What Are the Features of Metaphysical Poetry?

Answer

What are the features of Metaphysical poetry?

Metaphysical poetry began in the 17th century. John Donne, Cowley, and Marvell were famous poets of this group. Their poems were not simple. These poems had deep thought, strong logic, and strange images. They mixed ideas of love, science, and religion. This answer will explain some common features of this special kind of poetry.

Use of Conceits: A conceit is a smart and strange comparison. Metaphysical poets used it in a bold way. They compared things that are very different. For example, Cowley said a heart is like a bomb. Donne compared lovers to the points of a compass. Let us study this.

“If they be two, they are two so

   As stiff twin compasses are two;

Thy soul, the fixed foot, makes no show

   To move, but doth, if the other do.”

These ideas sound clever, but they are hard to understand. Johnson said this kind of wit sometimes felt cold and unnatural.

Sharp Wit and Thought: Metaphysical poetry used strong thinking. The poets were full of wit and knowledge. They liked to play with hard ideas. They talked about love, death, and the soul in deep ways. But they often forgot their real feelings. Johnson said their poems were full of brain, but not full of heart. Here is an example of Cowley’s wit.

“Wit, like all other things, subject by their nature to the choice of man, has its changes and fashions, and, at different times, takes different forms.”

Blend of Themes: These poets mixed many subjects in one poem. They wrote about love and also about God. They used science and logic in poems of the heart. This made their poems different. Cowley, Donne, and others used high learning. But their style was not for all. 

In short, Metaphysical poems are full of wit, conceits, and deep ideas. The poets used logic more than emotion. Their style was bold but not always clear. Johnson praised