Drinking by Abraham Cowley

The thirsty earth soaks up the rain,
And drinks and gapes for drink again;
The plants suck in the earth, and are
With constant drinking fresh and fair;
The sea itself (which one would think
Should have but little need of drink)
Drinks ten thousand rivers up,
So filled that they o’erflow the cup.
The busy Sun (and one would guess
By’s drunken fiery face no less)
Drinks up the sea, and when he’s done,
The Moon and Stars drink up the Sun:
They drink and dance by their own light,
They drink and revel all the night:
Nothing in Nature’s sober found,
But an eternal health goes round.
Fill up the bowl, then, fill it high,
Fill all the glasses there—for why
Should every creature drink but I?
Why, man of morals, tell me why? This poem personifies basically everything to justify drinking alcohol. Cowley begins by saying that the earth drinks in water, and never is satisfied. He then moves on to plants which drink, and he says that is why they are "fresh and fair", or in good health. Cowley then says that the sea drinks the rivers, and the sun drinks the sea. He says that the Sun drinks a lot, and the you should be able to tell by it's "drunken fiery face." Then he says that the "moon and stars drink up the sun." After proving that all the things in nature drinks he says, "Nothing in Nature’s sober found." So following this logic he basically thinks that it is natural to drink and why shouldn't he be allowed to drink since nature is always drunk. Cowley really does make a good point, except that nature doesn't drink alcohol. So his argument might have some strength if there was alcohol in nature. This poem follows an aa-bb rhyme scheme. I really like this poem, otherwise I wouldn't write about it, and it is amusing to see the argument that the poet makes to justify his drinking habit.