1. Aspects of love in the renaissance
The Passionate Shepherd to His Love
And
The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd

2. 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.

3. 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.

4. 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..

5. Imagining paradise Which of your images do you consider realistic?
Which would you describe as romantic or idealized?

6. 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.

7. 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.

8. The passionate shepherd to his love
What overall picture of rural life is conveyed by this poem?
Find examples of alliteration in lines
What is being emphasized by the use of alliteration there?

9. 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 Discuss the meaning of the emphasis.
Which aspect of the ideal rural life does the nymph rebut here?

10. 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?

11. 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.

12. 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.

13. 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!

14. 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.