17th Century
By: Andrew T. Hui
September 1, 2018
Hisorical Background
 Clash between crown and parliament
James I (1603-25)
Charles I (1625-49)
Puritan Republic (1646-60)
 Stuart Restoration (1660)
Charles II and James II
 Glorious Revolution
Notable Literary Figures
1. Ben Jonson
 His father, a minister, died and his mother
remarried a bricklayer.
 He was raised in Westminster and attended St.
Martin’s parish school and Westminster School.
 He briefly worked as a bricklayer, and then
turned into an actor and playwright.
 He was identified as England’s first Poet
Laureate.
 His circle of admirers and friends, who called
themselves the “Tribe of Ben”
Song To Celia
Drink to me only with thine eyes,
And I will pledge with mine;
Or leave a kiss but in the cup,
And I’ll not look for wine.
The thirst that from the soul doth rise
Doth ask a drink divine;
But might I of Jove’s nectar sup,
I would not change for thine.
I sent thee late a rosy wreath,
Not so much honouring thee
As giving it a hope, that there
It could not withered be.
But thou thereon didst only breathe,
And sent’st it back to me;
Since when it grows, and smells, I swear,
Not of itself, but thee.
2. Francis Bacon
 Bacon’s contribution to modern science
was his inductive reasoning.
 When he published his first Essays in
1597, he became England’s first
essayist.
 “The wisest, brightest, and the meanest
of mankind.” – Pope
 “One of the greatest men” – Ben Jonson
 One of his notable works: Of Essay
3. John Donne
 Born to a wealthy and distinguished
family strong in the Roman Catholic
Faith.
 He travelled, studied law, theology and
medicine.
 He was a “brilliant, dashing, and
handsome young man.”
 He was a member of the Church of
England.
Woman’s Constancy
Now thou has loved me one whole day,
Tomorrow when you leav’st, what wilt thou
say?
Wilt thou then antedate some new-made vow?
Or say that now
We are not just those persons which we were?
Or, that oaths made in reverential fear
Of Love, and his wrath, any may forswear?
Or, as true deaths true marriages untie,
So lovers’ contracts, images of those,
Bind but till sleep, death’s image, them
unloose?
Or, your own end to justify,
For having purposed change and falsehood,
you
Can have no way but falsehood to be true?
Vain lunatic, against these ‘scapes I could
Dispute and conquer, if I would,
Which I abstain to do,
For by tomorrow, I may think so too.
4. Sir John Suckling
 Inherited a fortune at the age of 18.
 Spent his fortune in the king’s service
and in the extravagant pursuits of
courtly life.
 Noted gambler.
 Said to have invented “cribbage”
 Master of the light lyric
Song from Auglaura
Why so pale and wan fond lover?
Prithee why so pale?
Will, when looking well can’t move her,
Looking ill prevail?
Prithee why so pale?
Why so dull and mute young sinner?
Prithee why so mute?
Will, when speaking well can’t win her,
Saying nothing do’t?
Prithee why so mute?
Quit, quit for shame, this will not move,
This cannot take her;
If of herself she will not love,
Nothing can make her;
The devil take her.
5. Richard Lovelace
 He served as a cavalier during the Civil
War.
 Petitioning Parliament to restore the
rights of Charles I cost him a trip to
prison.
 He is remembered especially for two
lyrics:
 To Althea from Prison
 To Lucasta, on Going to the Wars
To Lucasta, Going to the Wars
Tell me not (Sweet) I am unkind,
That from the nunnery
 Of thy chaste breast and quiet mind
To war and arms I fly.
True, a new mistress now I chase,
The first foe in the field;
And with a stronger faith embrace
A sword, a horse, a shield.
Yet this inconstancy is such
As you too shall adore;
I could not love thee (Dear) so much,
Lov’d I not Honour more.
6. Edmund Waller
 He is remembered today for his early
work with heroic couplet form.
 Elected to Parliament at age 16, he
quickly gained a reputation as a
masterful orator.
 He was also a celebrated lyric poet long
before the publication of his Poems in
1645.
 As a poet, Waller established an instant
reputation with his first book, but today
only a few of his works are admired –
Go Lovely Rose
Go, lovely Rose—
Tell her that wastes her time and me,
That now she knows,
When I resemble her to thee,
How sweet and fair she seems to be.
Tell her that’s young,
And shuns to have her graces spied,
That hadst thou sprung
In deserts where no men abide,
Thou must have uncommended died.
Small is the worth
Of beauty from the light retired:
Bid her come forth,
Suffer herself to be desired,
And not blush so to be admired.
Then die—that she
The common fate of all things rare
May read in thee;
How small a part of time they share
That are so wondrous sweet and fair!
7. George Herbert
 Like Donne, he was one of the most
important metaphysical poets.
 Born to a wealthy aristocracy and
educated at Cambridge
 Became a clergyman.
 He was an outstanding orator.
 His poetry celebrated the symbolic
significance of the church building, the
ritual and music of the church.
The Collar
I struck the board, and cried, "No more;
I will abroad!
What? shall I ever sigh and pine?
My lines and life are free, free as the
road,
Loose as the wind, as large as store.
Shall I be still in suit?
Have I no harvest but a thorn
To let me blood, and not restore
What I have lost with cordial fruit?
Sure there was wine
Before my sighs did dry it; there was
corn
Before my tears did drown it.
Is the year only lost to me?
Have I no bays to crown it,
No flowers, no garlands gay? All
blasted?
All wasted?
Not so, my heart; but there is fruit,
And thou hast hands.
Recover all thy sigh-blown age
On double pleasures: leave thy cold
dispute
Of what is fit and not. Forsake thy cage,
Thy rope of sands,
Which petty thoughts have made, and
made to thee
Good cable, to enforce and draw,
And be thy law,
While thou didst wink and wouldst not
see.
Away! take heed;
I will abroad.
Call in thy death's-head there; tie up thy
fears;
He that forbears
To suit and serve his need
Deserves his load."
But as I raved and grew more fierce and
wild
At every word,
Methought I heard one calling, Child!
And I replied My Lord.
8. Robert Herrick
To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time
Gather ye rose-buds while ye may,
Old Time is still a-flying;
And this same flower that smiles today
Tomorrow will be dying.
The glorious lamp of heaven, the sun,
The higher he’s a-getting,
The sooner will his race be run,
And nearer he’s to setting.
That age is best which is the first,
When youth and blood are warmer;
But being spent, the worse, and worst
Times still succeed the former.
Then be not coy, but use your time,
And while ye may, go marry;
For having lost but once your prime,
You may forever tarry.
 9. John Milton
 He was born in London to John and Sara
Milton.
 He attended St. Paul’s School, and in his
lifetime he learned Latin, Greek, Italian,
Hebrew, French, and Spanish.
 He attended Christ’s College,
Cambridge, graduating in 1629 with a
Bachelor of Arts degree, and 1632 with
a Master of Arts.
 Milton was a Puritan who believed in
the authority of the Bible.
 He wrote pamphlets on radical topics
like freedom of the press.
 He supported Oliver Cromwell.
 In 1652, Milton became blind.
 Near the end of 1659, Milton went to
prison because of his role in the fall of
Charles I and the rise of the
Commonwealth.
On His Blindness
When I consider how my light is spent
Ere half my days in this dark world and wide,
And that one talent which is death to hide
Lodg'd with me useless, though my soul more
bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
My true account, lest he returning chide,
"Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?"
I fondly ask. But Patience, to prevent
That murmur, soon replies: "God doth not need
Either man's work or his own gifts: who best
Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His
state
Is kingly; thousands at his bidding speed
And post o'er land and ocean without rest:
They also serve who only stand and wait."
them and banished from Eden. God sends Raphael to
warn Adam and Eve about Satan. Raphael recounts to
them how jealousy against the Son of God led a once
favored angel to wage war against God in heaven, and
how the Son, Messiah, cast him and his followers into
hell. He relates how the world was created so mankind
could one day replace the fallen angels in heaven.
Satan returns to earth, and enters a serpent.
Finding Eve alone he induces her to eat the fruit of the
forbidden tree. Adam, resigned to join in her fate, eats
also. Their innocence is lost and they become aware of
their nakedness. In shame and despair, they become
hostile to each other. The Son of God descends to earth
to judge the sinners, mercifully delaying their sentence
of death. Sin and Death, sensing Satan's success, build a
highway to earth, their new home. Upon his return to
hell, instead of a celebration of victory, Satan and his
crew are turned into serpents as punishment. Adam
reconciles with Eve. God sends Michael to expel the pair
from Paradise, but first to reveal to Adam future events
resulting from his sin. Adam is saddened by these visions,
but ultimately revived by revelations of the future
coming of the Savior of mankind. In sadness, mitigated
with hope, Adam and Eve are sent away from the Garden
of Paradise.

Paradise Lost

The story opens in hell, where Satan and his

followers are recovering from defeat in a war they waged
against God. They build a palace, called Pandemonium,
where they hold council to determine whether or not to
return to battle. Instead they decide to explore a new
world prophecied to be created, where a safer course of
revenge can be planned. Satan undertakes the mission
alone. At the gate of hell, he meets his offspring, Sin and
Death, who unbar the gates for him. He journeys across
chaos till he sees the new universe floating near the
larger globe which is heaven. God sees Satan flying
towards this world and foretells the fall of man. His Son,
who sits at his right hand, offers to sacrifice himself for
man's salvation. Meanwhile, Satan enters the new
universe. He flies to the sun, where he tricks an angel,
Uriel, into showing him the way to man's home.

Satan gains entrance into the Garden of Eden,

where he finds Adam and Eve and becomes jealous of
them. He overhears them speak of God's commandment
that they should not eat the forbidden fruit. Uriel warns
Gabriel and his angels, who are guarding the gate of
Paradise, of Satan's presence. Satan is apprehended by