About the Author

Christopher Marlowe (1564-1595). Though not the first English Poet to write in blank verse
(unrhymed iambic pentameter). Christopher Marlowe’s brilliant use of it in his plays established blank
verse as the preeminent meter for verse drama and ultimately for epic poetry in English.
Born in Canterbury, Marlowe was the son of a shoemaker. He went to Cambridge University on a
scholarship usually awarded to students studying for the ministry. Marlowe is the author of one of the
world’s immortal tragedies, Dr. Faustus, “ “Tamburlaine”, the play that made the public aware of his
dazzling abilities, “Hero and Leander,” one of the finest narrative poems ever written in English; and
“The passionate Shepherd to His Love,” one of the best-known and most popular lyrics of the English
Renaissance.

Unlocking of Difficulties
Define the following words from the poem “The Passionate Shepherd to His Love” based on its
usage.
a. dales b. craggy c. melodious
d. posies e. kirtle f. myrtle
g. ivy buds h. amber studs i. clasps

Pre-reading question:
What kind of love do you wish to receive?

The Passionate Shepherd to His Love

By: Christopher Marlowe

Come live with me, and be my love,

And we will all the pleasures prove
That hills and valleys, dales and fields.
And all the craggy mountains 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 will make thee beds of roses,

And a thousand fragrant posies,
A cap of flowers and 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.

Thy silver dishes for thy meat,

As precious as the gods do eat,
Shall on an ivory table be
Prepared each day for thee and me.

The shepherd 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.

Post-reading questions:

1-2. What does the shepherd want from his love?

3-4. What are the pleasures that the shepherd wish to offer to his love?
4.7. How do you picture-out the kind of love the shepherd offers to his love? Why? Prove your answer
by citing a verse from the poem.
7-10. If you were the girl, would you accept the shepherd? Why?