Written in 1611-1612 for pregnant Anne before European trip. Published in Songs and Sonnets collection in 1633. Donne was born in 1572 to wealthy ironmonger parents. Met Anne More in 1599, secretly married in 1600
Hebrew text uses grammatical gender and number markings for speaker identification. Section headings help maintain gender information in translation
Published in 1633 in Songs and Sonnets collection. Five stanzas with alternating abbacccaa rhyme scheme. Uses varying meter: iambic pentameter, tetrameter, and trimeter
Two-stanza poem with eight lines each. Follows rhyme scheme "abcbabcb defedefe". Explores themes of physical and spiritual love
Poet asks beloved to observe flea's blood-sucking behavior. Flea's body contains both lovers' bloods, creating union without courtship. Physical union is praised as superior to human courtship
Sidney composes sonnets to inspire his love through his poetry. First sonnet explores conflict between love and rationality. Sequence consists of 31 sonnets total