ASPECTS OF LOVE IN
THE RENAISSANCE
The Passionate Shepherd to His Love
And
The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd
5-MINUTE WARM UP
In writing pastoral poetry the words must be
selected for musical quality as well as meaning.
While reading a poem by Christopher Marlowe,
my glasses slipped down my nose.
ANSWERS:
In writing pastoral poetry one must select the
words for musical quality as well as meaning.
While I was reading a poem by Christopher
Marlowe, my glasses slipped down my nose.
IMAGINING PARADISE
Think of a beautiful place.
Create a web, with the place name in the middle
and words and phrases surrounding it that best
describe the images you associate with that place..
IMAGINING PARADISE
Which of your images do you consider realistic?
Which would you describe as romantic or
idealized?
PASTORALS
Poems presenting shepherds in the country, usually idealized.
Used in the Renaissance to convey thought and feelings about love,
among other subjects.
And we will sit upon the rocks,
Seeing the shepherds feed their flocks.
Note examples of pastoral life as you read. Cite line numbers.
IN YOUR NOTES:
 Cite examples of pastoral life quote and line #
 Compare and contrast the two speakers’ perspectives on love.
•
•
•
Choice of words when addressing the other in the poem.
Evidence of each speaker’s motivation.
Each speaker’s attitude about life.
THE PASSIONATE
SHEPHERD TO HIS LOVE
 What overall picture of rural life is conveyed by this poem?
 Find examples of alliteration in lines 17-20.
 What is being emphasized by the use of alliteration there?
THE NYMPH’S REPLY TO
THE SHEPHERD
 What does line 2 imply about the nymph’s attitude toward
Marlowe’s shepherd?
 Refer to your notes on Marlowe’s poem. What do the speakers
imply about their feelings toward the idea of love?
 Find examples of alliteration in lines 9-12. Discuss the meaning of
the emphasis.
 Which aspect of the ideal rural life does the nymph rebut here?
WRAPPING IT UP
 How would you describe the nymph’s attitude toward life?
 Do you agree with the nymph’s reasons for not accepting the
shepherd’s offer? Why or why not?
 On the basis of the first and last stanzas, what do you think might
convince the nymph to accept the shepherd’s offer?
 Looking at your notes, what is the debate between the two speakers of
these poems all about : which of the two speakers’ attitudes is closer to
your own?
HOMEWORK OPTION
NUMBER 1
 Writing: Write a modern parody of “The Passionate Shepherd to His
Love.” In place of the shepherd, substitute a person with a different job,
and select an appropriate setting. Before you begin, identify the rhyme
scheme of the poem and describe the rhythm (pattern of stressed and
unstressed syllables). Use this same scheme in your parody. ALSO,
develop a tone that is appropriate for the speaker. Your poem should also
refer to some of the items the speaker would use in his or her job.
OPTION NUMBER 2
 Using contemporary English and modern references, but
expressing the same sentiments and ideas as those in the two poems,
write a script with a partner of a modern phone conversation in
which the shepherd tries to persuade the nymph to accept his offer.
Then act it out for us on Friday.
OPTION 3FOR ADVANCED
SKETCH ARTISTS ONLY
 Create a single drawing or painting that depicts the contrasting
scenes described in the two poems.
 THIS OPTION BY PERMISSION OF THE TEACHER,
ONLY!
INFORMAL ASSESSMENT:
PASTORALS
 Pastoral poems can be analyzed in he areas of tone, setting,
characterization, language devices, and musical/tonal qualities.
 List aspects of each quality and cite examples from “The
Passionate Shepherd to His Love” and “The Nymph’s Reply to the
Shepherd.”
 Write a definition of pastoral poems using at least four of the
qualities listed here and giving examples from the poems.