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| | EDSITEment - Lesson Plan |
 | | The poem, "To his Coy Mistress," is an invitation using the theme first made popular by the Roman poet Horace: carpe diem (Odes, Book 1.11: "carpe diem quam minimum credula postero," which translates as "seize the day trusting as little as possible in what is to come afterwards"). |
 | | Once they have reconstructed Marvell's argument, they should be able to see how he carefully uses line, rhyme, and stanza to order the poem in a logical framework, while simultaneously offering a passionate appeal to his mistress to consummate their relationship. |
 | | Ask students to choose a single metaphor or image and argue why that metaphor or image is appropriate to the stanza, based on their understanding of how each stanza builds Marvell's overall argument. |
| edsitement.neh.gov /view_lesson_plan.asp?id=631 (2163 words) |
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