Metaphysical poets

Metaphysical poets, early 17th-century English lyric poets whose style relied on the metaphysical conceit, an elaborate metaphorical image. Most famous among them is John Donne; others include Andrew Marvell, George Herbert, Richard Crashaw, Henry Vaughan, and Thomas Carew. The Metaphysical poets (a term first used by Samuel Johnson in 1744) extended the range of lyric poetry by writing about death, decay, immortality, and faith. They declined in popularity after about 1660, but their complex intellectual content and rich exploration of feeling was a major influence on 20th-century poetry.