Andrew Marvell

TO HIS COY MISTRESS BY ANDREW MARVELL We all have the choice either to take advantage of time or allow time to take advantage of us. This is the idea presented in To His Coy Mistress, a poem by Andrew Marvell. In this poem, the opportunity of living life to the fullest or choosing to squander your time is supplied through symbolism. Symbolism is conveying impressions by suggestion rather than by direct statements. Using symbolism to express ideas makes it possible to visualize situations presented, and in this case it makes time seem almost visible. Time is symbolized through a lover attempting to lure a woman into engaging in sexual relations with him. The idea that time is running out is asserted throughout the poem, as time is the lover’s excuse for wanting this sort of relationship so urgently. The very first line, “Had we but world enough, and time” brings out the focus of time directly. It is then reinforced through hyperbole in the following phrases such as “A hundred ye...