Describe – with evidence- what you think the Nymph’s underlying message is to her Shepherd suitor.

The underlying message the Nymph is portraying to her suitor is that everything within the world is ephemeral. The Nymph passionately discloses the realities of living on the land to oppose the Romanticised image of life created by her suitor. The Nymph does so by using contradicting words and themes to that of her suitor,

The Passionate Shepherd to His love, Stanza 4; “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;”

This is blatantly contradicted by the Nymph’s realisation that all the luxury that the Shepherd promises to provide is conditional and is not long lasting,

The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd, Stanza 4 “Thy gowns, thy shoes, thy beds of Roses, Thy cap, Thy kirtle, and thy posies Soon break, soon wither, soon forgotten; In folly ripe, in reason rotten.”

She uses the images of rot and odour in the lines above and in Stanza 3, “A honey tongue, a heart of gall,” to display the importance of time and how it rapidly changes the world around them. Many of the pleasures that are promised to the lover are time conditional, such as “A cap of flowers, and a kirtle Embroidered all with leaves of Myrtle.”  The Nymph replies to the Shepherd to highlight  how the flowers, land and luxuries promised to her are ephemeral and not a strong basis to begin an eternal love on, as they will eventually rot away. The Nymph does not wish to start a love on the promise of eventually forgotten wealth, so instead she suggests that they choose to be together regardless of wealth and other materialistic objects. This is demonstrated within the last stanza, “and love still breed, Had joys no date, nor age no need, Then these delights my mind might move To live with thee, and be thy love.” These lines effectively communicate the Nymph’s message to show the importance of  basing  love on the joys of genuine human connection rather than a materialistic one. She also includes the ongoing motif of time through images of rotting and lifeless possessions to further stress the reality of the world. The Nymph agrees to be with her suitor on the condition that they accept that time changes the environment around them and to love each other for who they are and the companionship they provide, not what they own or promise to give.