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To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell

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A man is trying to persuade a woman to stop playing hard to get and sleep with him—right now, before they both grow old and pass away.

Poet
Andrew Marvell
Core theme
Beauty
The PoemFull text

To His Coy Mistress

Andrew Marvell

Had we but World enough, and Time, This coyness Lady were no crime. We would sit down, and think which way To walk, and pass our long Loves Day. Thou by the Indian Ganges side Should'st Rubies find; I by the Tide Of Humber would complain. I would Love you ten years before the Flood: And you should if you please refuse Till the Conversion of the Jews. My vegetable Love should grow Vaster then Empires, and more slow. An hundred years should go to praise Thine Eyes, and on thy Forehead Gaze. Two hundred to adore each Breast: But thirty thousand to the rest. An Age at least to every part, And the last Age should show your Heart. For Lady you deserve this State; Nor would I love at lower rate. But at my back I alwaies hear Times winged Charriot hurrying near: And yonder all before us lye Desarts of vast Eternity. Thy Beauty shall no more be found, Nor, in thy marble Vault, shall sound My ecchoing Song: then Worms shall try That long preserv'd Virginity: And your quaint Honour turn to dust; And into ashes all my Lust. The Grave's a fine and private place, But none I think do there embrace. Now therefore, while the youthful hew Sits on thy skin like morning glew, And while thy willing Soul transpires At every pore with instant Fires, Now let us sport us while we may; And now, like am'rous birds of prey, Rather at once our Time devour, Than languish in his slow-chapt pow'r. Let us roll all our Strength, and all Our sweetness, up into one Ball: And tear our Pleasures with rough strife, Thorough the Iron gates of Life. Thus, though we cannot make our Sun Stand still, yet we will make him run.

Public domain

Sourced from Project Gutenberg

§01Quick summary

What this poem is about

A man is trying to persuade a woman to stop playing hard to get and sleep with him—right now, before they both grow old and pass away. He argues that if they had all the time in the world, her reluctance would be understandable, but since they don't, they should make the most of their youth. It's one of the most well-known "carpe diem" poems in the English language.

§02Themes

Recurring themes

§03Line by line

Stanza by stanza, with notes

  1. Had we but World enough, and Time, / This coyness Lady were no crime.

    Editor's note

    The speaker starts with a hypothetical: *if* time were infinite, he wouldn't mind his mistress's hesitation. He'd take centuries to admire every part of her, loving her from before Noah's flood until the end of time. The scale is intentionally ridiculous — "thirty thousand" years just for the rest of her body — and that ridiculousness is the point. He's extravagantly flattering her while subtly making the case that such flattery is a luxury they can't really afford.

  2. But at my back I alwaies hear / Times winged Charriot hurrying near:

    Editor's note

    Here the poem takes a sharp turn. The word "But" acts like a door slamming shut on the fantasy. Time isn’t a gentle river; it’s more like a chariot rushing toward them. On the other side lie the "Desarts of vast Eternity" — death isn’t a peaceful garden but a desolate wasteland. Marvell then deliberately dives into gruesome imagery: her beauty will fade, worms will take away her virginity, and his own desire will turn to dust. The well-known closing couplet of this stanza — "The Grave's a fine and private place, / But none I think do there embrace" — has a darkly comic tone, almost like a punchline, but the underlying message is chillingly serious.

  3. Now therefore, while the youthful hew / Sits on thy skin like morning glew,

    Editor's note

    The logical conclusion is clear: *now*, while youth and desire are both vibrant, action is essential. The imagery transitions from death to fire and birds of prey — urgent and even fierce. Instead of being gradually consumed by time ("his slow-chapt pow'r" refers to time slowly eating them away), they should seize time for themselves. The final couplet — "we cannot make our Sun / Stand still, yet we will make him run" — presents a defiant twist: they can't halt time, but they can outrun it by living fully.

§04Tone & mood

How this poem feels

The tone shifts through three distinct gears. The first stanza is playful and extravagant — almost cheeky in its exaggerated praise. The second becomes cold and grim, facing death with a starkness that aims to jolt the reader. The third is urgent and fervent, even confrontational. Altogether, the poem reads like a clever argument from someone who knows precisely what he’s doing — witty, slightly manipulative, and deeply aware of the fear of mortality lurking beneath all the allure.

§05Symbols & metaphors

Symbols & metaphors

Time's winged chariot
The most famous image in the poem shows time as a tangible force — a vehicle rushing at them from behind, loud and fast. This portrayal makes mortality feel urgent and real instead of just a philosophical concept.
The marble vault / the grave
Death isn't portrayed as a tranquil rest; instead, it's depicted as a realm of chilling silence and decay. The vault symbolizes the final resting place for her beauty and his song, suggesting that failing to act in life feels like conceding defeat too soon.
Vegetable love
In 17th-century thought, the "vegetable soul" represented the most basic form of life — only able to grow slowly, devoid of feeling or reason. The speaker suggests his love *could* develop in that way, expansive and gradual, but this comparison subtly diminishes the romance. It's a love lacking urgency, which he argues isn't love at all.
Birds of prey
In the final stanza, the lovers take on the role of predators instead of remaining passive victims of time. This shift changes the power dynamic — rather than being pursued by mortality, they pursue their own pleasure. It injects a fierce, almost wild energy into the poem's conclusion.
The sun
A representation of time itself. The final reference is to Joshua making the sun stand still in the Bible. The speaker acknowledges they don't possess that divine ability, but asserts they can still make the sun *run* — suggesting they can live so intensely that time feels like it speeds up according to their own desires.
Deserts of vast eternity
Death is envisioned not as darkness or sleep but as an endless, empty wasteland. This image is bleak and intentionally terrifying — eternity without life isn't a paradise; it's simply void.

§06Historical context

Historical context

Andrew Marvell wrote this poem in the 1650s, but it didn’t see the light of day until 1681, three years after his death. He composed it during the English Interregnum — the time between Charles I's execution and the monarchy's Restoration — a period marked by significant political and social turmoil. The "carpe diem" tradition (Latin for "seize the day") has rich roots in classical poetry, particularly in the works of Horace and Ovid, and was a common theme in Renaissance and early modern verse. What sets Marvell's version apart is its logical structure — it unfolds like a formal argument, with premise, counter-argument, and conclusion — along with the genuine darkness it introduces to a genre typically associated with lighter themes. Marvell was also a prominent political figure, serving as a Member of Parliament and being friends with John Milton, which makes the poem's playful eroticism a striking contrast to his public persona.

§07FAQ

Questions readers ask

In Marvell's era, 'coy' referred to someone who was reluctant or playing hard to get—not shy in an endearing sense, but rather intentionally withholding. The term 'mistress' didn't always imply a romantic relationship; it was commonly used to address an unmarried woman, similar to 'Miss.' Therefore, the title simply indicates that it's a poem directed at a woman who resists the speaker's attempts at courtship.

Adjacent texts in the archive

Similar poems

To the Virgins to Make Much of Time — Robert HerrickOde to a Nightingale — John KeatsThe Sun Rising — John DonneOde on a Grecian Urn — John Keats

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