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Difficulty: Very hardExtended Metaphors and Conceits

The following passage is an excerpt from John Donne's poem 'A Valediction: of Weeping' (1633).

1 Let me pour forth
2 My tears before thy face, whilst I stay here,
3 For thy face coins them, and thy stamp they bear,
4 And by this mintage they are something worth,
5 For thus they be
6 Pregnant of thee;
7 Fruits of much grief they are, emblems of more,
8 When a tear falls, that thou fall'st which it bore,
9 So thou and I in each other's sphere
10 As tears, which are things of nothing, do appear.
11 On a round ball
12 A workman that hath copies by, can lay
13 An Europe, Afric, and an Asia,
14 And quickly make that, which was nothing, All;
15 So doth each tear,
16 Which thee doth wear,
17 A globe, yea world, by that impression grow,
18 Till thy tears mix'd with mine do overflow
19 This world, by thee made more; thy heaven dissolved so.

In the transition from the first stanza (lines 1–10) to the second stanza (lines 11–19), the speaker's development of the conceit involving tears primarily serves to do which of the following?

  1. A
    contrast a literal concern with financial transactional value in the first stanza with a scientific interest in global geography in the second
  2. B
    illustrate the poet’s personal shift from a period of domestic financial struggle to a time of ambitious overseas exploration
  3. C
    replace a series of visual similes in the opening lines with a sequence of geographical hyperbole to demonstrate the speaker's technical virtuosity
  4. expand the conceit from a token of personal worth to a representation of a complete, shared universe that is vulnerable to destructionAnswer
  5. E
    reinforce a static state of grief by showing how the speaker's emotional pain remains completely unchanged despite the shifting scale of the metaphors

Answer

The transition from the first stanza to the second serves to expand the conceit from a token of personal worth to a representation of a complete, shared universe that is vulnerable to destruction.
The correct option correctly identifies that the speaker moves from comparing the tear to a coin—representing personal value and the imprint of the beloved—to a globe, which scales the conceit up to represent an entire shared world. This world is subsequently threatened with a flood by their tears, showing the vulnerability of their connection. This transition elevates the conceit from individual value to a cosmological level.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the conceit in the first stanza (lines 1–10).
Identify the comparison of tears to coins minted with the beloved's face, representing the emotional value and personal worth of their relationship.
Establishes the initial vehicle (coins) and tenor (tears reflecting the beloved) of the extended metaphor.
2
Analyze the conceit in the second stanza (lines 11–19).
Identify the comparison of tears to blank globes that a cartographer fills with maps, which are transformed into 'All' by the beloved's reflection, scaling the emotional relationship to a global/cosmological level.
Traces the progression of the vehicle from a coin to a globe, representing the expansion of their relationship to encompass the speaker's entire world.
3
Examine the culmination of the conceit at the end of the second stanza (lines 18–19).
Recognize that their mixed tears threaten to flood and overflow this world, indicating that their separation and grief could lead to the dissolution of their shared universe.
Determines the thematic significance of the conceit's development, highlighting how expanding the metaphor to a world makes it vulnerable to total destruction by their sorrow.

Key Concept

The development and progression of a metaphysical conceit to convey complex emotional states.
Estimated Time:2m 0s
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Topics

Extended Metaphors and Conceits

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