oems. Here is an example from Marvel’s Poem “The Definition of Love.”
“My love is of a birth as rare
As ’tis for object strange and high;
It was begotten by Despair
Upon Impossibility.”
On the other hand, Henry Vaughan mostly wrote on religion. These poets always showed their learning. They wanted to look clever. They used strange comparisons from different subjects. Johnson studied them intensely. He found both power and problems in their way of writing.
Search for Conceits: Metaphysical poets used conceits in place of simple images. They searched all over nature, art, and science for ideas. Their comparisons were often hard to follow. Johnson gave Cowley and Donne as examples. Let us study such lines from Donne’s poem “A Valediction Forbidding Mourning” (1633).
“If they be two, they are two so
As stiff twin compasses are two;
Thy soul, the fixed foot, makes no show
To move, but doth, if the other do.”
This made the poems sound very complex. Still, Johnson praised their sharpness when their deep ideas matched the subject well.
Cowley’s Place in The Group: Johnson said Cowley followed the metaphysical style. He did not do much in real life as a doctor, but he wrote Latin books on plants. He wrote poems on herbs, trees, and flowers. Cowley showed that he had good taste and deep thought. Johnson said Cowley stayed with the popular style of the time. But he gave that style more music and emotion. In this way, Cowley went ahead of others.
Weakness of the School: Johnson said that metaphysical poets wanted to show their learning and cleverness more than their real feelings. He criticized them by saying,
“No man could be born a metaphysical poet, nor assume the dignity of a writer by descriptions copied from descriptions, by imitations borrowed from imitations, by traditional imagery and hereditary similes, by readiness of rhyme and volubility of syllables.”
This means metaphysical poets were not true poets by nature. Instead, they copied old descriptions and used traditional images and similes repeatedly. They cared more about form, rhyme, and clever wordplay than deep or natural thoughts. Their poems often looked good on the page but were difficult and less pleasing to hear. Though some of their ideas were new, their poems were not always beautiful or natural.
In summary, Dr. Johnson gave a full picture of metaphysical poetry. He showed its cleverness and also its problems. He thought the poets used too much thought and not enough feeling. Still, he praised Cowley for adding music and heart to the style. Johnson’s ideas help readers understand this hard but rich kind of poetry. His judgment was honest, clear, and useful even today.
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