Love's Philosophy - Percy Bysshe Shelley

• What the poem's about

  1. The narrator is addressing a woman - he's trying to persuade her to be with him romantically

  2. The narrator gives examples to show how everything in nature is connected in an intimate and loving way. He believes that this is God's law and that this law should be obeyed

  3. He asks the women he's addressing why she's ignoring God's law by refusing to have a loving relationship with him. He finally questions what use all the bonds in nature are if he can't be with her
• Form

  The poem is short and apparently simple - the narrator believes that what he's saying is a simple truth. The poem has a regular ABAB rhyme scheme, but two lines in each stanza don't fully rhyme - this reflects the way that all of nature is in harmony except for the narrator and his loved one
• Structure

  The poem is tightly structured to be persuasive. The narrator uses the majority of each stanza to build up evidence to support his argument that everything in nature is supposed to come together. He uses a short line at the end of each stanza to ask a rhetorical question - this line stands out from the rest of the stanza, which emphasises the contrast between nature and the narrator's situation
• How does the narrator use personification in the text?

  To show nature giving and receiving love
• What does the imagery of "fountains" represent in the text?

  It shows that everything is connected
• What does the word "mingle" suggest about the narrator's feelings?

  It parallels nature's interactions with his desire
• How does the imagery of the "ocean" contribute to the theme of love?

  It hints that love connects us to something larger
• What does "sweet emotion" imply about nature's role in love?

  Nature enjoys and benefits from love's union
• What do "sunlight" and "moonbeams" signify in the context of the text?

  They emphasize the connection between all elements
• What does the narrator question with "What are all these kissings worth"?

  He questions love's meaning without reciprocation
• How can the narrator's question be interpreted as hyperbole?

  He exaggerates to persuade his lover
• Repetition

  Repetition is used to show how everything in nature repeatedly connects with everything else. Repeating words such as "mingle", "kiss" and "clasp" emphasises the physical relationship he wants

  . "mingle" - Repetition of "mingle" emphasises how everything in nature is united

  . "And" x2 - Repetition highlights just how many examples he can show her of unity in nature

  . "clasps", "kiss" - The mirrored repetition of "kiss" and "clasp" reflects the narrator's belief that humans should mirror nature
• Religious Language

  Language to do with God suggests that love isn't just natural, it's also godly

  . "law divine" - The narrator thinks it's God's law that everything in nature mingles together

  . "No sister-flower would be forgiven" - The narrator claims that his loved one's lack of love towards him goes against God's law and is therefore unforgivable
• Other Analysis

  . "river", "ever" - "river" and "ever" are half-rhymes, as are "heaven" and "forgiven" in the second stanza - this reflects how the couple aren't united

  . "kiss", "clasp" - Use of physical language hints at his frustration that he can't "kiss" and "clasp" his lover

  . "disdain'd" - Hints that the woman the narrator is addressing has rejected him
• Feelings and attitudes in the poem

  1. Longing - The narrator longs for love. He's frustrated that his love isn't returned when he sees all the bonds that exist in nature

  2. Playfulness - The poem can also be read in a playful way - the narrator oversimplifies the idea that because things in nature come together, he and the woman he wants should also come together
• Glossary

  fountains - natural springs

  law divine - a law of God which can't be changed by man

  thine - yours

  disdain'd - looked down on or scorned