Poetry · Chapter
Sharing Eve’s Apple explained
A playful and erotic poem that uses the metaphor of Eve's apple to explore themes of seduction, consent, and the fleeting nature of youth and passion.
What happens
A playful and erotic poem that uses the metaphor of Eve's apple to explore themes of seduction, consent, and the fleeting nature of youth and passion. The speaker urges a lover not to blush or sigh, suggesting that their shared intimacy is natural and should be enjoyed without shame.
Themes in this chapter
Love and Loss
The poem celebrates the passionate, physical aspect of love while acknowledging its impermanence ('it only will last our youth out').
Beauty and Transience
The fleeting nature of youth and desire is emphasized, with the speaker urging the lover to seize the moment before it passes.
Characters to notice
- Unknown
The speaker of the poem, addressing a lover with playful and seductive tones.
Key passages
“O blush not so! O blush not so! Or I shall think you knowing; And if you smile the blushing while, Then maidenheads are going.”
Don't be embarrassed by your blush, or I'll think you're experienced; if you smile while blushing, it suggests you're losing your innocence.
The speaker playfully interprets the lover's blush as a sign of both modesty and hidden knowledge.
“O sigh not so! O sigh not so! For it sounds of Eve’s sweet Pippin; By these loosen’d lips you have tasted the pips And fought in an amorous nipping.”
Don't sigh like that, because it reminds me of Eve's apple; your relaxed lips show you've tasted the seeds and engaged in passionate biting.
The sigh is linked to the biblical apple, suggesting the lover has already partaken in forbidden pleasure.
“Will you play once more at nice-cut-core, For it only will last our youth out, And we have the prime of the kissing time, We have not one sweet tooth out.”
Will you join me again in this game of love, since it will only last through our youth; we are in the best time for kissing, and we haven't lost any of our sweet tooth yet.
The speaker urges the lover to continue their affair while they are still young and passionate.