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A-Z POETRY

The Flea by John Donne (1590's)
The Flea was likely written in the 1590s, during an explosion of love poetry. Because of the poem's intellectual complexity and its jaded, satirical relationship with earlier love poems, The Flea is often counted as an early example of "metaphysical poetry," a highly artificial, witty, and self-conscious genre of poetry that developed in the 17th century.

Poem: "The Flea" by John Donne

Marke but this flea, and marke in this,
How little that which thou deny'st me is;
Me it suck'd first, and now sucks thee,
And in this flea our two bloods mingled bee;
Confesse it, this cannot be said
A sinne, or shame, or losse of maidenhead,
     Yet this enjoyes before it wooe,
      And pamper'd swells with one blood made of two,
      And this, alas, is more than wee would doe.


Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare,
When we almost, nay more than maryed are.
This flea is you and I, and this
Our marriage bed, and marriage temple is;
Though parents grudge, and you, w'are met,
And cloysterd in these living walls of Jet.
     Though use make thee apt to kill me,
     Let not to this, selfe murder added bee,
     And sacrilege, three sinnes in killing three.


Cruell and sodaine, has thou since
Purpled thy naile, in blood of innocence?
In what could this flea guilty bee,
Except in that drop which it suckt from thee?
Yet thou triumph'st, and saist that thou
Find'st not thyself, nor mee the weaker now;

    'Tis true, then learne how false, feares bee;
    Just so much honor, when thou yeeld'st to mee,

    Will wast, as this flea's death tooke life from thee.

Related Links

About the Poet In-Depth Analysis Donne & Metaphysical Poetry
Brief guide to Metaphysical Poets Close reading "The Flea" Notes on "The Flea"

Video

The Flea by John Donne

SOURCE: Literature Today UK (2015), posted on YouTube, [1:56 mins] URL: https://youtu.be/ef-kn3fvJu0

The Flea - Metaphysical poetry 1

SOURCE: ASFCEngDept (2017), posted on YouTube, [10:03 mins], URL: https://youtu.be/ZgotrzWyTjs

John Donne THE FLEA analysis

Analysis and revision of John Donne's 'The Flea' for A level.

SOURCE: Birch, Mark (2021), posted on YouTube, [11:46 mins] URL: https://youtu.be/Xt9cAgraXlQ