In the wake of the sinking of the Titanic, Hardy wrote of the romanticized version of what happened. In the vastness of the sea the pride of those that created the failed ocean liner lay. Those that caused the death of 2200 will no longer be present thinking they have created the greatest of ships. The parts that once burned red hot are now cold and frozen at the bottom of the sea. The movement of the ship no longer a movement towards a destination but floating with the sea. The cleanliness of the ship contrasts to the sea worms being of an underworld like creature. "Over the mirrors meant To glass the opulent The sea-worm crawls--grotesque, slimed, dumb, indifferent. The contrast of the beauty of the ship when new versus the reality of the ship once sunk. Touted as the smartest fastest ship, its glory marred by the sinking before its first run was over. The pride of the creators taken by nature's simple creation, ice.

I'm not gonna write you a love song

Eliot's Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock isn't exactly the imagery I would have wanted. "Let us go then, you and I, When the evening is spread out against the sky Like a patient etherised upon a table;...Streets that follow like a tedious argument Of insidious intent"(1194-1195). This isn't the romantic date I would think to come to me from my lover. An etherised body is under absolute "sleep" almost dead to allow for work to be done on the individual. Does that suggest that he wants the love to be so close to death that he could doctor it? Or that the night should be so dead that they not be disturbed. Onto the cheap hotels no one wants to be brought to be shown insidious intent by the city. I hear the slums ringing through and through. The smog is personifyed similar to cat behavior. The yellow fog being the fur, rubbing his body against the cool window pane. This love song doesn't seem to be about the person he is with, but rather a song of all the things on Prufrock's mind. He talks of all the time they will have. Time to meet the world and fo everything they have ever wanted to. Even time to make toast and tea. Something that would seems trivial to us, but to him with his love a serious situation.

No Second Troy

Women are the root of war? Troy was caused by 2 kings fighting over Helen of Troy. It would be the question of could Helen have prevented this situation. I would say no, there is nothing that she could do. The men decided that she was worthy of love and war and thus fought to vie for her affections. Yeats expresses this emotion through the narrator saying that she couldn't be blamed for vexing him in his emotions. Her affections caused men to find it worthy to rage war against one another. From this war came courage and nobleness. The poem seems to suggest that from the war and destruction came the creation in the hearts of the men fighting valiant attributes. Even to ask the question in the end to say that was there another way to instill these things into more men by creating another Troy. "Why, what could she have done, being what she is? Was there another Troy for her to burn?(1118)" This creates in my mind that the attributes the men gained from being in the war were more highly treasured than the death that may have ensued. "Have taught to ignorant men most violent ways, or hurled the little streets upon the great, Had they but courage equal to desire?" While in a bad situation the things that were learned could be considered valuable in the long run. For that small reason, Yeats suggests through the narrator that Troy may have been a success and that she can't be blamed for the small misery created in the same breath. I think its kinda funny, to almost excuse a war of love for the creation of chivalry almost.

Hardy

Hap



The idea of chance that this poem evokes was not what I thought it would be. His first stanza about the angry god that feeds on the suffering of the narrator doesn't sound like chance, but misfortune. It continues on to say that the tears he shed were of the same vengeful god caused. The god creates undesireable situations for the narrator to evoke pain upon him and his reactions to the pain give the god "jollies". The idea of dicing was the idea of chance that I would believe that his poem was to be about.



The Darking Thrush



This piece is different from the first. The imagery is different, more descriptive of the surroundings of the situation. Hardy takes special care to set a haunting tone over the poem, using a winter season and the words desolate. "I leant upon a coppice gate When Frost aas a spectre-gray, And Winter's dregs made desolate the weakening eye of day"(1074). The capitulization of the winter and frost suggests human characteristics. The emotion of the poem is dark and sullen. Almost sucking the life from the narrator as he walks through the winter scene.

Hopkins and birds

Ok again a very religious piece. The Windhover is basically reminiscient of the various descriptions we give to God. The falcon seems to express the watchful eye of God. Steady as he flies above with the sunlight shining on him, like the glory of God himself. The flight was masterful just as the works of God, and he has "brute beauty and valour and act, oh, air, pride, plume, here Buckle" (775). This piece is dedicated to God in honor of his masterfulness. The metaphor to the falcon is to try and make God more understandable to human eyes. The falcon is a creature that was readily available, it could be seen doing similar things whereever seen. Its flight was nothing short of amazing and this poem evokes that God too could be and is watching with every falcon they see. This poem would cause the reader to associate the flight of the falcon with the works of God, his pride in his people.

Religion and Poetry

Hopkins is an interesting writer, because I figured I'd see him in one of my Christianity classes but never have. His confusion about his relationship with God over the years, as well as his estrangment from the same is typical for liturgical writers. Most at some point feel as though religion has lost all meaning and attempt to give up in one way or another. He has described his life as a burden to him, because of the removal from those things he loved, namely family and the English church. He wrote in his sonnet that he was removed (773). His pieces remind me of that of the early prophets. The early prophets were often misunderstood in their own time periods and even persecuted for their beliefs. The prophets often exhorted God just as Hopkins does in the first line of his poem. "The world is charged with the grandeur of God" (774). Suggesting the idea that God reigns over all and that his prescence electrifyes the world. Then just as the prophets exalt God they then start on the meat of the message usually being repentence. Hopkins asks the question of his audience "Why do men then now not reck his rod?" This expresses his prophetic voice to cause the people to remember their faith even though his may have been failing in the very same moment. He then takes the reader on a history lesson showing them that God has since been faithful and that his people have had some hard times. With his Biblical background I'm not surprised by his take on the situation.

The GREAT WAR

In talking about war I decided to use a more subtle and calmer color. If only to appease my own right brained mind. WWI caused many people especially artists to think of those things of the past. With another revolution on the brink the Twentieth Century opened a lot of eyes to history as well as the future. The Great War was the first of its magnitude involving so many countries. Some artists recount the events of the day with exceeding idealism while others created propoganda. "The war's lasting legacy was a sense of bitterly rebuffed idealism, bringing with it a suspicion of progress, technology, government, bureaucracy, nationalism, and conventional morality--themes probed in new ways by the period's writers" (1080). Lewis wrote about the Vorticist Manifesto in "Blast" along with other poetry by Pound and others. Lewis seemed to declare war on other writers while Britain was declaring war a few weeks later (1082).

Robert Browning

Based on the intro of Browning, creates his characters to be epic. He would create this almost theatrical view of his characters by the 1840s (660) "applying to lyric poetry his theatrical instincts and his aversion to self-revelation, he found he could produce startling new effects. Henceforth he would present his audience with a cast of aberrant personalities, each starring in his or her miniplay"(660). He also placed his characters in historical places and periods. It is said that he didn't invent the poetic monolgue just complicated it, in a good way I'm sure. He created a new level using his distinctive language. The same language that can make you hate and love a character at the same time. "Browning induces his readers to sympathize--even identify--with speakers of dubious morality and intentions" (660).

Porphyria's Lover

Thought it was interesting his sullen tone to start a poem about a lover. In comparison to his wife, he begins this relationship almost sourly, not happy but vexed by his (the lover) love. "I listened with heart fit to break" (662). The female character is strong, exposing a sexual side, that most would never show in Victorian culture. "She put my arm about her waist, And made her smooth white shoulder bare, And all her yellow hair displaced, And, stooping made my cheek lie there, And spread, o'er all, her yellow hair, Murmuring how she loved me--she Too weak, for all her heart's endeavour, To set its struggling passion free From pride, and vainer ties dissever, And give herself to me for ever" (662-663). This imagery suggests a woman seducing her lover to take her virginity. Something she can only give to one man, forever. Her heart bursting with fire and emotion, love, not understanding but wanting to be released from the ties that bind her. Her social standings, and rank could cause this particular event to be taboo. If this is a sexual scene and there was no marriage prior too, she could be shunned from her family. And lose her social standings. However, she seems to want to be released unto her lover and her lover only not caring about the consequences. This is again a strong female character. Not playing into social roles of the day, but taking charge for what she wants. By the end they expect judgment for their act of promiscuity. "And thus we sit together now, And all night long we have not stirred, And yet God has not said a word!" (663)

Symphony in Yellow

Comparable to Impression du Matin comes this yellow emotion. He also plays another symphony again, which makes me happy. I don't really see the musical side of this poem like the other but the symphony could be just the way the yellows play together. The yellow butterfly dances up to yellow hay, while a yellow scarf blankets city. Yellow leaves fade onto a green background of the Thames. Wilde has an affection for yellow and its complement color green. He speaks of it with such emotion that it suggests that he is looking at a painting at the time of writing this, or that he is amongst the nature that he writes on while under a setting sun. The yellow of the butterfly carries him to the next bar of musical yellow in the hay, to the next bar of the fog. Each playing a different part in the movement of the symphony. A symphony is composed usually of 4 movements. Each piece telling a crucial part of the same story until it all compounds into a crescendo of emotion.

Impression du Matin

So...maybe its just me but Oscar Wilde loves colors. His use of color paints a picture not of the nature itself, but of the emotion of color. The footnote explains that the poem is about the painting by the French Impressionists. To go from a blue and gold nightime musical to harmonious gray suggests to me a sadness that comes in darkness. However again in the footnotes the idea that harmonies come from daytime in the James Whistler pieces and nocturnes being the night scenes. The musical connotation of this piece has me intrigued. As a singer myself, the word nocturne evokes a somber feel to me. The blue and golds would be the low and high keys of the music. The treble carrying the stars in the sky while the Thames itself is the low keys of blue. He then proceeds his color palette by adding ochre, which I had to look up I'm not ashamed, to find its like a brownish blonde color. This gives a distinct feeling to the hay, because some hay is a dirty brown, dingy from rain or feedings. This particular hay is brilliant and vibrant. The music continues in his placement of bells, through clanging. "Then suddenly arose the clang Of waking life; the streets stirred..." 831. This is the creation of music through life to me. Life being the sweetest symphony created, but not created in the sense of music on paper, but the movements we make in our lives.

Mill The Radical

John Stuart Mill was a Victorian radical. I love it. He was like the first male feminist or something, which is really cool. He advocated sexual equality, divorce rights, and free speech to name a few. He doesn't write so much in poetry form as much as prose or free verse. He is more of a philosophical mind, questioning his generation, pushing for progress.

His piece from chapter 2 from On Liberty is basically thoughts on how man is different from every other creature on earth. Man is special because "either as an intellectual or as a moral being, namely that his errors are corrigible" 516. Man is a special being because he has the ability to correct his mistakes through "discussion and experience". Mill believes that it must be both, it cannot be an either or situation. You must discuss the situation to create growth. Discussion gives experience interpretation, says Mill. Mill thinks that thought people lack faith, but are terrified to be sceptical of any thought. Free thought is justified because it causes thought to be true or untrue. Either way, things can be learned from thought. Freedom of speech is necessary to the mental well being of society.

Ladies and Gents!

The view of lady and gentleman in Victorian society is specifically about status. It is explained that the terms "lady" and "gentleman" were positions of rank. Most people strived to reach that status while those privy to it didn't want to lose it. Those that were born into aristocracy were considered ladies and gents regardless of their desire for the position. They were treated as though they were royalty. They were distributed into their social ranks based on their "manners, money, birth, occupation, and leisure time" 555. For example, if apart of the middle class, the more manners, or leisure time you possessed the higher your status. The amount of education amongst the middle class was also a clear indication of social division. In boarding schools, the emphasis was placed on character over intellect. "public schools taught boys to assimilate the manners and customs of those above them socially" this gives them the mark of upper class training while being apart of the middle class.

Women or young girls didn't necessarily receive education to be considered a lady. Her status was determined by her parent's status or her husband's once she married. Ironically, unproductive leisure was a sign of rank. Most of the time people would consider activity the most prized possession of this time. However, it could be that even today those that have the ability to travel, and spend money without concern are the highest ranking people in society. This idea is brought out by Sarah Stickney Ellis. She discusses in The Women of England: Their Social Duties and Domestic Habits that women should be glad to be less powerful than men because then they don't have to think. "It is not to be presumed that women possess more power than men; but happily for them, such are their early impressions, associations, and general position in the world, that their moral feelings are less liabble to be impaired by the pecuniary objects which too often constitute the chief end of man, and which, even under the limitations of better principle, necessarily engage a large portion of thoughts" 557. Women are to be staples in the household to give their husband a safehaven from the outside world.

Sonnets 13 and 21

Sonnet 13 is like figuring out when and how to say I Love You. She is talking of "wilt thou have me fashion into speech The love I bear thee, finding words enough...". This suggests to me, that Robert may have been asking her to show him how much she cared for him. However she uses her silence to express herself. "From myself--me--that I should bring thee proof In words, of love hid in me out of reach. Nay, let the silence of my womanhood Commend my woman-love to thy belief" She is attempting to tell her lover that there are no words to describe and express love for him. It is something that must be felt and understood through"one touch of this heart convey its grief". I don't believe that the grief she is describing is sadness, but grief of the loss of her voice. Sonnet 21 however is an expression of repetition. She wants nothing more than to hear her lover to express to her every moment how much he loves her. She doubts that sometimes in his silence that he may not love her, so wants to always that he loves her. Even in the darkness or silence she wants to know that his love is real. This would be the same silence that was described in Sonnet 13. For Barrett Browning, she stays silent to express her love, but wants a vocal counterpart.

Love Notes

Ok I am a chick, a hopeless romantic kind of chick. So when I read a lot from Elizabeth Browning, it reminds me of most women. Women lookin for love and express it in different ways. Her Sonnets from the Portuguese express all the different types of love, and the various ways she responded to her relationship with her husband. Sonnet 1 is the reaction to the new found relationship between Elizabeth Barrett and Robert Browning. During the early moments love was like a song, like that of old Greek poetry. She expresses her love by a "how a mystic Shape did move Behind me, and drew me backward by the hair; And a voice said in mastery, while I strove,-- "Guess now who holds thee?"--"Death," I said, But, there, The silver answer rang,--"Not Death, but Love." She seemed to fear the feeling that was coming over her, and thought that it was death coming to control her when in fact it was love that mastered her. This suggests to me that this was her first love, a love that was never felt before. A new emotion of control on her that she couldn't explain but in terms she understood, Death being the ultimate master.

The Revolution

The Industrial Revolution caused a new era in literature because it caused a new revolution in life. "The most fundamental transformation of human life in the history of the world (487)" describes the view the Industrial Revolution had. People were altered in ways they were unaware could happen because of the use of the factory systems as well as new transportation. With the creation of factory systems it caused the need for cityscapes to house them. Factories caused cities to be burgeoning beacons of industry. Society began to move from farming communities to factories, causing commutes for businessmen and factory workers. Factories, mills, and mines caused pollution the likes of which no one was possible. "The factory system disrupted not only traditional patterns of work but also family life "(487). With people believing their society crumbling around them some authors as well as people thought to look towards the past for answers to the "problems" being caused by technology. The Testimony of Ann and Elizabeth Eggley show a dark side of technology. In this instance these 2 sisters work in a mine for their father to maintain a lifestyle where they just get to eat everyday. The sisters are 18 and 16 and neither have an education to speak of. They explain that even their father is ashamed of them working as they do but they have no options because there is nothing left for them to do (494). This shows the implications caused by enlarging the gap between working class and upper class. Slums became a staple in the city to house those that couldn't afford to live in the suburbs.



I think of this in terms of today. We also had a technological advance in the internet. The internet was looked at with excitement and fear. Often times change is viewed with increasing apprehension because there is no guarantee that it could be a change for the better. For example the Industrial Revolution was viewed by Carlyle with apprehension. He writes in Past and Present that the people of England became enchanted after the revolution. "In the eyes and brows of theses men hung the gloomiest expression, not of anger but of grief and shame and manifold inarticulate distress and weariness; they returned my flance with a glance that seemed to say 'Don't look at us. We sit enchanted here, we know not why"(478). These workhouse workers lived in poor environments disinfranchised by the Industrial Revolution. Not being able to withstand the change, Carlyle feared that all of society in England would also become desolate. Carlyle wrote also that "England is full of wealth, of multifarious produce, supply for human want in every kind; yet England is dying of inanition" (477). Meaning that the revolution brought about some great changes in production and the opportunity to afford people with more jobs, but instead life became empty. Life was cut short made less than by the creation of factories and mills because it caused farm life to change. It caused individuals to lose worth.

The Kraken?!?!?

Ok shoot me for being slightly immature but this reminded me of "Pirates of the Caribbean 2"..LOL Ok back to the real poetry. "The Kraken" explains a mythical creature that lives in the ocean quite like the kraken in the movie. It seems like its only a large octopus or squid that feeds off the deep sea creatures. In the movie it is controlled by a pirate who controls it to do his bidding. I'm sure that the idea came from the Tennyson poem of 15 lines. The language of this piece evokes the image of a docile sea monster cut off from normal sea life. A monster that sleeps in the deepest darkest caves and lives off of worms. In creating this monster to be so docile it causes me to think of the age old question of judging a book by its cover. The Kraken is a creature that lives deep within the ocean living alone and innocently. The squid in its size is very daunting, but doesn't take advantage of his size by causing harm to others. The Kraken spends its time sleeping under the cloak of darkness. The only people to witness this creature are those present on judgment day.

"There hath he lain for ages and will lie Battening upon huge seaworms in his sleep, Until the latter fire shall heat the deep; Then once by man and angels to be seen, In roaring he shall rise and on the surface die"(586).
This piece was interesting to me because it was unlike the others. It takes the reader into another creatures life showing something that has yet to be seen. Creating a different environment to discover. Tennyson often wrote about characters living human lives, expressing the thoughts of the person and their reactions to life. Tennyson writes about the Lady of Shalott in a similar format. He shows a glimpse into the life of the Lady of Shalott after her loss of her love. Tennyson writes epic stories about his characters.
Tennyson uses nature in his pieces like those of the Romantics. In comparison to someone like Carlyle. Tennyson was a celebrated poet of his time. He was named Poet Laureate before becoming a Baron and Lord, all prestigious titles. To achieve these titles after being from a poor background say something about his resolve to succeed.

Fly away happy?

"The Fly"

I thought this was an interesting piece. Upon first reading it, I read the stanzas down and got an interpretation that someone was talking to a fly about their similarities. Flies bounce from place to place almost in a dancing motion. The voice also expresses the same interest explaining that they could be of one "body" because they share this desire, to dance and sing until someone tells them to leave. This reminded me of children who go around amusing themselves living in their own mental world until they are "brushed" away by reality. This moment of being brushed away is like taking the innocence of the child. The voice then philosophically discusses life and its meaning through thought. This is a major theme of Blake. He expresses similar philosophies in his piece "All Religions Are One" The first principle in this article is that the "Poetic Genius" is the true man. This to me reads as the mind is the basis for life. His outward life is an outward extension of their "Poetic Genius". All truth comes from their Poetic mind and not from Philosophy ideals or from his heart. Life comes from thought and not from desires. Humans should be rational beings and not controlled by their selfish desires. This idea also expresses the need for intelligence above ignorance and stupidity. Blake was not formally taught, as expressed in the prologue, but was an avid learner nonetheless. His insatiable desire for knowledge bleeds through the line "And the want of thought is death;". Knowledge is power and life to him, those without it are lacking.

After reading the caption next to the picture I reanalyzed the poetry because it states that the poem structure could be read down or across. Reading the poem across seems to express a similar idea from before. I didn't really see a difference in the secondary structure.

Romantics and Wollstonecraft

Well its been a long time I feel since my last post. My life has been a little hectic these days filled with graduations and celebrations for my brother. Now that that is all over I feel that I can give more attention to the readings and blogging. My first pass at the readings is somewhat confused.

I am attempting to truly understand the time period as a whole to then understand the ideas of the poetry given by the writers. The perspective of Mary Wollstonecraft seems to be more idealistic compared to that of Burke. However I agree with her ideals because they seem based more on equality for all based on inate liberties. Natural liberties that give everyone the opportunity based on their birthright as a human being not because of their class or status. She believes that Burke's response to the day was at best an embellishment of ideas. I believe she thought that Burke was attempting to strengthen the ideas of class levels by using sarcasm. Wollstonecraft seems to believe in my idea of Romanticism by using the "gothic notions of beauty". I believe that with understanding and using an open mind many issues can be resolved.

I hope to finish this line of thinking very soon...