Come Live with me and be my Love

Come Live with me, and be my Love Christopher Marlowe

Christopher Marlowe v Marlowe, a poet and playwright during the Renaissance period, influenced many great writers of his time including William Shakespeare even though his literary career lasted less than six years. v Many suspect that Marlowe worked for the government in some capacity because he had several lengthy absences from the university that were excused after the university received a letter from the Privy Council. v Rumors of Marlowe’s atheism eventually caused his arrest, but he was released on the condition that he report daily to an officer of the court. v Marlowe was killed in a fight, but conspiracy theories doubt the cause of his death. (1564 – 1593) He is considered Shakespeare’s greatest predecessor and second only to Shakespeare in the realm of Elizabethan http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=5 Cb. We. Ikg. F-g drama. v

Context A young shepherd, the speaker, issues an invitation to a young woman by listing a series of impossible promises regarding their potential idyllic life together. This pastoral poem glorifies the simple, rustic pleasures of country life.

v Written is six stanzas of four lines each (a quatrain), the poem presents a vision of pastoral life; thus, it is referred to as a pastoral poem. v A regular rhyme scheme consisting of two pairs of rhyming couplets per stanza, the iambic tetrameter, and the use of alliteration add to melodic quality of the poem. v The extra syllable on line 9 adds to the intensity of the speaker’s request. The trochee in line 10 adds to the harmonic meter of the poem. Structure

The Passionate Shepherd to His Love Christopher Marlowe Come live with me and be my love, And we will all the pleasures prove That valleys, groves, hills, and fields Woods or steepy mountain yields A gown made of the finest wool Which from our pretty lambs we pull; Fair lined slippers for the cold With buckles of the purest gold; And we will sit upon the rocks, Seeing the shepherds feed their flocks By shallow rivers to whose falls Melodious birds sing madrigals. A belt of straw and ivy buds, With coral clasps and amber studs; And if these pleasures may thee move, Come live with me and be my love. And I will make thee beds of roses And a thousand fragrant posies, A cap of flower, and a kirtle Embroidered all with leaves of myrtle; The shepherds' swains shall dance and sing For thy delight each May morning: If these delights thy mind may move, Then live with me and be my love. http: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=h_F 59 JL 75 a. Q

The poem opens with a romantic line and establishes the persona of the speaker. The nature imagery creates a relaxing state. Come live with me and be my “Prove” means ‘to love, experience. ’ And we will all the pleasures prove That valleys, groves, hills, and fields The enjambment draws attention to Woods or steepy mountain yields the young Lines establish the country-side as the setting. Consonance of the “s” sound further enhance the hypnotic qualities of the proposal. And we will sit upon the rocks, Seeing the shepherds feed their flocks By shallow rivers to whose falls Melodious birds sing madrigals. Alliteration of “s” and “f” sounds reinforce the serenity of the proposed lifestyle. The “s” sound is also sibilant. woman’s choices, which should be appealing to her.

Floral imagery reflects the fertile nature of the request. “Roses” often refer to sex, so the speaker promises more than flowers. And I will make thee beds of roses And a thousand fragrant posies, A cap of flower, and a kirtle Embroidered all with leaves of myrtle; “Posies” is a pun because the word also refers to poetry. Woman’s outer dress A gown made of the finest wool Which from our pretty lambs we pull; Fair lined slippers for the cold With buckles of the purest gold; Sidney Harold Continuous use of enjambment adds to plea of the speaker. He quickly moves through promises that employ a sense of hyperbole.

Sibilance continues with the alliteration and consonance of the “s” sounds. This adds to pleasing harmony of the request. A belt of straw and ivy buds, “Pleasures”may With coral clasps and amber studs; reference sex again. And if these pleasures may thee move, “May” is springtime, Come live with me and be my love. another reference to fertility. The shepherds' swains shall dance and sing For thy delight each May morning: If these delights thy mind may move, Then live with me and be my love. The refrain in the last two stanzas contain internal rhyme (“me” and “be”) adds harmony to the poem (and his proposal). europasicewolf. wordpress. co

Tone v The tone of the poem is direct and urgent as time is not static as the speaker suggests. v There is also a bucolic tone that embraces the natural world, including what is natural to all lovers. v The melodic quality of the poem enhances the pastoral imager making the “argument” somewhat hypnotic. Robert Poetzelberger

Theme Love is the prevailing idea behind this poem, but its urgency celebrates youth, innocence and poetry. It is a lyrical poem that embraces a natural world that is static, or frozen, in time.

Works Cited http: //www. biography. com/people/christopher-marlowe-9399572#arrest-and-death http: //www. enotes. com/topics/passionate-shepherd http: //www. shmoop. com/passionate-shepherd-to-his-love/