Andrew Marvell: Poems Lesson Plan

Try to put yourself in the mind of one of the seafaring Englishmen who make up the cast of “Bermudas.” Why would their arrival on these islands have been an occasion for a poem like this?

Most students will not have a clear or complete timeline of English exploration of the Americas in their head when asked about this. For this reason, the question may come across as confusing to them. Some may cleave immediately to the general: "Bermudas" was written to celebrate the settling of the Bermuda islands because seeing any part of the New World must have been an exciting and awe-inspiring experience at the time. The teacher can also add to this and point out that the Bermuda...