The poem “Love” (rpt. in Thomas R. Arp and Greg Johnson, Perrine's Literature: Structure, Sound, and Sense, 11th ed. [Boston: Wadsworth, 2012] 985) is written by George Herbert, an English poet who grew up in an Anglican home and attended the Church of England. Faye Pauli Whitaker wrote of Herbert's mother saying that after her father's death in 1593 Herbert's mother Magdalene was left with ten children to raise where she maintained a well-known family, reflecting her dedication to literary, musical, and religious values. Herbert spent his adulthood as rector at Bermerton where he preached, wrote poetry and helped rebuild the church out of his own pocket. Most of Herbert's poems are religious devotions. Sidney Gottlieb speaks highly of Herbert when he says: Herbert's purpose in writing his poems was not so much to express his personal concerns as to clarify and perhaps solve some important problems that all Christians - some would like to broaden to include all attentive readers: share. The details of Herbert's life thus figure largely in his poems, but as part of a much more inclusive design. The speaker is a man who loves God but does not feel he deserves God's love. Throughout the poem the speaker defines his relationship with the Host, otherwise known as God. The setting takes place in the house of God at 'dinner time. There is a party going on in the house of God and the host, George Herbert, is invited. The tone changes throughout the poem. From the first line we see that the tooth is dignified because the speaker says, "Love welcomed me, yet my soul pulled back." The tone then changes to persuasion when God says, “Thou shalt be he.” God is persuading the speaker, George Herbert, the... middle of paper... too sinful to accept God's love for him. The host eventually accepts the host's invitation to enter his home and eat due to the host's continued persistence. The host accepting the host's offering symbolizes that Herbert accepts God's love, which God has persistently declared his son to be worthy of having. Works Cited Gottlieb, Sidney. “Accessing the Brazosport College Library Research Database.” Access the Brazosport College Library Research Database. Salem Press and Web. April 19, 2014.Herbert, George. "Love." Perrine Literature: Structure, Sounds, and Sense, Advanced Placement Edition. Eds. Thomas R. Arp and Greg Johnson. 11th ed. Australia: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2012. Print. 985.Whitaker, Faye Pauli. “Accessing the Brazosport College Library Research Database.” Access the Brazosport College Library Research Database. Beacham Group LLC, ndWeb. April 19th. 2014.