“The Flea” and “Take me to Church” and the Elements That Make Them Metaphysical Works

Academic Paper- Fall 2024

John Donne is a poet that takes, “...hyperbolic tropes and figures seriously, probing and exploring their grammar, syntax, and metaphoric meaning as revelatory of truth…” (Lewalski, 1973, p. 159). His poetry blends themes of love, sexuality, and religion seamlessly to discuss philosophical ideas. A modern day song writer that employs similar themes in his work is Andrew Hozier-Byrne. Hozier (2013) has often discussed themes of love and sexuality in his songs while employing religious imagery and his single “Take me to Church” is no exception. Both authors used elements found in metaphysical poetry to explore the nature of reality and force their audiences to think critically about topics that cannot be answered with science. 

Characteristics of Metaphysical Poetry 

To understand how these authors use metaphysical poetry it’s important to define what it is. Metaphysical poetry is a form of poetry that is, “...highly intellectualized, use rather strange imagery, use frequent paradox and contain extremely complicated thought.” (Ansari, 2024, para. 1). This term was first coined by Samuel Johnson in, Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets, a book where he discusses a group of 17th century poets (Ansari, 2024). These authors include John Donne, George Herbert, Richard Crashaw, Andrew Marvell, and Henry Vaughan. Dr. Ansari (2024) in his article, “Metaphysical Poetry and its Characteristics”, discussed the idea that metaphysical poetry dealt with questions that can’t be answered by science. This form of poetry dove into aspects of reality and discussed them in a philosophical way. 

One of the most prominent aspects of metaphysical poetry was the authors’ use of ‘wit’ or some aspect of humor (Ansari, 2024). However, wit is not entirely composed of humor. Andrew Cutrofello (2017) argued that, “True wit consisted in the ability to bring apparently opposite things into harmony with one another. As such, it went beyond mere wordplay” (p. 79). Wit’s use as an element of metaphysical poetry draws comparisons between topics that seemingly have no real connection. “For Johnson, wit is exclusively a matter of violently yoking together the most heterogeneous ideas, not of violently dividing the most homogeneous” (Cutrofello, 2017, p. 80). Cutrofello (2017) continued on to explain that wit and judgement are two sides of the same coin. Judgment was the idea of drawing distinctions or separating ideas that are homogenous. Wit forced together two ideas that were not related. 

Another characteristic of metaphysical poetry is its desire to shock the reader so they would critically analyze the ideas discussed in the poem (Ansari, 2024). The way poets often achieved this was through their use of conceits. Conceits are, “...a subtype of metaphor – an elaborate and strikingly unconventional or supposedly far-fetched metaphor, hyperbole, contradiction, simile, paradox or oxymoron causing a shock to the reader by the obvious dissimilarity, “distance” between or stunning incompatibility of the objects compared.” (Ansari, 2024, para. 15) Conceits are one way metaphysical authors utilized wit in their poetry. Conceits created extended metaphors that drew connections between unlikely things. Metaphysical poets sought to explore philosophical ideas of existence and these poets wanted their readers to do this as well. Finally, metaphysical poetry often discussed themes of religion or employed religious imagery and symbolism. 

John Donne as a Metaphysical Poet

John Donne’s poetry was unique for his time period. Ansari (2024) discussed Donne’s poetry and described it as, “...Donne use[d] complex, dramatic expressions and a variety of literary devices like extended conceits, paradoxes, and imagery in colloquial and personal language that challenges ideas of morality, traditional love, and carnality” (para. 12). One of the most prevalent examples of metaphysical poetry was Donne’s (n.d.), “The Flea”. This poem explored the idea of being bitten by a flea being the same as having a relationship. Throughout the poem he made references to the holy trinity and used this aspect of christianity to blend sexuality and religion. He also continued on to say,  “Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare,/Where we almost, nay more than married are. /This flea is you and I, and this/Our marriage bed, and marriage temple is;” (Donne, n.d., lines 10-13). In this section his argument was that the speaker and the subject’s souls were bound together by the blood mixed in the flea. He pushes his thought experiment to the extreme. This very extreme example shocks the reader of the poem which is an element of metaphysical poetry (Ansari, 2024). “The Flea” also employs an element of wit or humor. The idea of a flea biting two people and that meaning their souls were bound together is absurd. However, Donne (n.d.) skillfully brought together two concepts that had no real correlation. He then created a situation that forced the reader to question their own perception of reality. He likely did not actually think a flea biting two people meant they were married but in this poem he was discussing the idea of blood as an extension of a person’s soul. The purpose of the metaphor was to question the connection between a person’s physical body and the soul. Questioning the connection between the soul and physical body is a theme Donne discussed frequently (Coles, 2015). “The Flea” is incredibly humorous and shocking. It fulfills all the criteria of metaphysical poetry. 

Hozier as a Metaphysical Artist 

Hozier's (2013) “Take me to Church” utilizes elements of metaphysical poetry. Like Donne’s (n.d.) poem Hozier (2013) employs religious imagery, heavy dramatization, shock, and metaphors that are deeply entrenched into the piece. These elements all work to develop philosophical questions for the audience to ponder. Hozier’s (2013) music video starts off by introducing us to two young men. These young men are in love, which is shown throughout the video. Eventually, a group of people end up breaking into the home of one of the men. They drag him into the woods and burn a box that is chained up. This box is shown to be incredibly important to this man throughout the video. The lyrics combined with the video leave the viewer questioning the power of the Church and its role in suppressing one's identity. When Hozier (2013) sings the chorus, “Take me to church/I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies/I'll tell you my sins so you can sharpen your knife/Offer me that deathless death/Good God, let me give you my life.” (Hozier, 2013, 1:00). These lines reveal the speaker believed the church had lied to him and his community members. The speaker knew that homosexuality was not a sin. Yet, he was still forced to worship at church because he must stay obedient to them, like a dog. He also had to reveal his sins to the church through confessions, knowing it will be used against him. The next two lines went into his feelings of rejecting his homosexual desires. By suppressing this part of his identity he felt as if he was dying and giving up on his life. These lines alone reveal deep religious imagery which is used to discuss something philosophical. The speaker reveals the pain and suffering he is going through at the hand of the Catholic Church. These lines asked the question, “what is religion's role in determining our identities and how much power should the Church have over people?” The viewer has been forced to confront their beliefs through the shock value these lines carry. 

The characters and objects in the music video also show the way Hozier blends song and visual elements to create a metaphysical music video. At the beginning of the video you see one of the men locking up a box and burying it in his yard (Hozier, 2013, 0:11). This box was a representation of his love and desire to be with the other man. It was chained up and buried because he felt a deep amount of shame. This is further supported by the lines, “I was born sick/But I love it/Command me to be well.” (Hoizer, 2013, 0:41) These lines develop the idea that the speaker felt there was something wrong with him. He feels joy being in love with another man and in this part was begging God to “fix” him by ridding him of his “sick” desires. Hozier’s (2013) use of the pronoun “she” throughout “Take me to Church”  also developed the idea that the speaker was too ashamed to even admit he was in love with a man. He refers to his lover as a woman because it is dangerous and shameful that his lover is a man. Therefore, the box is an allegory for his homosexual desires that he is ashamed of. It cannot be perceived and does not have to be acknowledged if it is buried. The group of men who dragged him into the woods represent the Catholic Church. When the group burns his box, it is a visual representation of the speaker being forced to reject this part of his identity to conform to the Catholic Church's expectations. The speaker is ashamed because of the Church's influence on his community and himself. “The only heaven I'll be sent to/Is when I'm alone with you.” (Hozier, 2013, 0:36) The speaker firmly believes he will not make it into heaven. Yet he fully and deeply loves his partner so much he compares being with him to being in heaven. He believes his love for his partner is a sin. 

This entire song shows Hozier using religious imagery to question the power of the church. He combined lyrics and visuals to draw comparisons between a variety of things that are not the same. The Catholic Church is not a group of guys that go around burning boxes that represent desire. However, Hozier believes that, “...when you have an organization of that power, that provides that sort of God given justification for alienating and othering and persecuting people of that sexual orientation” (Banger Films, 2021, 1:44). He chose to paint the Catholic Church this way because he has seen the ramifications of giving an organization the amount of power the Catholic Church has over his community. His comparisons and use of symbols might seem absurd at first, but upon second glance, his comparisons reveal some level of truth. 

Conclusion 

It is impossible for the audience to answer the questions Hozier poses with science. Much like it is impossible for the audience to answer Donne’s questions with science. Donne and Hozier utilize elements of metaphysical poetry to ask philosophical questions. Both take radically extreme comparisons and religious imagery to achieve this. Hozier’s (2013) “Take me to Church” is not humorous but does employ other elements of metaphysical poetry to shake the audience out of their preconceived ideas about reality. 

References

Anne Coles, K. (2015). The Matter of Belief in John Donne’s Holy Sonnets. Renaissance Quarterly, 68(3), 899–931. https://doi.org/10.1086/683855

Ansari, A. (2024). Metaphysical Poetry and Its Characteristics. Jaipur National University. https://www.jnujaipur.ac.in/blogs/metaphysical-poetry-and-its-characteristics/230#:~:text=Metaphysical%20poetry%20is%20a%20group,and%20contain%20extremely%20complicated%20thought. 

Banger Films. (2021). Hozier reflects on Truth in Song and Challenges the Hypocrisy of the Catholic Church. [Video] Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mof16MXsAew 

Cutrofello, A. (2017). How Do We Recognize Metaphysical Poetry? In P. A. Kottman (Ed.), The Insistence of Art: Aesthetic Philosophy After Early Modernity (pp. 77–90). Fordham University Press. http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1x76fts.6 

Donne, J. (n.d.). The Flea. The Poetry Foundation. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/46467/the-flea 

Hozier. (2013). Take me to Church. [Video] Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVjiKRfKpPI 

Lewalski, B. K. (1973). Donne’s Poetic Symbolism and Protestant Hermeneutics. In Donne’s “Anniversaries” and the Poetry of Praise: The Creation of a Symbolic Mode . Princeton University Press, (pp. 142–173).  http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt13x0xfb.9