When reading the poem "The Bait- by John Donne, one may initially interpret the .
Overall, this poem could have a lot of meaning to a .
fisherman. "The Bait- speaks of all the things that fishermen love about the sport. The first stanza sets ones mind in a place that a reader can imagine fishing, "of golden sands, and crystal brooks, With silken lines and silver hooks- (Donne). However, taking a closer look, a reader can see that this poem actually tells of a mans quest to catch a woman.
Again, the first stanza relays the setting. Seemingly, the fisherman is stating that he would be thrilled to make a great catch in such a beautiful place. The opening line "Come live with me and be my love- is apparently a metaphor (Donne). As the poem progresses, one could see how Donne intended the line to become literal.
In the second stanza the speaker looks fondly at the scenery and realizes that his beloved fish will stay there. Here, Donne gives his first clue that this is actually a love poem. "And there th' enamored fish will stay, Begging themselves they may betray (Donne). These two lines are telling of a fish that is inclined to love and , knowing that the action would be wrong, she is inclined to place herself in the hands of the enemy anyway.
The third stanza finds the speaker telling of past catches that came easily to him. He is in essence asking the object of his affection when will you come to me?' The speaker also implies that the past catches were happy, but he was not.
In the fourth stanza the speaker states that his desired catch is reluctant to be seen. If however, he had the chance to see his love it would bring a special kind of joy to his heart. However, in line four "Gladder to catch the, than thou him- states that his desired love probably would not be as happy with him (Donne). .
The first and second lines of the fifth stanza has the speaker wishing that the competition for his love would be stuck in a was that he cannot reach her, or worse, finding the path to the prize too difficult.