Andrew Marvell Books

interpretations and discussio

This collection of John Donne's work displays his wide range of knowledge, wit, emotion and cynicism. All tempered well with his clever understanding and delivery of his pastorals.

A masterful study of how the novel ideas of Milton's time inform his vocabulary and thought. Rogers is especially attentive to the differences between our notions of "science" and those of the early Enlightenment. Essential.

Dover editions provide the basic poetic texts without serious and extended commentary. In a sense there is an advantage in this as it encourages the reader to engage the text, and seek understanding through reading and rereading. But there is also a great disadvantage especially when it comes to complicated poetry like that of the Metaphysicals whose complex linking of diverse images , whose intellectual toughness requires explanation.
Nonetheless there is great poetry here at the usual Dover very reasonable price.
As for the Metaphysicals themselves Donne is of course at the center. But there is also great poetry from Herbert and Marvell. This is a poetry in which the heart is very much in the mind, and one must have a strong intellect to understand.
I know the challenge and delight of this poetry, and also understand how many readers find it most fascinating and great.( As did T.S. Eliot)
But I nonetheless find my own heart and mind better expressed, reflected and uplifted in the Romantics (Wordsworth especially) who will come later.

As person who conceived and edited this book (it is referenced under my name), it is amazing to know it has been reprinted. It had value then and apparently still does. Marvell is a wonderful poet. And I've not seen a dime in royalties for nearly 18 years.

I rarely recognized the full significance of Andrew Marvell's imagery on my first reading, and with each subsequent reading I made new discoveries. Likewise, Marvell's themes are often complex and require thought and contemplation. This is poetry to be read again and again. Nonetheless, Marvell's language is characterized by clarity and even the first reading is quite enjoyable.

Although Andrew Marvell is recognized today as one of the great poets of the English language, many readers are familiar with only a few of his works, notably To His Coy Mistress (found in most anthologies) and a few of his pastoral poems like Damon the Mower and The Mower's Song. This little Dover edition offers an inexpensive way to become more acquainted with a good selection of Marvell's versatile poetry.

Andrew Marvell was active in English politics during the turbulent period of Charles I, Oliver Cromwell, and Charles II. His love poems and lyrics were private writings not published until three years after his death. Through the years a few poets like Coleridge and Wordsworth recognized Marvell's genius, but he largely remained unknown.

Fortunately, a scholar, Sir Herbert Grierson, and a noted poet, T. S. Elliot, jointly brought attention in the 1920s to the remarkable work of the "metaphysical poets of the seventeenth century", especially Andrew Marvell.

In this Dover edition the spelling and punctuation has been modernized somewhat for clarity. The footnotes are sparse and I found it helpful to occasionally visit the dictionary. The collection includes a wide selection of Marvell's love poems, lyric poetry, religious poetry, and two political poems - An Horatian Ode upon Cromwell's Return from Ireland and the rather long poem Upon Appleton House.

It is not easy to select only a few favories as this collection is quite exceptional. Certainly my list would include: To His Coy Mistress - The Mower to the Glowworms - The Mower Against the Gardens - Damon the Mower - The Mower's Song - On a Drop of Dew - Eyes and Tears - Bermudas - and A Dialogue Between the Soul and the Body.

The other poems in this collection include: The Definition of Love - The Unfortunate Lover - The Gallery - The Fair Singer - Mourning - Ametas and Thestylis Making Hay Ropes - The Nymph Complaining for the Death of Her Fawn - Daphnis and Chloe - The Match - Young Love - The Picture of Little T. C. in a Prospect of Flowers - The Garden - A Dialogue Between the Resolved Soul and Created Pleasure - and The Coronet.

These are two charming eclectic collections of love poetry, on CD with accompanying books, which really ought to be purchased and reviewed together. The 10 actors, all talented, also present a varied lot. Each poem and each performance was enjoyable, some romantic, some funny, some thoughtful, some sad, ranging from modern to one written in the 3rd Century and all in between. Many of the poems were a surprise and the very fact of their inclusion was enchanting, for instance Simon Prebble's charming rendition of The Owl and the Pussycat, a poem whose acquaintance I made 50 years ago and which remains dear to me, on the Voices of Marriage CD. I reacted differently to each poem, to each actor, and to each performance and would assume that most listeners would also have highly personal reactions. There were many poems I was especially delighted to hear, as they were old favorites, others because they were newly met ones. There were two actors I found irresistible, whose every performance was wonderful: Simon Prebble, long a favorite, and Michael Wager, new to me. Most of the others were also superb. There were some who were decidedly less entrancing, however each actor did at least one poem no one else could have done better and every poem can be enjoyed as it was performed, on its own merits. The more I listen, the more I find to enjoy, even including the order in which the poems are presented. In all, this is a wonderful idea.

In the tradition of Possession by A.S. Byatt, and Vreeland's Girl in Hyacinth Blue - this novel travels from the present to the past and back again as a young artist and an old one both search for their souls.

Compelling, lovely novel. Davenport gets deep into the heart of a painter, understanding what moves an artist and how an artist sees.

Excellent book.

Did Rembrandt Van Rijn, while running from creditors, hide aboard a ship bound for Hull, England? Did Captain Dahl,in exchange for his passage, comission Rembrandt to paint a portrait of his wife, Amelia? Did Rembrandt and the poet Andrew Marvell engage in a contest to win the fair Amelia? Did Amy Dale discover her ancestor Amelia's long hidden journal that tells the tale of the portrait and Rembrandt's year in Hull? Did Amy set out to find the portrait with the help of an enigmatic, scarred loner who is not what he seems? If you like a weaving of past and present, history and fiction, love and suspense, this is the book for you. Enjoy!

What a great, fascinating read. I couldn't put it down. A great mixture of historical fiction and a modern story with the same setting, a famous historical artist, and several mysteries. Very inventive and imaginative. Highly recommended.

Davenport manages to seamlessly spin two stories, past and present, into wonderful whole cloth containint elements of love, betrayal, suspense, mystery, art history and murder.

In the present we are introduced to artist Amy Dale, who is hired to participate in the restoration of a 17th century manor house that once belonged to a distant relative. Her task is complicated by two factors. One, the discovery of a 300 year old journal written by her ancestor Amelia Dahl that throws new light on the history of the manor. Secondly, she becomes the focus of an antagonistic competition between Dennis, an amiable older man and Don, the scarred and brooding laborer to whom Amy finds herself emotionally and sexually attracted.

The past presents a richly imaginative tale that concentrates on the missing year in the life of one of history's most unique, creative and talented artists, Rembrandt Van Rijn.....and his obsession with Amelia Dahl.

The two stories are mirror images and Davenport's writing erupts from the page and draws you into both stories.

Ironically, I did not make the finalists in the Inspired by Rembrandt competition, run by Radio Netherlands, last year. My daughter encouraged me to buy the book. Between reading the book (finished it ten minutes ago), I painted another picture. So, I was an artist, reading about an artist who was discovering things about an artist who lived 400 years ago, and, who like me, was born in the Netherlands. Unlike me, he was famous! The book combines many things I like very much. Call it getting in touch with my feminine-side. The romance. The English setting. The struggle with paint to represent something you want the world to like and having a look into Rembrandt's life, whether it's fact or fiction. I now want to buy 'Het Blauw van Rembrandt' by Jorg Kastner, because I'm hooked (and I did not want the book to end).
(Lucky I can still read Dutch.)

George deF. Lord's excellent editing of Marvell's poems retains the spelling, capitalization, and italics of the Bodleian MS Folio, as well as the principles of styling and punctuation. The poems are carefully annotated, and organized in a most logical manner.

While Andrew Marvell, was an influential poet in the 17th Century and while his poetry and prose is still a testament to the English language, this collection lacks the emphasis on his excellent shorter poems that use brilliant and sharp language and instead focuses on his lengthy plays that are dry and convoluted. Maybe another version would be better, check his poetry online to decide which volume to buy.

I have used this edition of Marvell's poems for many years in teaching. I also once wrote a brief article about a mistake in it, but for the most part consider the edition very satisfactory. The appearance of *Andrew Marvell: Pastoral and Lyric Poems 1681* (University of Western Australian Press, 2000) has led me to re-appraise Donno's work. The UWA edition is really a selection, and its text is less good than Donno's, though it offers far more - and very rewarding - annotation. This should be of help for specialised work. But Donno offers perfectly adequate help to the average student; she presents ALL of the poems, and she does so in a responsibly modernised, clear text. This continues to be the edition which most academic teachers will want to prescribe, and it is of significance to scholars, too. - Joost Daalder, Professor of English, Flinders University (South Australia)