The Extasie (an alternate spelling for The Ecstasy) is one of
John Donne's most famous and most complex poems. Here it is suggested that the couple's love is in two
dimensions – the
physical or bodily, the
spiritual. This distinction was common in
metaphysical poetry, and either or both forms are the subjects of a great number of Donne’s poems. In
The Extasie Donne wanted to make the argument that although the spiritual side is perhaps more important, more
cerebral and
divine the physical side should and can not be left out. It would seem to be possible to divide the
poem thematically into three sections. The first and second in turn describe the couple's stillness and address their spirituality. First he describes his and his partner’s bodily stillness and lack of contact, effectively setting the scene of the poem. He elaborates by illustrating the intermingling of their
souls.
Our soules, (which to advance their state,
Were gone out,) hung 'twixt her, and mee.
And whil'st our soules negotiate there,
Wee like sepulchrall statues lay;
A large proportion of the poem, then, is devoted to this spiritual love and the 'extasie', whereby their soules leave their bodies and meet, leaving the bodies lying
still. It is undoubtable that he sees this as the significant part of their
relationship, but in the third section of the poem he shifts the subject to
sexual love between them.
But O alas, so long, so farre
Our bodies why doe wee forbeare?
They'are ours, though they'are not wee; Wee are
The intelligences, they the spheare.
Here, he accepts that they, as individuals and together as a unit, are their souls, and that there are less significant physical extensions of themselves in space, to be controlled by their spiritual, or perhaps cerebral selves. Donne argues that their bodies 'Nor are
drosse' to them 'but
allay'. The idea being expressed seems to be that the bodies are useful and necessary in reproducing (with the child as an alloy, a mix of the father and the mother). He seems to think it almost a shame if they do not make use of their physical faculties – 'Else a great
Prince in
prison lies'.
The metaphor of a prince is typical of the
imagery Donne uses to express the concepts he is trying to get across, and fairly heavy use of such images is intrinsic to metaphysical poetry; indeed they are necessary to convey the
gravity and magnificence of metaphysical concepts, such as souls. The intensity between the
lovers despite the stillness is well conveyed, as he creates the idea that there is a connection between them other than a physical one.
Our eye-beames twisted, and did thred
Our eyes, upon one double string;
In terms of form, although it is not printed in separate quatrains, it is possible to identify groups of four lines, due to the alternate
rhyme scheme which restarts every four lines, and the fact that there is more often punctuation such as a full stop at the end on every fourth line than at other intervals. The effect of this is to somewhat redefine the meaning from how it would be were this not the case, and in this way it is possible to identify a structured argument (as with the three parts, approximately spanning lines 1-20, 21-48 and 49 onwards respectively). The
rhythm is
iambic tetrametre, a faster pace than many poems, and the consequence of this is that the argument flows succinctly rather than meandering, despite the poetic language.