Download Sample Poetry Project: Adapt a British Classic The Passionate

Sample Poetry Project: Adapt a British Classic
The Passionate Hipster to His Love
by Ms. Wheeler (2016)
The Passionate Shepherd to His Love
by Christopher Marlowe (1599)
Come live with me and be my love,
And we will all the pleasures prove,
That Valleys, groves, hills, and fields,
Woods, or steepy mountain yields.
And we will sit upon the Rocks,
Seeing the Shepherds feed their flocks,
By shallow Rivers to whose falls
Melodious birds sing Madrigals.
And I will make thee beds of Roses
And a thousand fragrant posies,
A cap of flowers, and a kirtle
Embroidered all with leaves of Myrtle;
A gown made of the finest wool
Which from our pretty Lambs we pull;
Fair lined slippers for the cold,
With buckles of the purest gold;
A belt of straw and Ivy buds,
With Coral clasps and Amber studs:
And if these pleasures may thee move,
Come live with me, and be my love.
Come live with me and be my love,
And we will all the pleasures prove,
Sharing bright city lights, and the crowd,
Taking taxis or buses, horns blaring loud.
Uptown, downtown, hanging out
Half-caff latte, give the barista a shout,
Stand in line to see the latest show,
Overpriced tickets too late to forego.
Come live with me and be my love,
Crane your neck at skyscrapers above,
Linger long over art on hallowed walls,
Dance all night in packed music halls.
Flat broke in our fourth-floor walk-up,
On rice and beans shall we sup,
Savoring cheap wine in our cup.
If these delights thy mind may move,
Then live with me, and be my love.
The Shepherds’ Swains shall dance and sing
For thy delight each May-morning:
If these delights thy mind may move,
Then live with me, and be my love.
I wrote my poem “The Passionate Hipster to His Love” using lines from Christopher Marlowe’s “The
Passionate Shepherd to His Love.” I decided to use the refrain “Come live with me” to keep the same
rhetorical situation (the speaker of the poem speaks to his beloved as an audience). I changed the “pastoral”
style of Marlowe’s poem by setting my poem in the city. The speaker tries to get his beloved to move to New
York and enjoy all of the urban pleasures described. However, the tone is a bit more ironic than Marlowe’s,
since some of the tradeoffs of city living (high rents, long lines, crowds, etc.) are highlighted here. In other
words, it’s not quite as idyllic (dreamy and romantic) a landscape as the one Marlowe describes. This poem
is slightly autobiographical and nostalgic; I loved living in the city when my husband and I were first
married, but I’m definitely more of a “pastoral” person now.