Essay Questions

Explain the oxymoronic closing line of Drayton’s poem, “Idea 20: An evil spirit, your beauty, haunts me still.”

The concluding line of this poem states: “Thus am I still provok'd to every evil /By this good-wicked spirit, sweet angel-devil.” The narrator is describing the memories of a woman he saw once—a woman who was so beautiful that her beauty haunts him still to this day. In this concluding stanza, the narrator explains that the woman’s beauty incites in him sinful and impure desires—an evil spirit. He then describes this spirit as being both good and wicked; both sweet and an angel-devil. These contradictory terms perfectly capture the narrator’s struggle with his obsession. Though he knows the woman’s beauty has filled him with sinful thoughts, he wishes to act upon them; they make him feel joyful and youthful again. Therefore, Drayton purposefully chose these oxymoronic phrases to close his poem, as he wished to represent the narrator’s own contradictory feelings regarding the mystery woman.

Explain why Drayton feels the need to explain his poetry to his readers in “Idea: To the Reader of these Sonnets”?

In this poem, Drayton speaks as himself and he speaks directly to his readers. He explains that his poems are not nearly as whimsical or lust-filled as others of the day, and he takes pride in this fact. Rather, he explains, his poetry is an extension of his mind and thoughts. They are diverse and haphazard, much like Drayton’s own musings. He admits that his poems, due to their differences, may not appeal to all readers. But he implores his readers to understand that—much like human thought—they do not necessarily need to be connected. Rather, like the human mind, they are authentic and in-the-moment. In short, Drayton wrote this poem to justify his writing style and the content of his verses.

Why does the narrator of “Idea 37: Dear, why should you command me to my rest” proclaim that nighttime “becometh lovers best”?

The narrator of this poem is deeply fascinated with nighttime and the wonders of evening. By modern notions, he would be considered a night owl—he much prefers the nighttime to daytime. He uses this poem to justify his fascination and explain that he feels evening is a time of celebration and fellowship, where humans can gather together and revel at the wonders of the natural world and its beauty. He suggests that nighttime would become lovers best because nightfall is often viewed as romantic. During the dark cover of night, two people in love can remain hidden from the judgement of the world and instead remain solely in each other’s company.