A Moment vs Forever
...the other. Marvell takes the superficial approach being that youthful beauty is what defines a woman. He believes that as a woman ages, her beauty lessens. “And your quaint honor turns to dust; And into ashes all my lust.”(Marvell, 29-30) Marvell is incapable of looking at this woman as something more than an object; to him she is simply something that will gain him what he wants. While he works to persuade his mistress into sleeping with him, he is persuading his audience that he is a very shallow individual concentrated on only the physical aspects of one’s beauty. While Shakespeare concentrates on a lifetime, Marvell is focused on a moment. He wants to make the best use of this woman’s youthful beauty, and for him the best use of time is to satisfy his sexual desires before his time with her runs out. “Times winged chariot not hurrying near; And yonder all before us lie.”(Marvell, 22-23)Shakespeare views youthful beauty as something that will add to love and relationships, Marvell sees youthful beauty as a factor that will ‘make or break’ love. “Sonnet 18” depicts love as an everlasting element in life. Shakespeare places love as a concept, discussing it in a universal sense – not necessarily applied to any one person in particular. His point is that love exists in the world, and always will. “So long as than can breathe or eyes can see, So long lives this, and gives life thee.”(Shakespeare, 13-14) Love is transient of the person, but as a concept it is eternal. For Marvell, love is simply a physical interaction. Initially, he seems to possess some resemblance of patience and a willingness to wait for his mistress. In the third stanza however, we see that there is no patience he wants to ‘seize the day’ for what it is and fulfill his sexual desires. His lack of patience brings about a sense of desperation and a very shallow image. “Now let us sport us while we may.”(Marvell, 37) Marvell is doing his best to persuade his mistress that they should consummate their relationship while “thy youthful hue”(Marvell, 33) is still in existence. He feels no everlasting connection with this woman; he simply wants his sexual desires fulfilled before their time is over – due to death or other elements. Although their opinions and beliefs differ, Marvell and Shakespeare express similarities through their style of writing. “Sonnet 18” and “To His Coy Mistress” are conveyed to the audience with similarities in style. The use of metaphors and intense imagery make both poems come alive, and create more depth. Marvell never expresses “time” instead he uses metaphors like the following to express how fast time is passing “Time’s winged chariot hurrying near.”(Marvell, 22) This metaphor is used to describe how quickly time is passing him by and his desperation to beat it. The quote also gives the vivid image of one racing against time; against the fading of youthful beauty. While Marvell makes use of metaphors to express time and his lack of patience; Shakespeare uses metaphors to compare a woman’s beauty with the beauty of summer. “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and mor...