This is related with the Metaphysical Poets founded by John Donne in the 17th century. This group of poets are known for their ability to "startle the reader and coex new perspective" this was achieved by the use of paradoxical images, subtle argument, inventive sybtax, and imagery from art, philosophy, and religion. They used an extended metaphor named conceit.
The mataphysical conceit usualy sets an analogy between one entity's spiritual qualities and an object in the physical world.
The intensive pronoun are pronouns that add extra emphasis on the subject (or object) and which can be removed. In this sentence "himself" is the intensive pronoun.
