Andrew Marvell, The Unfortunate Lover

Graham Parry (University of York)

Ed. by J A Roe, University of York
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.04: English Writing and Culture of the Seventeenth Century, 1625-1688.
Vol. editors: Jennifer Brady (Rhodes College), Daniel Cook (University of Dundee), Neil Forsyth (Université de Lausanne), Claire Preston (Queen Mary, University of London), J A Roe (University of York), Virginia Mason Vaughan (Clark University)

Dates

First circulation or publication c. 1649 - c. 1652

Places

England (Publication/ performance)

Genres and Modes

Poem

Resources

Here we have one of Marvell’s most enigmatic poems. “The Unfortunate Lover” presents a series of tableaux or emblematic pictures that are vividly imagined yet challenge interpretation. The language of the poem is elevated and portentous. Grand events are being described, events that “make impression upon Time” and take place among wars and tempests. Yet the hero of the poem is a lover, albeit a lover whose beloved is never named, nor described. Something tremendous has happened, something verging on the apocalyptic, as “the rattling thunder” of the storm evokes “the fun’ral of the world”. The imagery of the poem is drawn from Petrarchan love poetry – the “tyrant …

Please log in to consult the article in its entirety. If you are a member (student of staff) of a subscribing institution (see List), you should be able to access the LE on campus directly (without the need to log in), and off-campus either via the institutional log in we offer, or via your institution's remote access facilities, or by creating a personal user account with your institutional email address. If you are not a member of a subscribing institution, you will need to purchase a personal subscription. For more information on how to subscribe as an individual user, please see under Individual Subcriptions.

1631 words

Citation: Parry, Graham. "The Unfortunate Lover". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 15 February 2018 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=38829, accessed 21 November 2024.]

View recommended reading for this article

Save this article