In the poem, The Flea, John Donne demonstrates grief, shame, anxiety and pain with the touch of his pen. In the poem, the cry of a past abortion experienced by the man who impregnated a young and inexperienced girl touches and visits the many thoughts and feelings that young couples endure in such circumstances. Every line in the poem had a message of grief and disbelief; the character mourned the agonizing end of what could have been something so beautiful, a new life. .
The poem begins with: "Mark but this flea, and Mark in this How little that which thou deny'st me is; It sucked me first, and Now sucked thee, And in this flea our two bloods mingled be; Thou know'st that this cannot be said A sin, nor shame, nor loss of maidenhead." This first lines explains how the impregnated girl does not give in to the implorations of the young man to go on with the pregnancy; the desperate young man claims that the flea (his sperm) was inside him at first and found its way to her; moreover, the flea became a fertilized egg, now, growing inside her. This fertilized egg is not a sin, this egg is not shame, this egg is not made out of the loss of her virginity, but out of love for each other. .
In the following lines, John Donne continues his painful journey to a devastating abortion. "Yet this enjoys before it woo, And pampered swells with one blood made of two, And this, alas, is more than we would do." John elaborates by explaining to the young woman that the pregnancy was out of love which was enjoyed by both; the fertilized egg is now growing inside of her; however, it was made out of the two of them; this was an effort that required two people to accomplish. Nevertheless, the future of the fertilized egg lays on the decision of just one person, the young girl. .
In the next lines, John Donne, again, goes down to his knees in unimaginable sorrow. "Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare, Where we almost, yea more than, married are.
