An Independent Study on the Origin of “Carpe Diem”: Metaphysical Proportions in Horace, Omar Khayyam and Selected Poems of Donne, Herrick and Marvel ()
1. Introduction
Definitions: Carpe Diem—Latin: seize the day; enjoy the present, as opposed to placing all hope in the future. Dictionary.com Unabridged. Based on the Random House Dictionary, Random House, Inc. (2015).
British Dictionary definitions for carpe diem—kα:p'di:εm/: Enjoy the pleasures of the moment, without concern for the future Word Origin.
Literally: seize the day! Collins English Dictionary—Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers: 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012.
Word Origin and History for carpe diem, 1786, Latin, “enjoy the day,” literally “pluck the day (while it is ripe),” an aphorism from Horace (“Odes” I.xi), Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper.
In Latin for—Seize the day, take full advantage of present opportunities. This sentiment is found not only in classical literature but in much of English literature as well (see—Gather ye rosebuds while ye may and—Had we but world enough, and time, /this coyness, Lady, were no crime.) The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Cited.
Idioms and Phrases with carpe diem
Enjoy the present and don’t worry about the future, as in It’s a beautiful day, so forget tomorrow’s test—carpe diem! Latin for—seize the day, an aphorism found in the Roman writer Horace’s Odes, this phrase has been used in English since the early 1800s.
The American Heritage Idioms Dictionary
The most famous of Horace’s odes uses agricultural metaphors to urge us to embrace the pleasures available in everyday life instead of relying on remote aspirations for the future—hence his immortal motto—Carpe Diem, or—pluck the day (Lewis, 1890):
Horace: Carpe diem (Carmen 11)
To ne quaesieris—scire nefas—quem mihi, quem tibi
finem di dederint, Leuconoë, nec Babylonios
temptaris numeros. ut melius, quicquid erit, pati.
seu plures hiemes, seu tribuit Iuppiter ultimam,
quae nunc oppositis debilitat pumicibus mare
Tyrhenum: sapias, vina liques, et spatio brevi
Spem longam reseces. Dum loquimur, fugerit invida
aetas: carpe diem, quam minimum credulapostero.
Ask not (tis forbidden knowledge), what our destined term of years, mine and yours; nor scan the tables of your Babylonish seers. Better far to bear the future, my Leuconoe, like the past, Whether Jove has many winters yet to give, or this our last; This, that makes the Tyrrhene billows spend their strength against the shore. Strain your wine and prove your wisdom; life is short; should hope be more? In the moment of our talking, envious time has ebb’d away. Seize the present; trust tomorrow e’en as little as you may.
Ask not—we cannot know—what end the gods have set for you, for me; nor attempt the Babylonian reckonings Leuconoë. How much better to endure whatever comes, whether Jupiter grants us additional winters or whether this is our last, which now wears out the Tuscan Sea upon the barrier of the cliffs! Be wise, strain the wine; and since life is brief, prune back far-reaching hopes! Even while we speak, envious time has passed: pluck the day, putting as little trust as possible in tomorrow (Mason, 2020).
In English, the Latin phrase “carpe diem” is often translated as—seize the day. This translation implies that a person should act only for today ignore the future. Therefore, this translation is not entirely correct. More precisely,—carpe literally means—pluck, referencing the plucking of fruit. The full phrase,—carpe diem, quam minimum credulapostero, means—pluck the day, trusting little possibilities in the future.
The more precise translation of—carpe diem means pluck the day while it is ripe, or embrace the day instead of simply believing that it will all work out in the future. In this respect, the meaning of—carpe diem is similar in meaning to many familiar English proverbs such as—strike while the iron is hot and the “early bird catches the worm.” The origin of this—carpe diem theme lies in Epicureanism, a philosophy, which Horace believed and was inspired by.
Metaphysical poetry deals with both spiritual and materialistic pleasures. It deals with religion, God, higher consciousness on one side and platonic love, seduction and amorous pursuits on the other. The poets are illustrious for making unique comparison between most unlikely things. Since, the metaphysical poems also discuss sex it is often misinterpreted to imply only sex and its promotion to seduction. Since, it deals with sexual intimacy doesn’t mean that it marginalizes other issues of life. Due to misinterpretation these poems were classified as seductively erotic and amorous. Reflecting on the literal meaning of the poems they take the idea of carpe diem as a philosophy.
Problem Statement:
At the surface level it appears that the metaphysical poets use carpe diem theme to persuade a woman for sexual gratification. The problem question “is ‘carpe diem’ only about carnal pleasure? What is Carpe Diem? What message does it convey? How is it related to literature? How does metaphysical poetry connect with everyday life?” This idea has been popular since antiquity till now, used in books, movies, poems, prose and other literary forums.
The sixteenth and seventeenth-century English poetry shares common characteristics: the metaphysical poets are highly intellectuals, used strange imagery, frequent paradox and have amalgamated extremely complicated thoughts with violent force. An amalgamation of amorous, religious and cynical themes is perceptible in their compositions. Most importantly, many of their poems explored the theme of carpe diem (seize the day) and investigated the essence of human life with it.
The three particular poems which this paper is focusing on is: “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” by Robert Herrick, “To His Coy Mistress” by Andrew Marvell and “The Flea” by John Donne. Herrick’s poem, “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time,” portrays carpe diem by citing the shortness of life and persuading young women to marry and enjoy the blissful youth before it withers off. In the poem “To His Coy Mistress”, Marvell, persuades a certain coy woman yield to his love. He argues time and age diminish her beauty and youth and bereft her finally with nothing adorable. John Donne in his poem “The Flea”, uses fleas as a symbol with which he attempts to seduce his beloved. It is one of Donne’s seductive poems which is based on the theme of “Carpe Diem.”
2. Literature Review
The theme of Carpe Diem is reflected in many works of literature in the past and it continues to play a role in modern literary works. Many reviewers and critics have been writing about it in the course of time. Horace wrote an ode, where he first coined the phrase Carpe Diem, which persuades seizing the day and trusting little possibilities in the future. Since then, the phrase has been used in so many literary works.
Omar Khayyam (18 May 1048-4 December 1131) a Persian mathematician, astronomer, philosopher and poet and a renowned scientist of the Middle Ages wrote numerous treatises on mechanics, geography, mineralogy and astronomy his poetic work “Rubaiyat” translated by Edward FitzGerald reflects the theme of carpe diem; through his persuasive tone he encourages to “hurry” before the so called “deadline”.
“Rubaiyat” presents a heavy symbolism and not a commonplace theme, the poem is a rich collection of hidden meaning in the poem’s objective descriptions and sprawling narrative-it includes such incongruent characters as the Moon, God, the Snake (and his traditional Christian neighbourhood, Paradise), the Balm of Life, and also every animal and sexual symbol that a human mind could imagine. Thus, the poem fairly upholds the vein of “Carpe Diem”. In the third stanza, the author writes: “Open then the Door! You know how little while we have to stay, And, once departed, may return no more.”
There are several refrains to this throughout the poem, first in the seventh stanza: “Come, fill the cup. The bird of time has but a little way to flutter-and the bird is on the Wing.” In the 9th stanza the description of summer month “that brings the Rose taking” “Jamshyd and Kaikobad away,” Again, in the 53rd stanza: “You gaze To-Day, while You are You-how then/Tomorrow, you when shall be You no more?” The poet seems to be in an incredible hurry to get this life going before some cosmic deadline.
A little pure work is available despite the influence and use of this theme so copiously by litterateur time and again in literature. Research made by Prudchenko “What philosophy is reflected in the carpe diem theme of many poems by Horace?” pronounces “Horace is a founder of the concept carpe diem.” On its definition and she states “the origin of carpe diem theme lies in Epicureanism.” Kate gives an independent explanation of Epicureanism and its relation with carpe diem. She explained that “Epicureanism just as carpe diem is often confused and misunderstood.” Though this concept still has been influencing massive literary works, there has been great misinterpretation in the meaning of carpe diem. There has been no deeper exploration of the concept of carpe diem, on its origin and definition.
Research Methodology: Internet resources, literary works depicting metaphysical concepts and an in-depth exploration of its origin through the selected works of three Metaphysical poets and contrastive works of classicist Omar Khayyam, Research made by Prudchenko, Horace: Carpe diem (Carmen 11) and comparison and thread of likeness between Metaphysical and Caroline poets is used as a secondary source for the study.
Origin of Carpe Diem
The theme of Carpe Diem has been reflected in many works of literature in the past and is still playing a great role in modern literary works. Many writers and critics have written about the concept Carpe Diem in course of time. The influence of Carpe Diem in literature is very great, there have been more than a hundred movies and even more songs and books on the theme of Carpe Diem.
The notion of carpe diem is often confused and misunderstood, epicureanism as a philosophy is often muddled with hedonism. Epicureanism, like hedonism, values pleasure as an intrinsic good, but Epicureanism emphasizes on the idea of a simple life with no suffering. The meaning of carpe diem reflects on epicureanism, and it is the meaning that Horace aimed to incorporate in his odes. Carpe Diem is a phrase coined in a Latin poem by Horace, a great philosopher and poet of Augustan age. According to him the phrase is the part of the longer carpe diem, “quam minimum credula postero”—Size the day, trusting as little as possibilities in the future. Hence, instead of reposing hope to a bright future, one should and drink one’s wine. Carpe literally means—to pick, pluck, pluck off, cull, crop, gather, but Ovid the Roman historian and litterateur used the word in the sense of,—To enjoy, seize, use, and make use of.
In movie—The Dead Poets Society (1989) (American Film Institute, 2005) Robin Williams character says—carpe diem seize the day, boys make your lives extraordinary. Robin Williams (John Keating), the annoying professor, over-enthusiastically makes his students—seize the day, to pass the class.
HORACE AND THREE METAPHYSICAL POETS
Quintus Horatius Flaccus (Venusia, December 8, 65 BC, Rome, November 27, 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet in the Augustan age (63 BC-14 AD). Horace in general stands alongside Virgil and Ovid and is one of the greatest poets of the Augustan Age. Several of his poetry’s main themes, such as the beatus ille (an appraisal of simple life) have carpe diem (literally “pluck the day”, more commonly rendered into English as “seize the day”) were recovered during the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance, influencing poets such as Petrarch and Dante. The influence of Horace can be traced in the works of poets such as Garcilaso de la Vega, Juan Boscán, Torquato Tasso, Pierre de Ronsard and especially in Fray Luis de León. Besides, several latter poets such as Shakespeare and Quevedo were also heavily influenced by Horace’s poetry. Moreover, his work “Ars Poetica” remained as a canonical guide for composing poetry till the end of romanticism. Ars Poetica was first translated into English by Ben Jonson and later by Lord Byron.
Apart from carpe diem, Horace is also known for having coined many other Latin phrases that remain in use today, whether in Latin or translation, including Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori (It is sweet and fitting to die for one’s country), Nunc est bibendum (Now we must drink), and aurea mediocritas (golden mean).
Metaphysical Poetry: The word meta means—beyond so the literal translation of metaphysical is beyond the physical existence. Basically, metaphysics deals with something can’t be explained through sceptical theory like science. It questions the nature of reality in a philosophical way. Metaphysics covers a broad range; it ponders over the nature of reality. Metaphysics is about exploration and philosophy, not about science and mathematics.
Metaphysical poetry denominated a literary movement in the 17th century. The term coined by the critic Samuel Johnson and is part of the period of Baroque, represented by John Donne, Andrew Marvell, Robert Herrick, Edmund Spencer, Ben Jonson and others. The metaphysical poetry remained unknown as a genre in the lifetime of these poets. In fact, the major poets of this genre neither read other’s work nor they ever knew that they have incepted something new and unique never ever practiced before.
Modern Background:
Literary critic and poet Samuel Johnson first coined the term metaphysical poetry in his book “Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets” (1179-1781). In the book, Johnson wrote about a group of 17th-century British poets that included John Donne, George Herbert, Richard Crashaw, Andrew Marvell and Henry Vaughan. He noted how the poets shared many common characteristics, especially of wit, conceits and elaborates style. Perhaps the most common characteristics of metaphysical poetry is large doses of wit. In fact, although the poets were examining serious questions about the existence of God or whether a human could possibly perceive the world, the poets pondered over the grappling questions with humour and most unexpected intelligence. A major theme is religion, and predominantly their love poems, are sensuous and focal point being fleeting time, hence philosophically pointing out “life is here and now”, which is the principal concern in most of their literary output. The arguments are selected for enticing beloved for carnal gratification. Their work is a blending of emotion with intellectual ingenuity, characterized by conceit or wit that is, sometimes violent yoking of apparently unconnected ideas and things compelling the reader’s perplexity to shake from complacency and ponder over the argument of the poem. Metaphysical poetry is less concerned with expressing feeling than with analysing it, with the poet exploring the recesses of his consciousness. The boldness of the literary devices used especially obliquity, irony, and paradox are often reinforced by a dramatic directness of language and by rhythms derived from that living speech.
A conceit in the words of (Moses & Donne, 1970)—a passage which causes imaginative shock, usually through the stated or clearly implied linkage of things or ideas from different associational categories. That implies that the concept of the poem, the basic idea, cannot be perceived without understanding the conceit, which is often extended to the whole poem. The categories, the images are taken from, must be so contradictory that the reader is surprised, even shocked. Conceits are often decorated by series of linked metaphors and they are the figures of wit (WorldCat). There are many different kinds of conceits, typical for the 17th century. They range from sonneteer conceits over jealousy and inventory of blazon conceits to carpe diem conceits, which are also sometimes called—persuasion-to-love conceits.
Marvell and Donne compress erotic ideas in conceits, that means elements of two widely separated fields of reality are trenchantly copped. The conceits are often actually seeking for darkness and mystery. The pictorial language was treated depreciatory in the century of Donne and Marvell.
The School of Donne—who is nominated as the father of metaphysical poetry, is featured by—an emphatic, impetuous way of speech, often colloquial and appellative in nature. The Metaphysical poets deliberately avoided a sophisticated choice of language, which was the set pattern of poetic composition. The issues are provocative; most poems dealt not only with feeling of love but also with physical desires and the premarital act of love-making, some poets canonize the sexual intercourse as something solemn will of God! Love will be materialized, which was absolutely against all English traditions of the time.
The Dictionary of Literary Terms and Literary Theory gives the marks of metaphysical poetry:—conceits (showing a preoccupation with analogies between macrocosm and microcosm), wit, ingenuity…a linking for paradox and dialectical argument (Cuddon 508, Schulze, 2007). The essence of metaphysical poetry is the intellectual delectation; the poets often merge secular ideas and colloquial language with witty subtleness.
Esteem for Metaphysical poetry never stood higher till 1930s and 40s. It is T.S. Eliot’s influential essay—The Metaphysical Poets (1921), a review of Herbert J.C. Grierson’s anthology Metaphysical Lyrics & Poems of the Seventeenth Century which earned and ranked a certain class to metaphysical poets as known today. In this essay, Eliot argued that the works of these men embody a fusion of thought and feeling that later poets were unable to achieve as a result of ‘dissociation of sensibility’ (Abrams, 2006) the illustrious poets of the Neo-Classicist had either intellectual or emotional but not both at once. In their own time, however, the epithet—metaphysical was used pejoratively; in 1630 the Scottish poet William Drummond stern objection to—abstract poetry to metaphysical ideas and scholastic quiddities.
At the end of the century, John Dryden censured Donne for affecting—the metaphysics and for perplexing—the minds of the fair sex with nice speculations of philosophy when he should engage their hearts…with the softness of love. Samuel Johnson, in referring to the learning that their poetry displays, also dubbed them—the metaphysical poets, and the term has continued in use ever.
Metaphysical poetry sought to shock the reader from his or her normal existence in order to question the unquestionable. The poetry often mixed ordinary speech with paradoxes and puns. The results were strange, comparing unlikely things, such as lovers to a compass or the soul to a drop of dew. These weird comparisons were called conceits.
Three Metaphysical Poets John Donne (1572-1631)
Donne born sometime between Jan. 24 and June 19, 1572, England was an English poet, preacher and founder of Metaphysical Poetry. His works are notable for their realistic and sensual style. His work suggests a healthy appetite for life and its pleasures, while expressing deep emotion. He did this through the use of conceits, wit and intellect—as seen in the poems—The Sun Rising and—batter my heart. Donne explored the idea of religion his whole life, and as a priest, spent a lot of time examined the idea of true religion.
One of the most famous of Donne’s conceits is found in—A Valediction: forbidding Mourning where he compares two loves who are separated to the two legs of a compass. Donne’s works are also witty, employing paradoxes, puns, and subtle analogies. His pieces are often ironic and cynical, especially regarding love and human motives. Common subjects of Donne’s poems are love, death and religion, dealing with carpe diem.
How poets like John Donne, Andrew Marvell and Robert Herrick wrote an apparent theme with profound meaning? What do these poets really intent to say? How did they use the carpe diem to philosophize love making? Could there be a fine thread between religiosity and sensuality which for instance followed and explored all his life as a lover and preacher and acclaimed priest.
In the research paper the characteristics of conceits is expounded in more detail by analysing “The Flea” by Donne, “To His Coy Mistress” by Andrew Marvell and “To the Virgins to make much of time” by Robert Herrick. An in-depth analysis of the conceits type, style of writing, theme, primarily connected to virginity, seduction and philosophizing carpe diem.
The theme of Carpe Diem in “The Flea”
The Wit of Conceit in “The Flea”
Mark but this flea, and mark in this,
How little that which thou denies me is;
And in this flea our two bloods mingled be.
In poem Donne employs “the flea” as a symbolism to seduce a lover. The purpose is bluntly to persuade reluctant partner to surrender. The flea, here, has an access to what the lover yearns; her blood. Donne downplays what the flea has taken; in this way tries to convince his mistress guarding her virginity is vain.
Metaphysical conceit
Thou know’st that this cannot be said
A sin, nor shame, nor loss of maidenhead;…
pamper’d swells with one blood made of two
Donne further mentions sexual act could not be “a sin, nor shame, nor loss of maidenhood”, further trying to disarm his wary lover. This symbolizes “the flea” is a living sign of the consummation of the couple’s relationship. Donne uses flea’s bit to describe how he and his mistress are, already betrothed. Via the flea, the lovers have already combined bodily fluids, and therefore have consummated physical intimation already.
O 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.
And sacrilege, three sins in killing three.
The third part of “The Flea” ends with the beloved crushing the flea to death. Donne asks how the flea is guilty of anything “Except in that drop which it suck’d from thee?” In this way, Donne compares himself to the flea in how both of them just want a little “blood”.
Forcible witty argument
Tis true; then learn how false fears be;
Just so much honour, when thou yield’st to me,
Will waste, as this flea’s death took life from thee.
The theme of—The Flea, is sexually provocative wherein the lover woos his mistress for carnal gratification by comparing their sexual intercourse with their blood mingled already in the flea’ s body. He assures her, that the flea’s blood is analogous to their premarital sexual advances. By witty arguments, he equates the intermingling of blood with their marriage. On beloved action to kill the flea he warns the killing of the flea at once sacrilege, murder and suicide. If she kills the flea, not only the flea dies but she herself, him will be murdered because their vital blood is in the body of the flea. He convinces her that the loss of maidenhood is as trivial as the loss of life she suffered from killing the flea. He justifies a mere creature like a flea is permitted to get bodily touch and pleasure why shouldn’t he be? He equates the mingling of blood in the flea with marriage and ensuing sexual bond. Through his powerful and swaying arguments, he diminishes copulation and derides her coyness and modesty.
Donne’s witty conceit is flea which he employs to seduce his beloved. This employment of stylistic device followed by both Donne’s followers and modern. He searches for far-fetched analogies to build bold metaphors. His far-fetched imagery of a flea to seduce a woman, and the bridal chamber as the mingling of their blood is startling. The amalgamation of two far-fetched categories: one of the lowest forms of insects and sexuality is beyond imagination.
Andrew Marvell (1621-1678)
Marvell born on March 31, 1621, Yorkshire, England was an English poet whose political reputation overshadowed his poetry until the 20th century.
Marvell was wide-ranging: his—To His Coy Mistress is a classic of Metaphysical poetry. In “To His Coy Mistress”, the impatient poet urges his mistress to abandon her false modesty and submit to him before time and death rob their desires. Marvell’s “To His Coy Mistress” is built on “Crape-Dime” theme. In his poem we find a lover more active in the courtship urges his lady-love to make love at her youth. The shy mistress refrains from yielding to love sentiments but the lover builds the logic of syllogism and concludes that the only way of courtship is enjoying life while ones are young. Marvell’s poetry is witty and full of conceits. His political satires greatly influenced by his contemporaries John Dryden, Alexander Pope and Jonathan Swift.
The Wit of Conceit in—“To His Coy Mistress”
Had we but world enough and time,….
I love at lower rate.
The Carpe Diem’s seeds were sown by Horace, Catullus and Lucretius. The message of “seize the day” which urges to make the most of time while it lasts. “To His Coy Mistress” by Andrew Marvell is centred with the conflict of beauty and sensual desire on one hand and the destructive force of time on the other. “To His Coy Mistress” is a lover’s persuasive appeal for sensual enjoyment as the mistress does not yield to the lover’s advances owing to feminine modesty, the impatient lover warns her the brevity of life.
But…
Thy beauty shall no more be found;
Nor, in thy marble vault, shall sound
My echoing song; then worms shall try
That long-preserved virginity,
And your quaint honour turn to dust,
And into ashes all my lust;
The grave’s a fine and private place,
But none, I think, do there embrace.
Marvell begins by extolling the beauty, graces and chams of his beloved in a platonic and assigns unique time line in praise—an age at least to every part… He says that he would have willingly courted her in the most gracious manner but time is fleeting.
The lover shakes the fancies of eternal love and warns her undeniable aging which wither away all beauty and charm. He astonishes her with grim reality of the brevity of life “But at my back I always hear Time’s winged chariot hurrying near….” This grimness is further intensified with frightening images of grave where worms…then worms shall try That long-preserved virginity,…
Now therefore, while the youthful hue…
let us sport us while we may,
And now, like amorous birds of prey,…
once our time devour…
Let us roll all our strength and all
Our sweetness up into one ball,…
Thus, though we cannot make our sun
Stand still, yet we will make him run.
In the end the lover offers a probable therapy against time’s curse by establishing that the only way to overcome the consequences of rapacious time is by barring Puritanical abstinence and living life to the fullest while they have youthful vigour and gusto. In a metaphysical conceit he proposes his beloved to roll all their youth, beauty and strength into a—cannon ball which is strong enough to break through the-iron gates of life. …Let us roll all our strength and all
Our sweetness up into one ball,…
The lover persuades his beloved that their sensual act of love will alter prurience into a victory. Thus, being productive of time itself. Thus, we see that ‘To His Coy Mistress’ is a startling piece of carpe diem poetry which deals with the issue of speeding and ravaging Time. That is the typical strand of the carpe diem poetry: seize the day and not detain anything, less than ever loving because beauty melts away and time passes irrecoverably.
Robert Herrick (1591-1674)
Robert Herrick born on August 24, 1591, London was an English cleric and poet, the most original of the—sons of Ben [Jonson], to have revived the spirit of the ancient classic lyric. He is best remembered for the line ―Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.
The appeal of his poetry lies in its truth to human sentiments and its perfection of form and style. Frequently light, worldly, and hedonistic, and making few pretensions to intellectual profundity, it covers a wide range of subjects and emotions, ranging from lyrics inspired by rural life to pensive recalls of life and love’s rupture and momentary beauty.
The wit of Conceit in—“To the Virgins, to make much of time”
Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying;
And this same flower that smiles today
Tomorrow will be dying.
Robert Herrick is considered one of the circles of poets (Sons of Ben) The title of the poem begins the address to the virgins. To make much of time before it is passed away. In the first stanza, the poet insists to pluck the flower at its full bloom to have the best scent, beauty and nectar; with fleeting time (the destroyer) and soon the freshness, beauty, liveliness and scent of the flower be withered away.
The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,
The higher he’s a-getting,
The sooner will his race be run,
And nearer he’s to setting.
The idea of the passing time with an image of the movement of sun. By casting its circuit through the sky, the sense of how quickly time passes is emphasized; in the same way that the fading smiles the flower is inherent in its bud, the setting of the sun is implicit in its rising. The combination of the idea of gathering in the first stanza and the reference to the sun in the second seems to echo the well-known injunction to—make hay while the sun shines.
That age is best which is the first,
When youth and blood are warmer,
But being spent, the worse, and worst
Times still succeed the former.
In the third stanza, the idea passing time is cast in human terms: The—first or young age is—best, warmer and more active. Just as heat is expended by the sun, however, the heat that makes youth warm is also—spent and diminishes from— best to—worse ultimately to worst. The passage from youth to age in this stanza is parallel to the progression of bud to bloom and wither away.
Then be not coy, but use your time,
And while ye may, go marry;
For having lost but once your prime,
You may forever tarry.
The shift to human terms in the third stanza anticipates the return in the fourth to direct address to the virgins. Maidens are persuaded not to be coy, neither to shrink from familiarity nor modesty or flirtatiousness. They are further instructed to marry while they can, with the warning of—tarry, wait, or procrastination forever.
The rallying cry in the 1989 is Carpe Diem literally translated as—pluck the day, referring to the gathering of moments like flowers, suggesting the ephemeral quality of life, as in Robert Herrick’s—To the Virgins, to make much of time, which begs readers to live life to its full potential, singing of the fleeting nature of life itself:
Gather ye rosebuds while ye may,…Tomorrow will be dying.
The Similarities and Differences in the Three Poems
Metaphysical makes use of arguments to persuade; this can also be described as dialectic whereas, the Classical being simpler and with all the verses being the same and in a Starve an (irregular) for examples “To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time” and “To his coy mistress” is very much Carpe Diem but the poet Andrew Marvell has an influence of classicists.
In the beginning of the poem is very slow the poem also shows a lot of Patrician influences “Thine eyes, and on thy forehead gaze” and “Thy beauty shall no more be found”. The poem glorifies the woman in platonic tone and wooing is eternal. It is noteworthy the concept of Platonic love is based on eternal wooing and eternal love without its consummation in any form. In “To the virgins, to make much of time”, this poem uses irregular (starvea) stressed and unstressed words, but have no regular flow throughout the poem.
Robert Herrick, uses “the sun” to denote for primal time hurrying time as “sun set.” The poem “The Flea” is very different it is a metaphysical poem; it uses a much more dialectic view for wooing. The poem is structured in a way where each stanza is conclusive of the beginning. At the end, it shows that the woman wants to kill the flea and the poet personifies himself to the flea arguing his innocence “wherein could this flea guilty be, except in that drop which it suck’d from thee?” The poet is entirely different his argumentative approach.
3. Conclusion
To conclude, the thematic influence and interpretation of the term of carpe diem is back to the times of Horace—the founder of the impression. In the research, with selective masterpiece, a comparative study of metaphysical poets like John Donne, Andrew Marvell and Robert Herrick is done.
Many people suffer from procrastination, the exact opposite meaning from carpe diem. Procrastination refers to the counterproductive deferment of actions or tasks to a later time. Carpe diem stands against the delaying attitude. The negative results of procrastination, stress, sense of guilt and crises, loss of personal failure that could be avoided if one truly understands and follow carpe diem.
Despite the excessive manifestation of procrastination many people follow the idea of carpe diem. The idea of carpe diem nowadays is confused with the idea of YOLO (Definition of YOLO, 2017), Oxford Dictionaries English.
Yolo is an acronym of “you only live once”. Similar to Latin “carpe diem” (“seize the day”), it implies that one should enjoy life, even if it necessitates taking risks, maybe you have no other chance. The phrase and acronym are both used in youth culture and music, and were both popularized by the 2011 song “The Motto” by rapper Drake. In the early 21st century, the acronym “YOLO” and the phrase, “you only live once” became a staple of music and youth culture. The acronym has been a subject of graffiti, Twitter, hash tags, pranks, tattoos, music, television shows, and merchandise.
The paper recommends a robust implementation of carpe diem in its true sense. It stands for energy, agility, timeliness, responsibility and commitment.