the lady smushes the flea could indicate her refusing to have sex with him, and thus "aborting" their unmade baby who hasn't done anything wrong. The last few lines I am confused by and still trying to work out. It could be him saying that when they have sex she will think herself foolish for having fears about it and that when they have sex her virginity will be gone and irretrievable just like the fleas death is irreversible. This poem was pretty good it wasn't my favorite but I don't dislike it. 

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