Final answer:
The poems 'The Passionate Shepherd to His Love' and 'The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd' both feature themes of nature and love, with similar pastoral imagery but contrasting viewpoints on the nature of love and its promises.
Step-by-step explanation:
The common language and imagery seen across "The Passionate Shepherd to His Love" by Christopher Marlowe and "The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd" by Sir Walter Raleigh are predominantly themes of nature and love. Both poems share pastoral imagery, like mention of rivers, valleys, groves, and fields, emphasizing nature as a backdrop for romantic endeavor. Marlowe’s poem presents an idealized version of pastoral love, where everything is eternally pleasant and inviting. Raleigh’s poem, however, uses the same imagery to express a more cynical viewpoint, suggesting that the promises of such a love are ultimately fleeting and grounded in reality. While both use similar settings and objects, Marlowe’s tone is earnest and seductive, whereas Raleigh’s is realistic and skeptical. This contrast is significant, but the shared language and imagery do illustrate that both poems are engaged in a conversation about the ephemeral nature of love and the permanence (or lack thereof) of pastoral bliss.