“跳蚤”和愛情能掛上鉤?聽起來是不是覺得有些不可思異?可是多恩就是這么有本事。

他力勸女主人公放棄無用的貞操觀，與他一起享受愛情的甜蜜，“你看跳蚤不也是吸了我們的血，而沒有經過我們的許允?”還勸說女方不要殺死無辜的跳蚤，因為它吸了“我和你的血”，兩個人的血由此交融在一起，所以這跳蚤也成了締結愛情的床。

哦，他是這樣說的。

雖然這詩的內容荒誕無稽，作者也有買弄之嫌，但是不可否認詩人確實論得有理有據，滑稽有趣，充分體現多恩詩歌長于思辯，善用意象的特色。 好吧，讓我們就來看看多恩的這首有名“跳蚤”詩。

The Flea

--John Donne

Mark but this flea, and mark in this,

How little that which thou[1] deniest me is;

Me it sucked first, and now sucks thee[2],

And in this flea our two bloods mingled be[3];

Thou know’st that this cannot be said

A sin, or shame, or loss of maidenhead,

Yet this enjoys before it woo,

And pampered swells with one blood made of two,

And this, alas, is more than we would do.

Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare[4],

Where we almost, nay more than married are.

This flea is you and I, and this

Our marriage bed and marriage temple is;

Though parents grudge[5], and you, we are met,

And cloisered in these living walls of jet.

Though use[6] make you apt to kill me

Let not to that, self-murder added be,

And sacrilege[7], three sins in killing three.

Cruel and sudden, hast[8] thou since

Purpled thy nail[9] in blood of innocence?

Wherein could this flea guilty be,

Except in that drop which it sucked from thee?

Yet thou triumph’st, and say’st that thou

Find’st not thy self nor me the weaker now;

’Tis true; then learn how false fears be:

Just so much honor, when thou yield’st to me,

Will waste, as this flea’s death look life from thee.

注釋：

1. thou：在古英語里，是表示you 的主格形式。

2. thee：在古英語里，是表示 you 的賓格形式。

3. And in this flea our two bloods mingled be：這一句是這首詩的關鍵句，道出“在這只跳蚤的身體里，我們兩個人的血液相互交融。”

4. Oh stay, three lives in one flea spare：“哦，你先等一等，不要掐死這只跳蚤，因為它(吸了兩人的血)集三條生命于一身。”

5. grudge：厭惡，怨恨。

6. use：=habit 習慣。

7. sacrilege：褻瀆神圣。

8.hast：在古英語里，相當于 have 的第二人稱單數的現在式，主詞為 thou 。

9.purpled thy nail：thy用在古英語里，相當于your，你的。掐死了跳蚤，所以鮮血染紅了指甲， 變成了“紫色”。由此可見，詩人的語言非常滑稽有趣。