The Good-Morrow By John Donne

 

The Good-Morrow

By John Donne

I wonder, by my troth, what thou and I

Did, till we loved? Were we not weaned till then?

But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?

Or snorted we in the Seven Sleepers’ den?

’Twas so; but this, all pleasures fancies be.

If ever any beauty I did see,

Which I desired, and got, ’twas but a dream of thee.

And now good-morrow to our waking souls,

Which watch not one another out of fear;

For love, all love of other sights controls,

And makes one little room an everywhere.

Let sea-discoverers to new worlds have gone,

Let maps to other, worlds on worlds have shown,

Let us possess one world, each hath one, and is one.

My face in thine eye, thine in mine appears,

And true plain hearts do in the faces rest;

Where can we find two better hemispheres,

Without sharp north, without declining west?

Whatever dies, was not mixed equally;

If our two loves be one, or, thou and I

Love so alike, that none do slacken, none can die.

Stanza-wise Paraphrase and Explanation of "The Good-Morrow" by John Donne:

Stanza 1 Text

"I wonder, by my troth, what thou and I

Did, till we loved? Were we not weaned till then,

But sucked on country pleasures, childishly?

Or snorted we in the Seven Sleepers’ den?

’Twas so; but this, all pleasures fancies be.

If ever any beauty I did see,

Which I desired, and got, ’twas but a dream of thee."

Paraphrase:

By my faith, I wonder what you and I did before we fell in love. Is it not true that we depended upon country pleasures like children like a baby sucking mother’s breast? Were we not taught to leave those pleasures and introduced to other pleasure and people wean the baby? (Like a baby is introduced to solid food so that he leaves dependence on mother’s breast milk.) Does it not seem that we were sleeping in the the Seven Sleepers’ Den? Yes it was so. Except your love, all the childish pleasures were only imaginary and trivial. In my life if ever I desired and got anything is your love only. It was the dream of getting your love only.

Explanation:

The speaker wonders what he and his beloved were doing before they fell in love. He compares their past experiences to the innocent pleasures of childhood, suggesting that they were immature and lacked true meaning. He also alludes to the Seven Sleepers’ den—a reference to a Christian legend where seven young men slept in a cave for centuries—implying that they were asleep, unaware of what true love was. Any past attractions or pleasures were merely illusions, shadows of the real love they now share.

Literary Devices:

Rhetorical Question:

"What thou and I did, till we loved?"

The speaker poses a question to emphasize that life before love was meaningless.

Metaphor:

"But sucked on country pleasures, childishly"

Love before this relationship was like childish nourishment, implying immaturity.

Allusion:

"Seven Sleepers’ den"

A reference to a Christian legend about people who slept for centuries, symbolizing ignorance before true love.

Imagery:

"If ever any beauty I did see, which I desired, and got, 'twas but a dream of thee."

The idea that past attractions were mere dreams of the beloved paints a vivid picture of illusion versus reality.

Stanza 2 Text

"And now good morrow to our waking souls,

Which watch not one another out of fear;

For love, all love of other sights controls,

And makes one little room an everywhere.

Let sea-discoverers to new worlds have gone,

Let maps to others, worlds on worlds have shown;

Let us possess one world, each hath one, and is one."

Paraphrase:

Now I salute and say good morning to our souls which are waking from the dream of childhood. Our souls like stranger to each other are hesitant and are afraid of each other. Our love for each controls us so that we do not look at other sights except the sight of each other and wherever we go we make our little room which includes both of us and we are very happy in looking at each other. Let sailors find new worlds and let them live there. Let maps reveal new worlds on maps. But let us posses our world of love which is one small world that your world and my world have made by combining them together becoming one world.

Explanation:

The speaker welcomes the awakening of their souls, suggesting that true love has given them new awareness. Unlike those in insecure relationships, they do not need to watch each other out of jealousy or fear. Their love is so fulfilling that it makes their small world feel as vast as the entire universe. While explorers travel to discover new lands and maps reveal new places, they have already found everything they need in each other.

Literary Devices:

Personification:

"Good morrow to our waking souls"

The souls are "waking," as if they were asleep before love.

Hyperbole:

"And makes one little room an everywhere."

The power of love transforms their confined space into an entire universe.

Metaphor:

"Let sea-discoverers to new worlds have gone"

Explorers search for new lands, but the lovers' world is complete within themselves.

Parallelism:

"Let sea-discoverers… Let maps…"

The repetition of "Let" emphasizes contrast between worldly exploration and internal fulfillment.

Stanza 3 Text

"My face in thine eye, thine in mine appears,

And true plain hearts do in the faces rest;

Where can we find two better hemispheres,

Without sharp north, without declining west?

Whatever dies was not mixed equally;

If our two loves be one, or, thou and I

Love so alike that none do slacken, none can die."

Paraphrase:

I can see my face in your eye and you can see your face in my eyes. Our innocent hearts live in our faces. ( We are so plain and innocent that we cannot hide our loves for each other and it is reflected from our faces) We are like two hemispheres exactly alike and fitting in each other. Both the halves exactly fit into each other. These two hemispheres are completely round without sharp or declining corners that are perfectly fit for each other. If one of the couple dies, it is because it was a misfit for the other or the two hemisphere did not fit properly and souls were not mixed properly. Our loves are so intense and so alike that if my love and your love become one and neither becomes weak, neither of us can die and we become immortal.

Explanation:

The speaker describes their love as so deep that they see themselves reflected in each other's eyes. Their love is pure and true, untainted by deceit. He compares their relationship to two perfect hemispheres, suggesting completeness. Unlike the physical world, which suffers from decay and imbalance, their love is perfectly balanced, ensuring it will never fade or die.

Literary Devices:

Imagery:

"My face in thine eye, thine in mine appears"

Creates a visual of intimate reflection, symbolizing unity.

Metaphor:

"Two better hemispheres"

Their love is like a perfectly balanced world.

Symbolism:

"Without sharp north, without declining west"

No coldness (sharp north) or decline (setting west), meaning their love is neither harsh nor fading.

Philosophical Argument:

"Whatever dies was not mixed equally"

A reference to the classical theory that things with perfect balance do not decay, reinforcing the immortality of their love.

Parallelism & Repetition:

"None do slacken, none can die"

Repetition emphasizes the eternal nature of their love.

Overall Themes and Significance

Awakening Through Love:

The poem moves from ignorance to enlightenment, much like spiritual or intellectual awakening.

The Power of Love to Create a Universe:

Love transforms a small, personal space into a world of its own.

True Love as Perfect and Eternal:

Love that is balanced and mutual does not fade or die.

Contrast Between Physical and Spiritual Love:

Past experiences were merely physical, whereas this love is spiritual and fulfilling.

Conclusion

John Donne's "The Good-Morrow" is a profound exploration of love's transformative power. Through metaphysical conceits, striking imagery, and philosophical reflections, he portrays love as an awakening, a universe, and an eternal force. The poem ultimately celebrates love that transcends physical attraction and becomes a deep, spiritual connection.

Context beyond the Context

If our two loves be one, or, thou and I

Love so alike, that none do slacken, none can die.

The last stanza of the poem indicates true loves of the two lovers. Their love is so alike and the intensity of the two loves is so equal that the two lovers appear to be exact hemispheres that can easily become one unit and thus become immortal and neither of the two can die. This fact of immortality is further encouraged by fact that is stated that whatever dies in this world was not mixed properly. The reason of perishing a thing is that its elements were not alike and they were not mixed properly.

Now the question that comes in our mind is what is the intent of this statement? What does the poet mean by immortality here? Does he mean that although the lovers would die, their loves would be immortal? Or does he really mean that lovers would never die and their bodies would become immortal if their loves are completely alike have same high degree of the intensity of love?

I would like to draw attention of the readers to Hindu scriptures where Lord Shiva and Parvati, the two eternal ideal lovers and ideal couple, are worshipped in a deity of Ardhang form of which one half is Lord Shiva and the other half is Parvati. 

The other fact that is important to note in Hindu scriptures is the idea of Sati. Sati is a woman who is 100% devoted to her husband. She cannot imagine of any other man except her husband even in her dream. It is said that none in the universe can kill her husband. There are several stories of Sati in Hindu scriptures. A sati has control over all the gods of universe. The examples are Sati Savitri, Sati Anusuiya, Sati Sukala Sati Sulochana and so on. Sati Savitri takes back the life of her husband from Yamraj the god of death. No one can kill the husband of a Sati.

Leave the talk of scriptures , this world is also full of the stories of true lovers. There is no doubt that a married happy life does require true lovers or honest devotion to each other. However, perhaps some people thought that true love is practically not possible so the gates of polygamy and divorce were opened. In some cults men dominated women. Later on in democracies, both men and women got equal rights. But the happiness resides with devoted couples and this is a fact.

And here I leave everything for my readers. You can comment. 

Thanks!