Andrew Marvell

Poet, politician, civil servant and satirist, Andrew Marvell (1621-1678) led a vibrant, accomplished life that scholars and historians know relatively little about. Both a sympathizer of the British royal family and a member of the government that usurped them, Marvell himself is an example of the transitional nature of English society during the 17th century. Marvell is now one of the most famous poets of his time, specifically for his metaphysical and lyric poetry. However, Marvell published very little of his satirical commentary or lyric verse in his own lifetime. Many scholars think he was worried that his critical satires would polarize his political rivals and lead to his death. Most of his well-known poems were published in 1681, three years after his death.

Andrew Marvell biography

Andrew Marvell was born in 1621 and grew up in the Yorkshire town of Hull, England. His father was a clergyman and was appointed Lecturer at Holy Trinity Church and master of the Charterhouse when Marvell was three. Marvell went to grammar school in Hull and started at Trinity College, Cambridge at the age of twelve. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1639 at the age of 18 and stayed on at Trinity presumably to complete his master's. After his father drowned in 1641, however, Marvell left school and abandoned his studies.

Marvell went to college at Trinity College in Cambridge and had his first two poems published in an anthology of Cambridge poets, pixabay

Marvell's first published poems, one in Latin and one in Greek, were included in a 1637 anthology of Cambridge poets. In one of the poems, Marvell honored the birth of King Charles I and Queen Henrietta Maria's fifth child. This poem, along with his later laments of regicide, or the killing of a king, position him as a royalist sympathizer.

Marvell's activities in the 1640s and 1650s are not very well documented, leading scholars to speculate about this period of his life. Sometime in the 1640s, Marvell travelled the European continent extensively, learning Dutch, French, Spanish, and Italian. In the 1650s, scholars believe Marvell worked as a tutor for the children of wealthy nobles. There is speculation that it was during this time that Marvell became acquainted and found favor with Oliver Cromwell, the English general who usurped King Charles I in the English Civil War. Interestingly, Marvell seemed to have escaped the English Civil War entirely.

Marvell was a supporter of Oliver Cromwell, who served in a government post as Lord Protector, pixabay

In 1657, poet and civil servant John Milton secured Marvell a government post as his Latin secretary. Marvell held that position until 1659, when he was elected a member of Parliament for Hull. When Cromwell died in 1658, Marvell's poetry seemed to hint that his allegiance was with Cromwell's son, Richard. However, when Richard Cromwell's succession was unsuccessful and he fled the country, Marvell helped restore Charles II to the throne his family had lost during the Civil War in the Restoration. Marvell used his political position during the Restoration to save Milton, who had been jailed due to his role in usurping Charles I.

Marvell made two diplomatic journeys in his early career in Parliament: one to Holland (1662-1663) and one to Russia, Sweden, and Denmark (1663-1665). After these journeys, he generally stayed in London, where he became increasingly disillusioned with Charles II's reign. He wrote scathing political satires about both factions, critiquing both the court and Parliament. The majority of his work was not published until his nephew found a publisher for Miscellaneous Poems in 1681.

Marvell suddenly died in 1678, most scholars think due to fever. Gossip at the time suggested that the Jesuits, whom Marvell had attacked in his satires, poisoned him. He is buried at St Giles-in-the-Fields, also known as the Poets' Church, in the West End of London.

Andrew Marvell's writing style

Marvell is known as a metaphysical poet, meaning that his work is full of philosophical explorations and ingenious conceits that build over the lines of his poems. For example, the speaker in 'To His Coy Mistress' philosophizes about the passage of time in relation to sexuality, building his argument that he and his mistress should have sex as a way to escape time. Marvell creates complex discussions on various topics such as satire, political events, and abstract ideas like love, as he builds metaphors, allusions, and allegorical interpretations. Most of his poetry directly contradicts itself, (consider the oxymoron "Magnanimous Despair in 'The Definition of Love') showcasing the complexities and contradictions within human beings themselves.

Andrew Marvell's poems

Most of Marvell's most famous poems, including 'To His Coy Mistress' and 'The Definition of Love' were published in 1681, three years after his death. His poetry examines the complexities inherent in love, time, and outside influences to portray his most common themes like life and death, time is transient, and youth and sexuality in the 17th century.

'To His Coy Mistress' (1681)

'To His Coy Mistress' was most likely written during the English Interregnum in the 1650s, although it was not published until three years after Marvell's death in 1681. The poem is a carpe diem style poem, celebrating sexuality, youth, and life.

The speaker essentially tells his "coy mistress," the woman that he is courting who pretends to be shy and reserved as a means of flirtation, that time passes quickly and they will both succumb to death, so they might as well give in to their sexual passions now. The speaker assures her that if they had an eternity to love one another he would be fine with taking things slowly and adoring every part of her. She deserves that commitment and love, and he wants to give it to her. But he also knows that time is fleeting and before long they will lose their youth, their passion, and their lives. He argues that her virginity will only be taken by the worms, so they should capitalize on their youth and have sex now. He ends the poem by stating that they will never be able to stop time, but they can make it work for them. Themes in this poem are life and death, time is transient, and youth and sexuality.

The speaker argues that time passes quickly, so he and his lover should make the most of their passion before they're dead, pixabay

'The Definition of Love' (1681)

Unlike the love poem 'To His Coy Mistress', the tone of 'The Definition of Love' is mournful and dejected. In this poem, the speaker asserts that his love was born of despair, making it a rare type of love. It was born of despair because their love is impossible—they will never be together. Although they are perfect for each other in every way, Fate personified keeps intervening and keeping them from one another. The definition of love, thus, defines the most special kind of love as that which is definite or hopeless from the beginning. Knowing that he can never be with his love causes the speaker "‘Magnanimous Despair." His love is all the more beautiful and divine because it is unattainable. The themes in this poem include love and fate.

Andrew Marvell: Quotes

Marvell's quotes depict many of the themes present in his poetry, such as time, beauty, and life. His most famous quotes, naturally, come from his most well-known poem 'To His Coy Mistress.'

The final couplet in 'To His Coy Mistress' centers around time and the control humans have over their lives. The speaker implies that denying themselves the pleasure of their sexual passion for one another will only waste time as they run from what they both want. But seizing the moment and giving in to their sexuality, instead of protecting their virginity to maintain society's expectations, will give them control over their lives and over time itself.

Just like the previous quote, this one is taken from 'His Coy Mistress,' and it's also centered around the idea of time. He uses this quote to show how aware he is of his own mortality. So, as he argues above, they need to make the most of what they do have, while they still have it.

The quote is taken from 'The Picture of Little T. C. in a Prospect of Flowers' (1681). It subtlety depicts Marvell's themes of beauty, purity, and life. In the poem, the speaker is watching a beautiful young girl in a garden full of flowers. He speaks to her purity and warns her to only pick flowers, not buds. The buds have not yet had a chance to bloom, so they are not fully realized flowers, similarly to her who is in the process of blooming into a young lady. By sparing the buds, the girl avoids being punished by Flora, the goddess of flowers, who might "nip" (read: kill) the girl for nipping her flowers. If life is allowed to flourish without being messed with, it will bloom into something beautiful. But if it is meddled with before it has a chance to bloom, it will never reach its full potential.

The speaker tells the young girl to pick the fully bloomed flowers but not the buds so they, too, have a chance to blossom to their full potential, pixabay