A Lovely Rose in the poem Song by Edmund Waller

For many centuries, young men have been telling their sweethearts about ephemeral youth and passion which, like a candle, burns brightly but dies out slowly but surely. Edmund Waller's persona in the poem "Song" is such a young man. He sends a rose to his beloved to "Tell her that [she] wastes her time and [him] (2) by acting shy and staying out of sight. This young lover is trying to tell his paramour that their …

…male who has only one thing on his mind, and it does not look like it is love. His actions suggest a "carpe diem" attitude which he is trying to impress upon his beloved. Thus, he uses the lovely rose to remind his love of "How small a part of time they share" (19); to remind her of the urgency of his love, and entice her to forget her modesty and allow "herself to be desired" (14).