Oscar Wilde

(My last post is on Oscar Wilde not intentionally, but because I typed it in word about a week ago and somehow forgot to post it! Oops!)

Oscar Wilde’s plays did little to hold my attention. I hate to admit it but I had to read The Importance of Being Earnest twice in high school and while it was not the most miserable thing I ever had to read, it was far from pleasurable. I did find his Preface to The Picture of Dorian Gray and “Aphorisms” to be rather enjoyable. They were not as deep or hard to figure out as many of the other works we have read this session but they still held plenty of meaning. I think that this Preface was a prime example of how artists and other intellects strived to live. During the Victorian age society was status obsessed and their only focus were on material values. They did not appreciate the finer or more “beautiful” aspects of life. “Those who find ugly meanings in beautiful things are corrupt without being charming. This is a fault.” This line I believe is more directed towards society at the time. A normal middle class member of society strives only to have what others who were considered better had. They found no real beauty or meaning in this, however they wanted this only for superficial reasons. Many of these authors also used their art as a way to hide themselves. “To reveal art and conceal the artist is the art’s aim.” I found this line especially relevant for those artists who wrote under pseudonyms. Fame and fortune are not common goals for Victorian authors. “No artist desires to prove anything” Nearly all of the authors we have studied have taken part in some sort of controversial publication. Wilde believes that this controversy and differing opinions shows that the work is innovative and that it is a sign or originality “Diversity of opinion about a work of art shows that the work is new, complex, and vital.” I really loved where Wilde wrote “All art is at once surface and symbol.” This made me smile because if you take art for face value is empty and “useless” as Wilde ends the preface by stating. (A view I do not believe Wilde agreed with.). Art is something which you have to study and think about and take with an open mind. Sure, on the surface it is a bunch of eloquently written words. If you do not read between the lines all it will be is a group of meaningless pretty words. Wilde also goes into great detail of the aesthetic value of art. Society at the time was only concerned with this aspect of the artwork. “They are the elect to whom beautiful things mean only beauty.” Wilde is using this piece to speak out against this ignorant thought.
I thought Wilde’s writing was inspiring and very thought provoking. Though this preface differed greatly from most of the other works I have focused on in my blogs, the freshness of it is what drew me to want to write on it. (Much like an idea Wilde discusses in the preface!) I really enjoyed being able to relate all of these ideas back to other artists we have studied. In every line of the text, I was able to think of authors who followed and believed them. Proving them to be the truth. (“Even things that are true can be proved”). Reading this preface actually helped to prove to me how much I have learned thus far in the course! I am anxious to read into the modern era and see how many more ways these sayings can be put into practice.

T.S. Eliot

I found it very interesting that T.S. Eliot was actually born in America. It proved to me just how much British literature at the time influenced today’s modern writers. Though Eliot lived during the same time as many of the other writers we have studied only his family and history were rooted in America instead of Europe. Nearly all of the works we have studied in this course have been reflections of Europe at the time they were created which is why I found it so interesting that Eliot was born and raised as an American.
I really enjoyed being able to listen to Eliot read his own work with the clip Dr. Glance provided us. I have never had the opportunity to hear any of these writers read their work as they intended it. Therefore, I jumped on the opportunity to be able to listen to Eliot. The change of tones in his voices really helped me to get a better grasp for his work “The Waste Land”. However, I must admit I still struggled with this poem for understanding. When the texts states that Eliot felt difficulty was necessary, they were not exaggerating! I think most of what made his writing so hard to understand was all the allusions to past authors works. I unfortunately did not understand all of his references. One thing I have come to hate from many of the works we have read in this class is authors who purposely try to make their more writing more difficult and cryptic then necessary. (Admittedly, that is probably due to my own laziness and ignorance as a student) I thought this poem had a lot of aspects that made it very different from most other poetry we have studied.
The shortest section of “The Waste Land” was my favorite. Just because “Death by Water” was his shortest section does not mean it was by any means easy to interpret. The way he wrote it reminded me of a parable or lesson you were taught as a child. This lesson however was a little morbid. “Death by Water” focuses on the physical aspect of death and does not hint at any sort of spiritual afterlife. This section is set up in “the Burial of the Dead” where Madame Sosostris warns of the Phoenicians Sailor who drowned in the ocean. Thanks to the foot notes I was able to catch the reference of the “pearls that were his eyes” (48) to Shakespeare’s “The Tempest”. The foot note allowed me to understand that “The Tempest” depicts a very similar scene to “Death by Water” where a body is brutally decapitated by drowning. Madam Sosostris warns, “Fear death by water” (55) which set the scene for the fourth section of this poem.
I thought it was very interesting how Eliot never hints to an afterlife in this section or suggests any spiritual aspect of death. Instead, he only depicts the depressing truth, the physical end of earthly life. Most poets attempt to touch on the deeper end and meaning of life, here Eliot does not seem to do this. He writes that it does not matter whom you are when it comes to death. When you drown, your body decays and sea creatures eat away at you. There is nothing romantic or deep about it. You stop breathing; you stop seeing, listening, feeling. Nothing matters any more and there is nothing else to come.

“Gentile or Jew/ O you who turn the wheel and look to windward,
Consider Phlebas, who was once handsome and tall as you.” (319-321)

It is as though Eliot is trying to warn readers to be careful not to take themselves too seriously during their time on earth. Your religion, occupation, social status, does not matter once you die. I admit there is a lot of parts in “Waste Land” that I do not understand, but I feel as though that may be the intention of Eliot. He did not want reading and understanding poetry to be easy, and in many ways I do not think he wanted readers to always fully understand his work. Though I am sure I was way off par when making my assumptions of his readings, unlike other purposely difficult writers I actually really enjoyed reading his work.

James Joyce

When I began reading the texts background information on James Joyce, I had horrific flashbacks to reading A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man in AP English my junior year of high school. I do not remember specifically what made reading that book the most painful experience I had that year but the memory of it did give me plenty of biases before I started reading his writing again. I was surprised how quick and painless it was to read “Clay” from Joyce’s Dubliners. I regret to admit that just because it was effortless to get through this selection, I still was not a fan of the reading the first time I read it. Now that I am getting to the end of the readings for this course, I am realizing something that probably prevented me from enjoying these authors before this class or while I was in high school. In order to understand or appreciate any of this literature I have to read it several times to pick up on all the authors subtleties. So I read this text again and while I still felt unsure of any real significance, I actually found myself liking Joyce’s style a little more.
“Clay” presented readers with the incredibly monotonous life of Maria. From what I gathered, Maria led an unfulfilling life with no achievements to call her own. She had no family, choosing to never marry, and as result, she lived what appeared to be an empty life. Though she never married, Maria was loved by everyone who knew her. She was a pleasant woman who spoke kindly and strived perfection and organization in everything she did. In the incident where she discovers she leaves her plum cake on the tram, she is so upset about her carelessness and her waste of the money that she nearly cries. I thought this was strange because that is an honest mistake which anyone could easily have done. Maria constantly tries occupy her time by serving other people to make up for the fact that she has little going on in her own life. The title and reference to the clay is symbolism that part of her is suffering an early death. The game played with the three saucers is a traditional Halloween game played to foresee the future. While blindfolded you pick a plate and what is on the plate supposedly determines your fate. She was the only one at the party to land on the clay (which suggests you will die soon) and this shows how she herself has lost a part of herself to the trite nature of her daily life.
I found it interesting how much emphasis was placed on her never being married. It was as though just because she never married she doomed herself to have this fate. All the other ladies in the text skirted the issue of her single life, but it was suggested several times by other characters that perhaps she would be happier if she was married. It was strange to me, I gathered in the other readings from the modern era, and in the background information, during this era women sacrificed any chance of a fulfilling life if she did not marry. Once again, I was provoked to think about the inequalities between men and women during this generation. Men could lead perfectly satisfying lives, take a mistress, and never once be reminded that they did not marry. Women had a daily reminder that she did not live up to this expectation society laid out for her.
I felt Joyce purposely left out many details as to why the characters felt the emotions they did. Why Maria’s life had wound up so empty, and why Joe was so emotionally moved by Maria’s song, were hard for me to understand. I think the reason why I am so exhausted by Joyce’s writing is that I do not understand his choices in many of his stories. After reading his work, I find myself frustrated that I still can not drive a greater meaning out of his words. I found this story to be fun to read, but deciphering the motives behind his writing still bewilders me.

William Butler Yeats

While I was reading William Butler Yeats poem “A prayer for my Daughter”, I could not help but think of the similarities it had with Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s work. These men actually had similarities in their own childhood and wrote poems revealing their hopes for the way their children would be raised. While I noticed many similarities, I also thought that there were a number of differences for what the men believed the ideal childhood. I thought that each poem was a very adequate reflection for life during that time. Coleridge was a romantic writer and we saw him hope that his son would be raised around nature with emphasis on his son’s spiritual growth. Yeats was considered a more modern writer and his hopes for his daughter’s future are appropriately suited for his time as well. I found it interesting to see how Yeats though directing the poem toward his daughter’s future was able to make political and cultural references.
The poem opens with a howling a storm, I was able to interpret this meaning in two ways. The first time I read the poem I understood this stanza to refer to his protecting his daughter from the evils of the world. Once I reread the poem, I began to wonder if this stanza was more of a political metaphor.

“My child sleeps on. There is no obstacle
But Gregory’s wood and one bare hill
Whereby the haystack-and rook-levelling wind,
Bred on the Atlantic, can be stayed;” (3-6)

I wonder if this is referring to the political turmoil occurring in Europe at the time. Perhaps what Yeats was trying to express was how hard it was to raise and protect your child during the current time, and how he feared losing his daughter to immorality.
The poem displays throughout several stanzas traits which Yeats wants his daughter to develop. I think this could be a reflection of the morals and cultural expectations of women. He wishes her to be beautiful, but cautions that he does not want her to be so beautiful that it takes away from her character or causes conceit. He worries if she is too beautiful it will ruin not only her character (perhaps by going to her head and causing her to “lose natural kindness”) but also her love life.

“In courtesy I’d have her chiefly learned;
Hearts are not had as a gift but hearts are earned
By those that are not entirely beautiful:” (33-35)

Men at this time were weary to marry women who were too beautiful because they worried that they may not be faithful and that they would have competition among other men.
I thought it was interesting that he wished her to become a “flourishing hidden tree”. While he wished her to have intelligence, beauty, and strong moral standing, he seemed to want this “hidden” from others. Yeats possibly may have feared others exploiting her and wanted her to prize intimacy. This also suggested to me that he did not want his daughter to be proud or boastful. He instead wanted her to be more humble and modest. I found his desire for her happiness even when things were not going right the most moving lines of the poem.

“She can, though every face should scowl
And every windy quarter howl
Or every bellows burst, be happy still.” (70-72)

Life during Yeats time was very chaotic. During the time of the war, there was constant political mayhem and it was a dangerous time. Most European citizens experienced great suffering during their life. Yeats wanted his daughter to be happy despite this. This optimism is a very important characteristic that I admired Yeats for acknowledging.
I really enjoyed reading this poem and thinking how life had changed so dramatically since Coleridge wrote “Frost at Midnight”. I loved how two men could share so many similarities and yet desire such different things. I think comparing these two poems is a great way to realize how much life changed for the western world in such a short period of time.

World War I

The War produced many deep and moving works of literature which were particularly insightful because they were created by the people who knew the topic the best, the soldiers themselves. Like every era, we have studied before this there were people who were for and against the war. I did notice that this topic seemed to have less controversy then other eras though. In general, I got the understanding that the people who saw the most action were the ones who provided the strongest opposition. This was interesting to me because I think it is the opposite for the war which taking place today. My brother is an officer in the Army, and at any given time he and his military friends will launch into a three hour debate as too why the war is relevant including all the reasons we should remain fighting it. The literature that was in favor of the war also appeared to be more patriotic then war specific, whereas those opposing did not hold back the bloody truth.
Rupert Brooke was enlisted in the military but he died before ever getting to have any combat experience. His early death could be one reason he wrote such passionately patriotic poetry in support of the war. His most popular poem was also his last, “The Soldier” reveals Brookes passion his country and ironically deals with the remembrance of a fallen soldier. I say ironically because Brookes wrote this long before he knew that his life would soon becoming to and end, and long before he saw combat and knew what the war was truly like. The poem is sappier in nature and does not really have deeper understanding of the war (or perhaps I was just oblivious to its inner meaning?) showing only his love for his country and not any reason which we should fight in the war.

“That is foreve England. There shall be
In that rich earth a richer dust concealed;
A dust whom England bore, shaped, made aware,
Gave, once, her flowers to love, her ways to roam,
A body of England’s breathing English air”
(3-7)

While these lines are beautiful and show why soldier is proud to fight for his country, it does not show any motives other then patriotism to fight the war. While I admire his patriotism and devotion to his country, I think it is foolish to fight a war only for those reasons. My brother is the most patriotic person I have ever met but that is not what drives his desire to fight in Iraq. For him it is the political motives, the knowledge that he is fighting the war for a greater good then just his love for America. I found that in the literature opposing the war more of a sense that the war has gone on too long and no longer serving its original purpose. These authors have seen the horrors of war and no longer think it necessary.
Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen had many of the same beliefs of the war. Both openly and publicly declared that enough was enough. Whatever reasons they had for entering the war were no longer relevant and it was time to put an end to it. Both Sassoon and Owen fought in war and went through rehabilitation after where they wrote many of their most noted works. While most people prefer Owens work because it was written with a “more formal and technical skill” I enjoyed the roughness of Sassoon’s work. In his piece entitled “Glory of Women” provides a more realistic idea of the war then we read in Brookes work. In fourteen lines Sassoon is able to capture the horrifying truth. He writes this to the women back home who praise and worship their soldiers and who may fail to realize what hell their men are really facing.

“O German mother dreaming by the fire,
While you are knitting socks to send your son
His face is trodden deeper in the mud.” (12-14)

I liked that Sassoon’s style was a little less “technical” then Owens because I think it helped prove his deep feelings on the issue. He did not concern himself with the form or technique but instead wrote what he felt and I feel this made his work a little more heartfelt and genuine.
As with any war, there was debate over the length, purpose, and effectiveness of the battle. I found it interesting though that unlike the issues over Victorian society and the French Revolution the differences in opinions on this topic were less attacking and more from the heart. I really enjoyed gaining the differing perspectives on this war and found reading the pieces very enlightening on the reality of the situation.

Bernard Shaw

My junior year of high school we spent two weeks discussing Bernard Shaw’s “Pygmalion”. At that time I had enjoyed the play, it was comical, dramatic, had an underlying romance, and unlike many of the other works we read that read that year I actually felt like I understood it. When I saw that reading as one of my assignments for this course I was very excited and thought that it would be an easy blog, I could just skim the reading and write a quick entry. I was wrong! Skimming the text turned into my reading every word of it, and once again becoming absorbed by Shaws writing. This time however I was able to find more meaning to the text. I realized how Shaw was revealing his disgust for the Victorian class system, and his frustration with society as whole in his play.
Henry Higgins can easily be mistaken for an arrogant, selfish man who is hung up on the superficial nature of society. When Shaw fist introduces Higgins in the opening act on the street, my first reaction was that he was pretentiously obsessed with rank in society. Feelings for him changed towards the end of the play when I realized that he was actually an advocate for treating people as people despite their class. Victorian society was obsessed with class and status, the more “refined” you were (which is a nicer way of saying how wealthy or elite) determined your place in society. It would be easy to think that the lower class suffered the most however the text makes it appear it was the middle class. Perhaps the author felt that the poor were too ignorant to know what they were missing out on, while the middle class (when having occupations as governess’ and other roles serving the rich) were reminded on a daily basis what they were being cheated of. Shaw uses this play as a way to fight against society. Through his characters I think Shaw attempts to prove we are all humans and deserve to be treated the same. Class, wealth, colloquialisms, clothes, possessions, and education should not be what define us. We should all be free to the same opportunities and have equality among all classes. Many of the other Victorian writers focus on the inequalities between men and women, however Shaw goes beyond that and to the larger scale that all society is based on injustices. One thought that Shaw suggests in the text I found particularly poignant. The idea that we may praise the upper class for their “culture” and knowledge of the arts, but do they know meanings behind the words, is this really any reason that they are treated better?

“You see, we’re all savages, more or less. We’re supposed to be civilized and
cultured – to know all about poetry and philosophy and art and science, and so
on; but how many of us known even the meanings of these names.” (1036)

What should it matter if somebody knows more in these subjects then another? What is the relevance? What does any of that do to better society or make them more worthy then somebody who has no knowledge? These are all questions that were raised by this statement of Higgins. I think they are very valid and worth wondering, because even today we praise some scholars for their higher education, but what is the point if they do not know a greater meaning for it and put their skills into practice.
One of the other ideas Shaw raises along the same lines is that there is no true difference between a “lady” and a “flower girl” (in other words rich and poor), these are just titles and only is different because of the way people treat them and the title which society brands them.

“You see, really and truly, apart from the things anyone can pick up (the
dressing and the proper way of speaking), the difference between a lady and a
flower girl is not how she behaves, but how she’s treated.” (1057)

The only difference between classes during this time was materialistic. None of these things were earned or deserved but rather the luck of being born into wealth. This is a principle which Shaw and many other influential writers spoke out against and warned society of falling victim to. I really enjoyed how Shaw was able to provoke so many questions and thoughts within the audience and cleverly disguising this political message behind the comedic personalities

Thomas Hardy

Much like Hopkins, Thomas Hardy is strong in faith; however, the two men’s beliefs are very different. Hardy finds comfort in the thought of a vengeful God who purposely makes life hard for his subjects on earth. This is probably because it is easier to blame your problems on someone or something other then yourself. To be able to blame his sufferings on God would be a convenience to Hardy reassuring him that it was not his fault. He expresses these views in one of his earlier poems, “Hap”. I was drawn to this poem because it is not often that somebody wishes for a vengeful god. Many may choose to believe that there is a high power cursing their life, but this is not usually something they desire. The impression I got from this poem however was that he believes it would be easier to cope and more convenient if this belief were true.
In the first stanza Hardy sets up this desire by wishing that this vengeful god would “call to me from the sky and laugh” at his miseries. This god he creates finds joy in Hardy’s suffering. Which suggests the higher being is the reason his life is miserable.

“Though suffering thing,
Know that thy sorrow is my ecstasy,
That thy love’s loss is my hate’s profiting!” (2-4)

He clarifies in the second stanza why it is that he creates this vengeful god. Knowing that his problems are out of his control makes him feel more at ease. I think we have all experienced at some point in our life the ease of blaming our problems on anything other than ourselves. Blaming ourselves for our own unhappiness is one of the hardest things to do. Denial is safe and comfortable and it helps us grow numb, but admitting we are the root of our misery (as Hopkins did) is painful and difficult. The second stanza shows Hardy having those same thoughts that if this god had given him these problems he would have no choice to grin and bear it. Hardy admits in the third stanza that this is not the case and no such god exists. Rather is unhappiness is by chance.
The translation for word Hap is “chance” and I think that is very important to keep in mind when interpreting this poem. The first time I read this poem I neglected to note this definition and was having a hard time understand the final stanza. However once I took that into account it made a lot more sense. Happiness in life is a gamble. Hardy admits there may not be a vengeful god, but there is no opposite either. “And dicing time for gladness casts a moan…” (12) Here he shows that his misery was the result of the gamble of life. Life does not come with any guarantees. Even in today’s society, we are all given the right to the pursuit of happiness but we are not guaranteed to have that final product, I think this is a thought that Hardy is trying to express in his poem.
I admired how honest Hardy was in admitting his wish for the ability to place the blame for his own misfortunes on somebody other then himself. It is hard for us to admit to being the reason for our misery and even harder to admit when we do place blame unfairly. I do not necessarily agree with the desire for a vengeful god, I personally find comfort in my faith of a loving, compassionate God.

Gerard Manley Hopkins

I was immediately drawn to Gerard Manley Hopkins poem “Spring and Fall” though I had to read it several times to feel I understood what Hopkins was trying to express. I usually do have some struggle finding the meanings behind poetry (and most of the time I am probably way off in my assumptions!) but for some reason I struggled more with Hopkins then some of the earlier authors who were deemed to be more difficult. I am not sure why but this particular poem really intrigued me and I think having to work so hard to gain some kind of understanding made the poem that much more enjoyable for me!
In this poem Hopkins is addressing a young child named Margaret. She is “grieving” over something and the speaker is trying to figure out why she is so sad. Never does he try to comfort her though, which I found interesting. What I understood is that Margaret was mourning the end of the spring, which could also be metaphor for the end of her youth. Hopkins suggests she regards nature and “leaves” in the same way she thinks of “things of man” or people. This was interesting because many of the Victorians left connections with nature out of their writings and so reading that one line was like a flashback to earlier romantics. Hopkins is using this poem to express the origins of sadness. The one bit of advice he does offer Margaret (which he may have intended to be comforting, though I find depressing) is that as she grows up she will become numb to this feeling of loss.

“Ah! As the heart grows older
It will come to such sights colder”

This signals to me that whatever Margaret is experiencing is something which the speaker has also gone through. I am assuming that the emotion Hopkins tries to convey through Margaret is the loss of innocence, as this was a widely explored topic during the time. As you grow older, you become more understanding of losing morals and with maturity comes a lack of innocence. This reminds me of how William Blake separated his work into Innocence and Experience. As you become more experienced you become numb, or “colder”, and you realize things are not as simple or naive as they once seemed. Hopkins proves this to me, and the idea that all grief come from within the self through the last line of the poem. “It is Margaret you mourn for.” This lets me believe that what Hopkins is trying to say is that we all create our own sadness. Instead of comforting Margaret, Hopkins has the attitude that this is just a facet of life. Everybody experiences times of mourning and must learn to cope. This idea is not unique to Hopkins but has been evident through the writer of Keats and Tennyson as well as many others.
What I enjoyed about reading this poem was being able to relate it back to so many authors we have studied leading up to the Modern Period. I enjoyed being able to relate themes and similarities to previous eras and authors. It proved to me just how influential the earlier writers were to the course of literature!

John Stuart Mill

A theme that keeps popping up while I read the Victorian authors is the institution of marriage in Victorian society and the restrictions placed on women. John Stuart Mill is perhaps the most extreme liberal I have come across in this course. He has many thoughts similar to other writers but in my opinion delves into them deeper and takes greater risks in creating an argument for equality of both sexes. Through his “The Subjection of Women” Mill’s creates a history of why men and women are treated with so many differences. What I found so admirable about Mill is that he asked readers to create their own opinion of situations. He was honest with his opinion and made sure it was heard, he never really forced it upon others. Instead, he wrote the facts as he saw them and he wrote why he thought it was unjust. Mill was a great mind who was brave enough to challenge society. It is scary to think where society might be today without Mill and others who dared to question normality.
Mill reveals the truth behind the inequalities of men and women. He addresses several misconceptions, not afraid to say things others may cower away from admitting. It was very commonly mistaken that women voluntarily took their role as servant to men with honor and dignity. This however is far from the truth. “In the first place, a great number of women do not accept it. Ever since there have been women able to make their sentiments known by their writings, an increasing number of them have recorded protests against their present social condition.” (523) Perhaps the reason why it appears that women so eagerly accept their role is that there is no proper outlet where they can express their feelings. Writing was the only way from them to earn publicity and not every woman had the education or ability to achieve this. They were given no legal rights or place in the court system and so government would not hear of their complaints. I can not imagine how frustrating it must have been to be a woman during this period. If your husband abuses you and cheats on you, the courts can still find you guilty. There is no opportunity for advancing in society and having a career or passion outside of the social norm was unheard of!
Not only did Mill write about the unjust marriage institution what I found noble was that he publicly denounced adhering to these laws in his own marriage. In his “Statement Repudiating the Rights of Husbands” Mill actually says that these laws are so unfair that he will not take any part of them! “Feel it my duty to put on record a formal protest against the existing law of marriage…and a solemn promise never in any case or under any circumstances to use them.” (527) Mill Continues to vow that in the event of marriage between him and Ms. Taylor she will be able to keep all her freedoms and have the same rights and privileges as himself. I felt it was extremely important that Mill take this step to define the grounds on which he would be married. Unlike so many other authors who simply write about these principles using made up characters to express them, Mill takes action in his own life and leads by example. While he may not have been the first to approach a marriage with this attitude, he is the first I have come across that has publicly sworn to it. I find myself really admiring Mill for his work. His bravery paved the way for many later activists who fought for women’s right. I think Mill’s would be proud to see today that in most parts of the world women are treated with the same regards as men.

Victorian Ladies and Gentlemen

Victorian Society had very high expectations for the ways which “Ladies and Gentlemen” were supposed to act. This was a time where nature stopped being a focus and society and class started being critical. It was now not necessarily your intellect that got you ahead but rather your “character” which could be defined superficially based on trivialities such as your cricket skills, how elite your public school was, and who you married. Not only were certain behaviors expected, but it many were more then just customs they were laws. Women in this time had no legal status and were their purpose was thought to be only to serve men. Once a women married all legal rights and property were handed over to the husband since the two were considered one. While many women accepted their role with honor, others spoke out against how these restrictions and chose to show the injustice of the inequality.
Queen Victoria was a prominent woman of her time. She often pondered her feelings on the way women were repressed in society, and the restrictions marriage placed on a women. She wrote letters to her daughters where she often commiserated over the pains of marriage and parenting. “When I think of a merry, happy, free young girl – and look at the ailing, aching state of a young wife generally is doomed too – which you can’t deny is the penalty of marriage.” (579) She looked at marriage with regret and felt like she had no freedoms or individuality. Her whole life became serving her husband and children and she no longer was given the same respects as any other person. Despite hating the position of women, she felt it was a reality not to be challenged. She believed that God determined the distinct roles of the different genders and too go against it would be heresy. “Woman would become the most hateful, heartless, and disgusting human beings were she allowed to unsex herself; and where would be the protection which man was intended to give the weaker sex?” (580-581) These are very strong words unfortunately felt by a majority of European citizens. It amazes me how they would just sit back and believe that they were below men. Fortunately, for me other voices in the argument were not prepared to be so complacent.
Caroline Norton suffered an unhappy marriage where her husband left her, took her children, and even tried to take her earnings as a writer. All this of course was perfectly legal! Though she had done nothing to deserve this, by law her husband had full rights to all her property, money, and even her children. In England at the time the mother was granted no custody rights to her own children. Norton was not the type of woman who was just going to sit back and let this happen. Instead she wrote a letter to the Queen pointing out the injustices of England's law and telling how she had been cheated. The Bronte sisters also made it very publicly known through their writing how unfairly women were treated in the profession of Governess. In a letter to her sister Emily, Charlotte Bronte expresses the hardships of being a “lady” and attending to the more privileged end of society. “I used to think I should like to be in the stir of grand folks’ society but I have had enough of it – it is dreary work to look on and listen.” (560)
Though subtle in their fight Norton and Bronte both paved the way for future women activists.
The Victorian Era seemed to be full of shallow aspirations and superficial rewards. Everyone strived to mimic the nobles and upper class, yet they were failing to think for themselves. Living by these rules caused them to sacrifice any individuality and as women any freedoms. I am just grateful to live in an era where society is not based on birth right or education, but rather rewards on hard work and achievement.

Robert Browning

Most of the poetry we have studied so far has been well-expressed and the subject matters while interesting have rarely had many surprises or suspense. Robert Browning stood out in this way. When I started reading “Porphyria’s Lover” it seemed like any other romantic love poem, little did I know just how abruptly that would change! When the main character strangles his lover, I found myself stopping stunned. Did it really just say that? It is for that reason that I loved reading his poetry. You never knew just what to expect, he strayed away from the ordinary and made sure to hold your attention. Browning was able to bring theatre into poetry which made his work unique and exhilarating. Like his wife, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, he was not afraid to try new things and comply with limitations set out by his predecessors.
A common theme Browning appeared to focus on was the topic of morality and female sexuality. I found two of his poems, “Porphyria’s Lover” and “My Last Duchess” to have many commonalities and both were highly entertaining to read. Both of these poems have to deal with male characters who murder their female lovers in order to protect the purity of female sexuality. In “Porphyria’s Lover” Browning depicts Prophyria as exuding sexuality and offering herself to her lover without any inhibitions of what friends or family may think. When her lover realizes the extent of Prophyrias devotion, he sees no choice but to murder. So he does, he strangles her with her own hair and even tempts to suggest that it is God’s will by the last line of the poem. “And yet God has not said a word!” The reason he gives for murdering her is so that they will be able to remain together, and so that he will always be able to keep that moment where she gave herself to him.

“That all it scorned at once is fled
And I, its love, am gained instead
Porphyria’s love: she guessed not how
Her darling one wish now be heard
And thus we sit together now
And all night long we have not stirred.”

The thought process of the murderer is sick and twisted. His strangling Porphyria comes as a complete shock to most readers and shows how he was able to bring his theatrical background into poetry. In the Victorian time premarital sex and promiscuity were highly looked down upon and so if her family had discovered the way Porphyria approached her lover chances of them being able to remain together would be slim.
In “My Last Duchess” Browning reflects on another man murdering his lover. This time a Duke is being suspected of having his wife murdered on the grounds of her over sexuality. Here the Duke is discussing a painting of his dead bride and at first it may appear he is mourning her death but as he continues, the reader begins to realize that he himself has “commanded” her to be killed. The reason behind this is because she was caught flirting with too many other men, and perhaps capable of having an affair on her husband.

“Sir, twas not her husband’s presence only, called that spot
Of joy into the duchess’ cheek:….
For calling up that spot of joy. She had,
A heart – how shall I say? Too soon made glad
Too easily impressed; she liked whate’er
She looked on, and her looks went everywhere.”

Even if she was not having a physical affair (which the text never really gives evidence for) she was still being more suggestive to other men then was allowed for women during the time. The Duke felt as though he was morally obligated to put an end to this, and his way of doing so was by poisoning her.
Though both poems have different reasons for why the wanted to commit these murders they were both centered on the sexuality of women and morality. I feel as though Browning was trying to suggest that expectations in the day were perhaps a bit extreme for female purity. His wife wrote several works on unjust role of women’s place in society and I think he expands on this by delving into the realms of women’s sexuality. Both Browning and his wife had an amazing talent for words and were captivating to read. The way he incorporated drama into his poetry was genius and I really enjoyed every last twisted word of it!

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Equality for men and women was at one point in time a laughable thought. Men were thought to be inherently dominant and women were there to agree with them and make their life easier. Elizabeth Barrett Browning would not hear of this! There was no way she was willing to have her life defined by her gender. She was one of the great minds and brave women who have made it possible for women in modern society to have the independence and opportunity we are given today. Without women brave enough to voice their opinions, such as Barrett Browning did on the unfairness of Victorian society’s role of women, I myself might still not have the right to vote or lead a fulfilling life choosing my own future. Her piece titled “Aurora Leigh” was the first major English piece where the main character is female. In the poem, Barrett Browning creates a strong female lead who tries to break free of the constraints and limitations placed on women of her time. I found her works to be different from other female authors we have studied thus far. In her works, she seemed more daring and the content of her work inspired me more then the structure and diction. I have had personally observed that many of the other female authors have put more emphasis on the eloquence of their writing and tried (some failing) to create their works deeper then they may needed to be, in efforts to prove themselves among male authors. With Barrett Browning, I felt she did not do this, her writing seemed to be more effortless and natural, she did not hold back on subject matter and I admired that in her.
Her epic poem “Aurora Leigh was inspiring where she insulted the place women had in society. I was really drawn to the main characters disgust over her aunt’s expectations of how she should act like a “lady” and the lessons she should be taught. Aurora felt her Aunt had been deprived of living a real life and that she was blind to the opportunities which she was missing out on.

“She had lived, we’ll say,
A harmless life, she called a virtuous life,
A quiet life, which not life at all
(But that, she had not lived enough to know)”

Aurora felt that many women were deprived of living real lives and were unable to have some of the greatest experiences because they viewed their purpose as merely being polite and serving men. She linked this lifestyle to living as a “caged bird” who was being restricted to flying their own direction. Aurora did not feel that women really had a role in society they were there simply to sew, cook, and teach, but never to learn or think.

“The works of women are symbolical.
We sew, sew, prick our fingers, dull our sight,
Producing what? A pair of slippers, sir,
Or else at best, a cushion, where you lean,
And sleep, and dream of something we are not”

Aurora would not settle for this kind of life and neither would her author. Elizabeth Barrett Browning knew that there was no need for women to live life in the shadows. She did not suppress her thoughts or dreams of having more. I found reading her work particularly admirable since she fought for all the rights that women in society today are born with. It is hard to imagine a life where women were seen as secondary to men, even though I know it was not long before I was born that this happened. I look up to the women like Barrett Browning who fought for the equality women deserve.

Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Tennyson was perhaps one of the most influential writers to come from his time. I found reading all of his writings to be captivating and enjoyable. While reading most of the past writers I had trouble keeping interest in all of their works and struggled to find the one piece I felt comfortable enough with to write a blog entry. I did not find that to be true of Tennyson. His writings unexpectedly held my attention from start to finish and for once I found myself trying to choose from several topics which to write about. The most emotionally charged piece to me was his ode to a dead friend. In his collective piece “In Memoriam A.H.H.”, Tennyson writes over a three year span showing his feelings and struggles with losing his closest friend and confidant, Arthur Henry Hallam. The text suggests that many readers fail to see Tennyson’s overall hope and optimism throughout the sections because due to the “emotional nadir” of three particular sections which have a more depressing tone. The text cites sections 54, 55, and 56, as being so hopeless that they have the power to some readers to overshadow his true purpose of the poem and its optimistic attitude. In my opinion I find that hard to believe because so many of the sections end with hopeful subtleties that when read all together greater a stronger faith for the future to come.
When losing a loved one it is always natural to enter a period of mourning and depression. It easy during these times to lose hope and faith and question things you previously considered safe. While all those things are a natural part of the process, it is also important to return to normal and continue you life after this period of mourning ends. I feel that Tennyson depicts this natural process of emotions adequately in his “In Memoriam A.H.H.”. It was especially hard for Tennyson to lose this friend because it was a sudden and unexpected death and Hallam was his closest friend. His lowest points throughout the depression are sections 54, 55, and 56 which show when Tennyson his rock bottom and had trouble regaining his faith in the world around him. These three sections are full of doubt and desperation. The lines which stood out and exemplified this to me were found in section 54.

“So runs my dream: but what am I?
An infant crying in the night:
An infant crying for the light:
And with no language but a cry.” (17-20)

I do however feel that the lonely cries he displays throughout these sections are normal. They are all natural steps of the healing process. I do not feel that there is enough evidence in these three sections to dictate the entire mood of the poem. I feel other sections end with more optimism that create an overall essence of moving on.
Tennyson is undoubtedly feeling regret over the loss of his friend. He does not hide the fact that this has deeply affected him and caused depression. Along with the depression I think Tennyson wrote this collection to aide his healing and helps him move on from his friend’s death. In many of the sections where he is highlighting his loneliness and sadness, he is also showing how he is trying to move forward. In section 30 Tennyson is describing Christmas without his friend and while it is hard to find joy when missing someone you love, Tennyson still tries to find the hope and the “light” which will get him through this difficult time. I found it easy to find optimism in this section, and I found it to be a very relevant example of how he fights the depression and tries to push past it. The lines which I found let myself define the collection was found in section 27.

“I hold it true, whate’er befall;
I feel it, when I sorrow most;
‘tis better to have loved and lost
Than never to have loved at all.” (13-16)

These are lines which I have heard my entire life and until reading them in this text never did I understand it so completely. This is the attitude which I choose to believe that Tennyson is trying to convey.

Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution was a time of change for the entire world which has largely shaped today’s society. The industrial revolution brought the machine which changed life and economy for generations to come. Whether this change was for better or for worse was widely debated throughout Europe. Thomas Babington Macaulay understood and agreed that industrialization came at the price of many, however he also believed it was only a natural procession of society. Despite lower class citizens having to pay the consequences of machines taking over their jobs in nearly every occupation, quality of life for all citizens was dramatically improved because of this mechanization. Technological advances made every aspect of life easier from the clothes worn to transportation, and medical advances resulting from mechanization lengthened life spans and made it capable to cure the sick quicker. Macaulay realized that all of this positive change was worth the sacrifice. “History is full of signs of this natural progress of society. We see the wealth of nations increasing and all the arts of life approaching nearer and nearer to perfection, in spite of the grossest corruption and the wildest profusion on the part of rulers.” (493) This quote from “A review of Southey’s Colloquies” shows how Macaulay felt towards the mechanization. Just as any major change society has ever under gone it carried both good and bad. Macaulay unlike other writers of the time felt that the good outweighed the bad.
Macaulay was more unique in his opinion of the Industrial Revolution. The majority tended to believe that mechanization brought uncivilized change for the lower class citizens. They felt it was unjust and citizens were being treated worse then any time in previous generations. Charles Dickens made his negative feelings towards Industrial Revolution very apparent in several of his novels. Dickens focuses his arguments on mechanization on the growing trend of railway systems. Dickens spoke against the railways because he saw them as tearing apart communities, splitting neighborhoods, and creating environmental hazards to citizens. In Dickens novel “Dombey and Son”, he describes the construction of the railways as the “shock of a great earthquake” (496). Dickens, unlike Macaulay, could see nothing positive resulting from the construction of the railways. “Nothing the better for it, or thought of being so. If the miserable waste ground lying near it could have laughed, it would have laughed it to scorn, like many of the miserable neighbours.” (497) He felt that the destruction of the neighborhoods and the disruption of daily life had no benefit to the community. Dickens failed to understand how something as destructive of the railway system could have such a positive and influential difference on future generations ways of life.
Just as the French revolution before it, the Industrial revolution sparked many debates over opposing viewpoints of the changes which were occurring. At the time, it was hard to understand how much influence the changes of the time would have on our technologically advanced civilization today. All writers of the time could see was how drastically these changes affected their society. Dickens and Macaulay were just two voices of the debate but both had very valid points. I think reflecting back mechanization was very necessary in order for all of us in today’s society to live the technologically advanced lifestyle we sometimes take for granted.

John Keats

John Keats lived a short but remarkably full life. Though he only lived to be in his twenties, he managed to experience a wide variety of events and emotions. The idea that he was able to produce several influential works at such a young age is hard to believe. I enjoyed reading Keats because his writings were personal and revealing, and I felt I could take a bit of advice from many of them. This thought is especially evident when readings his Odes. Though his entire Ode’s were captivating and beautifully written, it was his shortest which struck me the most. In Keats “Ode to Melancholy”, he captures in thirty lines the whole emotion of sadness and provides his readers with a way to cope.
Keats separates the poem into three stanzas, each deal with sadness and depression. The first stanza provides a lesson on what not to do in times of misery. His most adamant advice is how he opens the poem; do not simply forget about your depression. He uses the metaphor of the Lethe which was known as the “river of forgetfulness” to say that you can not simply forget about your troubles, because that will do nothing to make them disappear. However, you also must be careful not to become obsessed with your sadness turning your thoughts to suicide or death. Obsessing is just as bad as forgetting, that too is not a solution to your problems. Dwelling on your misery will just lead you further into depression.
What Keats suggests in response to his first stanza is a very simple answer which most romantics would agree with. Simply surround yourself with nature’s beauty and simplicity. Many of the Romantic writers were very fixated on natural beauty and nature as a subject matter. We have seen that in nearly all the romantic authors we have studied thus far and Keats is no different. He suggests that when you are feeling hopeless you just need to emerge yourself with the beauty around you.

“But when the melancholy fit shall fall…
Then glut thy sorrow on a morning rose,
O on the rainbow of the sand-wave,
Or on the wealth of globed peonies”

Keats tells readers to turn to the simplistic beauty of the flowers and the calmness of the ocean to regain peace of mind and to help recover from sadness. This is advice that I actually can relate to, and know from experience it is relevant. Growing up in South Florida I have always known the beach to be a get away. When things are going wrong or my life is filled with stress I have always gone and sat on the sand and listened to the waves as a way to regroup and feel peace.
What was most memorable and powerful about this poem was the third stanza where Keats proves how sadness and happiness are dependent on each other. This is an idea that is explored immensely by later philosophers who suggest that you can not have the good without the bad, and that you can’t feel pleasure without experiencing pain. This is an idea I whole heartedly agree with.

“She dwells with beauty – beauty that must die;
And joy whose hand is ever at his lips
Bidding adieu; and aching pleasure nigh,
Turning to poison while the bee-mouths sips:
Ay, in the very temple of delight”

These lines show how Keats views sadness and happiness as being intertwined. He suggests that depression is the found in the same “temple of delight”. In other words in order to understand happiness you have to suffer through this misery. At the core of any happy person is a soul who has experienced and overcome tragedy. Keats was a brilliant mind who was far ahead of his time. Readers can not help but wonder what else he would have created if he had lived longer…

Percy Bysshe Shelley

Percy Bysshe Shelley was described as the “most radical visionary of the Romantics” and his life was marked by “idealism, scandal, and passionate but shifting emotional commitments”. (392) He was very daring and focused on a wide array of subjects in his poetry career. Unlike many of the earlier romantics, Percy was educated until his radical writings had him expelled and came from a wealthy background. Many of his writings were original and later writers even went as far as to crown him “a prophetic genius” (391). I found nearly all of his writings to be captivating but the one which stood out in my mind was “Ozymandias”. It amazed me how in the fourteen line sonnet, Shelley was able to capture the entire political attitude of the time. He grew up in the time of change for Europe, and the entire western world. Everything they had previously known was being challenged and change was imminent. This is precisely what Shelley depicts in this political piece.
The poem describes a once great ruler and his kingdom now literally crumbled to pieces. He describes throughout the work a traveler who stumbles on pieces of a fallen statue buried in the sand. The statue can be metaphor for several traditions of Europe’s past which have changed so much they can barely be remembered. It could be easily speaking of politics, religion, kingships, customs, traditions, servitude, and the list goes on. The statue read:

“My name is Ozymandias King of Kings:
Look on my works, ye mighty and despair” (10-11).

This shows that statue was modeled after a once powerful ruler who stood for practices which are now distant memories. The poem ends showing how nothing is left of this former kingdom except for fragmented memories.

“Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,
The lone and level sands stretch far away.” (12-14)

These lines show how all that is left of this ruler is these few pieces of the buried statue. It shows how everything they once knew had changed. During the time of Shelley everything in Europe was in turmoil. The era was defined by the amount of change that took place and this poem is proof of how their past had become buried by the “sands” of time. I found it incredibly interesting how Shelley expressed his feelings towards the revolutions and political change in this piece. This piece was not unique in the fact that Shelley wrote several politically charged poems, but it stood out to me in how simply and shortly he can sum it all up. I enjoyed Shelley because I found it easy to derive meaning out of his metaphors and poetry.

Samuel Tyalor Coleridge

Coleridge’s poem “Frost at Midnight” shows the reflection of the speaker (who I assume to be Coleridge himself), it depicts his memories of childhood and how he wishes to raise his own young child. Coleridge had a childhood unlike some of the other Romantic writers and that can be shown in this poem. Unlike William and Dorothy Wordsworth, Samuel Coleridge was raised in the city of London and this caused him to grow up feeling isolated and contained. In a big city it is easy to get lost in the chaos and to be caught up in the business of life. It also contained his imagination and retrained him from letting himself run free. Whereas the Wordsworth’s were raised feeling connected to nature and learning to use it as metaphors of life which I think you can blatantly gather from reading any one of Dorothy Wordsworth’s poems. She uses imagery of nature to help relate her emotions and I think Coleridge could not learn this skill until he was adulthood.

As a child, Coleridge attended a boarding school in the city for distressed families, and you can gather from this poem just how drab a lifestyle he led there. Coleridge was bored with city life and felt that perhaps it was holding back his creativity and that he was confined to the conformity of the school. Coleridge was at school dreaming of being somewhere far away.

“how oft at school, whit most believing mind
presageful, have I gazed up the bars
to watch that fluttering stranger! And as oft
with unclosed lids, already had I dreamt.” (344)

He discusses how he pretended to pay attention in his classes “fixed with mock study” (344) but how all the while he was in class his mind was wishing to experience a more spiritual and natural atmosphere. Coleridge continues his poem showing his love for his son and a desire to have him be raised in a more liberating environment. This hope for change is something that was very fit for the times.
It is only natural for a parent to wish to provide thier child with all the luxuries or aspects of life that they regreted not having. Coleridge is no different he wants to give his child the sort of ideal rural upbringing that he feels he missed out on.

"with tender gladness, thus to look at thee,
and think that thou shalt learn far other lore
and in far other scenes! for i was reared
in the great city, pent 'mid cloister dim,
and saw naught lovely but the sky and stars" (345)

He is wanting to raise his son in a more condusive setting for a creative mind and peaceful lifestyle. This is something i admire in coleridge. It shows how compassionate and caring he was towards his family. This idea that you could change from the way you were raised, and that you could provide your children with a different, and better, lifestly then what you received is something which is truly true to the era and depicts that changes in Europe that were occurring during his lifetime.

Dorothy Wordsworth: Stepping out from the shadows

While reading about Dorothy Wordsworth, what stood out to me the most was her relationship with her brother. The text describes her and William as being very close. I think that is quite the understatement! It made me wonder how far their relationship truly went. The text lists out all the attributes which Dorothy offers her brother including “companion” and “encourager” which may seem more like a significant other then a wife. (1617) We also learn that when William courted and eventually marries their mutual childhood friend Mary, it was really more of a marriage between the three. When William and Mary had children, Dorothy was more then an aunt but a third parent to the kids. Having five siblings I understand how deep a relationship between siblings can be, however I feel that William and Dorothy cross this barrier of sibling love.
Another aspect of their relationship which I found interesting was how Dorothy always seemed to hide in her brothers shadows. Their relationship seems to me a little more one sided on her end. She seems to continually give to him and never desires much in return. It seems strange to me how she plays off her own writing talent in order to not challenge her brother’s success. It would be easy to assume that William might provoke this in Dorothy; however, that is not the case. William publishes some of his sister’s work and encourages her writing career. It struck me how she even identified herself only as Williams sister. She even tries to defend her writing as only to please William. In truth Dorothy has an extraordinary talent!
I especially enjoyed reading “The Grasmere Journals” which allowed readers to get an inner view of her daily life. These also helped depict her relationship with William. What I appreciated about Dorothy’s writing was how personal it was and how much of herself she revealed in all of her work. Her poem “Thoughts on my Sick-bed” was exceptionally moving and helped me to realize what she was feeling, and helped me to picture what she was imagining. The imagery Dorothy creates in her work is unmatchable! The following verse from the poem is one example of how she paints out a picture of what she sees with words:

“The violet betrayed by its noiseless breath,
The daffodil dancing in the breeze,
The caroling thrush on his naked perch
Towering above the budding trees”

Dorothy makes it easy for readers to enter her life and see her struggles. She allows her audience to understand the era. Her modesty in her writing interests me, because quite honestly I preferred her writings above her brother’s work.

William Blake: Innocence and Experience

William Blake had a creative and wild imagination. This makes his poetry very enjoyable to read, at the same time, it is not always so easy to analyze or understand all of his underlying themes and imagery. Blake separates his poetry into two categories which helped me to make the connections I may have otherwise missed. His first category is Innocence. Here he writes more hopefully naïve poems which are more bubbly and youthful in nature. Most of these poems have a sing-songy tendency. They are uplifting, full of hope and faith, and could easily be mistaken for a child’s nursery rhyme.
His other category Experience depicts poems with a darker tone. In Songs of Experience, he returns to many of the same topics as Innocence however this time with a more realistic attitude for the times. Blake however does not attribute age to experience. I found it interesting that the subject of some Experience poems were children. The text identifies this idea of Blake, which I thought was important given the youthful nature of some of the Innocence poems. “Some children even infants have already lost their innocence through a soiling contact with the world; and some adults, particularly joyously visionary poets, seem able to retain a kind of innocent vitality even as they enter the world of experience.” (pg. 1393) Perhaps what Blake is trying to suggest is that Experience is more of a sense of maturity and wisdom rather than age.
Nearly all of the poems in Songs of Experience are contradictions to specific poems in Songs of Innocence. Some are blatant comparisons and others are more subtle. One of the more subtle examples would be the subjects of “The Lamb” in Innocence and “Tyger” in Experience. These two poems are actually very interdependent on one another and have several similarities as far as structure and subject; however, they differ in tone and imagery. It was addressed in the podcast that both of these poems is set up in a catechism style of questions and answers. I found that to be very interesting because it was something I had not picked up on myself. Both address creation and have several biblical references. In “The Lamb”, I think Blake is relating the fact that the child and the lamb are both creatures of God, created in his image. Imagery is bright and happy and it seems that they are all peaceful and calm. Through his descriptions (“clothing of delight, softest clothing wooly bright”, “he is meek and he is mild”, “gave thee life and bid thee fid”) Blake shows a softer side of the creator and a more pleasing image of Christianity. (pg 1394) When Blake later describes the tiger, he does so with imagery that is more fearful. He describes the tiger with phrases “burnt the fire of thine eyes”, “what the hammer? In what furnace was thy brain” which question what kind of entity would produce such a creature. (pg 1403) When discussing who created the tiger, and whether it was the same creator as the lame, Blake never answers. In the podcast, Dr. Glance suggests this is because there is no comfortable answer. I find that to be a very good point. Christians like to believe that Christianity and God is safe and comfortable. The fact that he could make such an innocent and gentle creature (the lamb) and such a vengeful predator (the tiger) goes against the image of religion being safe and easy. And as history will show, we like to go with what is safe.
Another example of his contradicting innocence and experience is between his two poems both entitled “The Chimney Sweeper”. This I felt to be a very relevant example of how innocence and experience does not rely on age. The subject of these poems is young children who have been sold into the service of chimney sweep. The first account depicts young boys who are frustrated yet look to the future with hope. They seem to have a faith and optimism that is truly naïve. Contradictory in the second account, there is no optimism. Instead, he depicts bitter children who look with regret and pity.
Blake’s poetry is far from being easy to read or grasp. I thought of tons of questions during the readings. One I often wondered was whether he intended to write contradicting follow ups in Songs of Experience. Which perception, Innocence or Experience, is the more relevant and which does Blake agree with more? I personally tend to think that a little of each creates the happy middle ground of complacency. Though his readings were so complex I found them to be very enjoyable and for once, I actually had fun searching for the deeper meaning of poetry!

Opposing views of the French Revolution

The French Revolution was a time of change not only for the citizens of France, but for all of Europe. Many citizens of France’s neighboring country England were very opinionated on the events taking place. Many English regarded the revolution with the highest esteem, praising the French. To these citizens it provided them with a sense of Hope that perhaps England would follow suit. However, others scorned the revolution and thought it was criminal. These opposing views can be reflected in the writings of Thomas Paine and Edmund Burke. While these two men may seem to have a lot in common, both born in England with liberal tendencies, their ideas on the revolution could not be any more different.
Burke appeared a man with strong liberal beliefs. "He castigated Britain's handling of Ireland, urging the emancipation of Irish trade, the Irish Parliament, and Irish Catholics. He endorsed William Wilberforce's movement for the abolition of the slave trade, worked for the reform of the East India Company's abuses in India, and argues for better treatment of and greater autonomy for the American Colonies." (pg. 1356) Following these thoughts shows Burke's liberal nature and would make it easy to mistake that he would also be in favor of the Revolution in France and welcome it with open arms. Yet Burke was far from loving the Revolution! Burke actually "supported Britain's right to tax the colonies and was a celebrated opponent of the French Revolution, denouncing it as an unparalleled disaster in modern history." (pg. 1356) Burke's most widely known work is his Reflections on the Revolution in France. In his Reflections Burke depicts just how against the Revolution he really is. Reflections led way to countless discussions of the revolution. While some agreed with Burke and defended every word of it, others took the matter into their own hands and wrote rebuttals. Thomas Paine was a member of the later category.
Thomas Paine took a much different approach to expressing his views of the French Revolution. In his influential writing The Rights of Man, Paine approached everything almost completely opposite of how Burke wrote Reflections. In many instances, he directly calls Burke out on ideas which he disagrees with. I personally found Paine much easier to read and his ideas were very similar to mine on the events which took place. Probably the reason it was much easier for me to read Paine's writing was because unlike Burke who aimed his writing towards the level of the few "educated elite", Paine wrote on a level simple enough for the common reader to grasp. This is just one of many differences between the two works.
In Paine’s writing where he discusses “The Doctrine of Equal Rights”, I found to be especially insightful. Here Paine relates the rights of man back to the creation of man. Paine suggests that between the sexes the only difference is physical. Burke is very vocal about suggesting that men are perhaps superior to women. The only mention during the creation of difference between the sexes is, “In the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” (1378) Nowhere in this creation account does God give superiority to men. In the equality of men all humans should be equal and sexes should thus be equal as well. Paine linking this to the creation shows that this is not a modern thought but perhaps a historical idea often ignored. Burke's brash views on the differences of men and women is argued not only by Paine but also famously by Mary Wollstonecraft and many others. Paine also believes that the unity and equality of men should be synonymous.
Burke lists apparent “barriers” that distances man from his maker. Included on that list are kings, parliaments, duty to magistrates, priest and nobility. These are all things which Burke and many Europeans feel are what you must go through in order to enter the gates of heaven. Paine uses an analogy of passing through “turnpike gates” which I thought to be very clever. The thing which Paine finds most surprising which Burke has left off the list is Saint Peter who keeps the gates of heaven. Paine dismisses Burke’s list and points out that there are only two “barriers”. First and foremost, man has a duty to God, and the other point is respect to his neighbor.
The French Revolution brought about many new ideas to all of Europe. It created controversy and discussion across the continent and paved the way for many of the modern influences of literature. I found it interesting to see just how much debate it sparked between such similar minds. I also never realized the impact it truly did have on modern literature.