To His Coy Mistress By Andrew Marvel

Within many works of literature, authors try to spread their message; although sometimes their lesson can be taken the wrong way. In the poem “To His Coy Mistress,” the original message that the author Andrew Marvell was trying to tell is the idea of Carpe Diem. This phrase means to live in the present and to not think on the future. Marvell meant for this poem to show how Carpe Diem is present in society; however, many scholars and readers believe that this work is a sexist portrayal of a man trying to seduce a young woman. One critic, Bernard Duyfhuizen, believes that a female reader would be angered by this poem and would connect to the obvious seduction of the poem’s speaker. I believe that the speaker is blatantly trying to have sex with

The speaker starts by complimenting the young mistress and saying “An hundred years should go to praise…” (Marvell 601). The young man wants the mistress to fall into bed with him. In order to do this, he uses smooth talking and tries to flatter her. However, this mistress is coy and that is not enough to get her to sleep with him. When his original plan does not work he tries a different method. This notes a general shift in the poem, the man states that “worms shall try that long preserved virginity” (Marvell 602). What he means by this phrase is that when she dies, virginity still intact, it will go to waste. I believe that this part of the poem shows that the man never really cares for the woman, he does not care that she wants to save her

Although, Duyfhuizen takes the woman’s side of the argument, I do not believe he can predict how any reader, let alone, a woman would take the poem. This critic states that a woman “in such a reading she is likely to recognize she has heard this kind of line before.” I do not think it is fair for this scholar to say that he knows what a reader is thinking. However, Duyfhuizen does have a point that there is consequences to sex, both physical and social. There is a distinct difference in the views of men and women who have sex, men get a pat on the back after the have sex, and women get a “scarlet letter.” Still, the point remains that a male scholar has zero right to comment on the inner workings of the female mind. Furthermore, no one has the right to believe that they know what is going on in anyone’s mind. Though, Duyfhuizen takes the side of the female reader, I believe that he is in the wrong. No one knows what a person can think when a person reads a work of literature. Even though this poem was written almost 350 years ago, I do not believe that the author wanted to convey the message of a young man seducing a woman into bed. Marvell wanted to portray a symbol of Carpe Diem, or seize the day. The author wanted to show a young couple fighting time, and only focusing on the present instead of their