The poem means that true lovers are inseparable from the intruders and even the nature of the world. John Donne, the poet, sets the poem around the nature of the world and the effect it has on relationships. In this case, he elaborates that it is impossible for nature to have two lovers separate from each other. For instance, he provides that the sun cannot separate them from their love, and thus, he and his lover cannot leave their matrimonial bed (Denn 80).
The poem revolves around love from the beginning to the end, with the tone regarding nature changing at the end. In the beginning, nature, represented by the sun, is taken as an intruder and a potential love breaker. Towards the end, the poet regards the sun as a source of warmth for their love, which should never get away from them.
John Donne, therefore, uses various elements to pass home his message. Each of the elements used has a respective meaning when passing home the message. First, John uses the sun, referring to it as being unruly and an old fool (Donne 81). In this case, he uses the sun to represent the nature of the world and, more importantly, the time. The sun intrudes on the lovers by penetrating into their house when morning comes. Therefore, the poet curses the sun as it attempts to separate the two from the good time on their bed (Bolton n.p). He, therefore, refers to the sun as the unruly old fool, as it cannot be stopped from getting its rays on them. This means that the lovers have no control over time, even though they would feel better in its absence.
The poet also uses the late school boys and the prentices to illustrate the lovers who are unwilling to wake up even though morning sets in. Prentices are people who are considered to be too lazy to change from one thing to another (Gale n.p). He uses them to refer to the reluctance that he and his lover have in deciding to get out of bed. He and his lover consider going against the order of nature that requires them to wake up. Instead, they prefer staying in their bed and enjoying their love more.
The poet also uses the king as an element in the poem to refer to himself. In this case, he takes the position of the ruler, who cannot be swayed by the occurrences regarding the decision to make. In this case, he considers the sun to be the intruder into his palace. He, therefore, considers himself as being stronger than the sun. For this reason, he suggests that the king will ride, meaning that he will continue enjoying a good time with her lover irrespective of the sun’s presence.
The poem uses the rags of time as an element. In this case, the rags of time illustrate how useless time is compared to the bonding of the two lovers. Rags are used to show that days, months, and even years cannot define the level of their love. The lovers are seen to have an upper hand in determining when to love more and when not to.
Alchemy is an element used by the poet to illustrate the changing nature of the sun from a bad aspect into a good one (Donne 80). In the beginning, the poet considers the sun as an intruder that brings them discomfort. In the end, the sun is considered good company for lovers as it warms them and the world around them. Alchemy, therefore, means that the sun has changed from being an intruder and now forms part of the love journey for the couple. The poet, therefore, uses the poem to illustrate the impossibility of breaking apart true lovers.
Works Cited
Bolton, Chelsea Luellon. Sun, Star and Desert Sand: Poems for the Egyptian Gods. Lulu. Com, 2017.
Donne, John. “The sun rising.” The Complete English Poems(2002): 80-81.
Gale, Cengage Learning. A Study Guide for Linda Pastan’s” I Am Learning to Abandon the World.” Gale, Cengage Learning, 2016.
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