Avarice – George Herbert [SUMMARY]

 

“Avarice,” is a sonnet by the seventeenth-century Metaphysical poet George Herbert. Herbert shows us in this short religious poem the power of extreme greed ( avarice) one of the seven deadly sins. Money is personified, as man addresses it directly, accusing it of being the bane and ruin of true happiness. The poem acts as a stinging comment on our 21st century, highlighting as it does the result of extreme greed.

According to the poet, money or gold metal is the prime source of human misery. He explains the birth of money (Gold metal). Man found the gold below the earth. He says that the origin of the gold is dirt in the process. Its parentage is base and low. The poet addresses money as a living person. According to him, the contribution of money to this great human kingdom is little.

Further the poet describes the process of digging out the gold through mining. The gold in the form of dirty ore is dug out and put into the fire to purify. Until that time it is worthless. The poet says that it is man who stamps price and value for the gold (Money). He stamps the face of the queen or king on it to make it validated. Then, the money (gold) becomes valued. Unfortunately, in the process of making money valuable, man loses his worth. Thus, the poem blames man for worshiping money (creation) instead of the creator (God).

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