the instructions for the paper are as follows:
ho do the metaphors in son of song draw on the geography of the land of Isreal and the way of life of its people?
Compare and contrast the range of metaphors in the early love lyrics such as Sappho's " some there are who say the fairest thing seen".
Song of Songs is actually the Book of Solomon in the Old Testament. It is made up of a series of poems that most believe are between a young women and her lover. As with most other things the characters in the poem can be interpreted in a number of ways. Christians and Hebrews alike attribute the poems to God's love for his creation; humanity.
You need to take the metaphors (remember there is symbolism everywhere!) and dissect them piece by piece. The "enclosed garden" has been linked to virginity for centuries; the boundaries of the garden speak to morality; the vineyard represents the maidens body; "feeds among the lilies" as kissing, and "honey and milk under your tongue," which possibly represents a deep lingering kiss unlike the others where she is described as having "lips of honey."
"Awake, O north wind and come, O south!" is said to refer to the changing weather in Palestine, or that her "breasts were like towers," refering to the fact that in the Near East the walls and the towers of the city would be the first thing an enemy would see. Normally, they would be seen as unconquerable; thus, the maiden is chaste and innocent. Geography I'm not sure about, but I hope this has helped. There's a great book if you have regular classes in Bible study, it's called "Reading the Bible as Literature," and is filled with great points as to how interpreting the text for school. Good luck!
