Final answer:
In John Donne's poem, 'love wrought new alchemy' indicates a deep change or transformation through love, using alchemy as a metaphor for emotional and spiritual metamorphosis.
Step-by-step explanation:
In A Nocturnal upon St. Lucy's Day by John Donne, the phrase "love wrought new alchemy" suggests a transformation through love. This metaphor compares the profound changes that love can evoke in a person with the goals of alchemy, which was to turn base metals into gold. In the context of Donne's era, alchemy was a symbol of transformation and the quest for purity, thus 'new alchemy' through love implies a deep emotional or spiritual change within the lover. The phrase does not imply a rejection of alchemy, but rather uses it as a powerful analogy for the transformative power of love.
Donne's contemporary poets and philosophers grappled with the implications of scientific advances, such as those by Copernicus and Newton, which challenged old certainties and superstitious views of the world, often debating whether these were enlightening or disconcerting. This intellectual turmoil and the arrival of new scientific paradigms frequently influenced the themes explored in their works about love, religion, self, and nature.