Poetry as a Vehicle/Reflection

     From the eighteenth to the twenty first century, poetry and its many forms have provided insight into the cultural contexts of the generation in which it was written. Within the literary scope, poetry functions as a vehicle for the poet to provide commentary on revolution, social issues, economics, and art itself. What makes poetry the ideal mode for this sort of commentary is its ability to be subtle and brash, visual and verbal, literal and metaphorical. In its various structures and rhythms, poetry has become the optimum method for generating a pervading sense of artistic statement to both the common man and the wealthy. William Cowper, Robert Burns, William Blake and Thomas Hardy are all great examples of poets who have used poetry to reflect on events that socially impact the cultures in which they lived.

     An early poem studied in class is William Cowper’s “The Negro’s Complaint,” a work that functions as a great example of a poem with an obvious theme and a wide-stretching audience. Cowper’s poem takes on the persona of an African slave, having been shipped from Africa to another country in 1788. The poem speaks to the white man and asks him to “prove that you have human feelings, ere you proudly question ours!” (Cowper 1). The point of view of the African is an unusual technique utilized in a time when slavery was prominent and widely considered an acceptable practice. Cowper is one of the first poets to shift point of view to the African slave in an attempt to stop the atrocities of slavery and save his fellow man. The original purpose of this poem and something we discussed in class is that it was supposed to be sung. The reason for this being that many common folk in the late eighteenth century were illiterate and singing was a way to spread the message of anti-slavery across the social gaps that existed in the English culture. It is therefore evident that Cowper’s meter in the poem is borrowed from that of “Hosier’s Ghost,” as “The Negro’s Complaint” is sung to the same tune and meter. This poem could be an example of parody, were it not for the grave and resolute nature of the content. As MeghuD mentions in her post titled "Cowper's Identity Crisis," people of the time were much more apt to listen to a white man than slave, giving voice to a group of people that would otherwise have none and starting the turning of the abolitionist wheel.

     Another prominent eighteenth century writer that uses sung poetry to spread his message is the Scottish poet Robert Burns. Burns, being a commoner himself and farmer in his youth, wrote his poems and songs chiefly in the Scots dialect, appealing to “traditional Scottish culture, expressions of farm life and class and religious distinctions,” the commoner accent making his work influential and well known among the poor (Robert Burns 1). His poem/song “And Why Shouldna Poor Folk Mowe” tackled the touchy subject of sexuality among the poor and rich, contrasting the two opposite ends of the social spectrum. The poem itself did not garner a lot of attention in literary circles due to its somewhat graphic nature and its affront to the reputation of the nobles mentioned, but its subject matter does touch on the social inequality in Scotland at the time. Burns criticizes the nobles for their squalor but creates a bond between the two social classes by suggesting that everyone have crazy wild sex and just forget about their problems. On Catherine the Great of Russia, Burns says “may the deil in her arse ram a huge prick of brass!/and damn her in hell with a mowe!” suggesting that she get off her high horse and admit to her sexual affair with Stanislaw Poniatowski, last King of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (Burns Handout 1). The course language and Scots dialect leave little to the imagination and given the fact that this poem was probably sung as a drinking song, we can see how it would quickly become spread among the poor folk who had little to besides work, drink, and mowe.

     A very prominent wave of influence in poetry comes from its connection to other art forms. Many poets, especially the pre-Raphaelites such as Dante Gabriel Rossetti in his painting and poem of the same name “The Blessed Damozel,” (seen above) as well as Waterhouse in his paintings Meghud posted about in the post titled Art and Poetry, used the technique of ekphrasis to evoke a stronger response to poetry and literature by providing a visual counterpart. Though Rossetti’s poem and painting are both poetically and visually striking, it is William Blake whose ekphrastic work was used as commentary of the social practices in his illuminated works “Songs of Innocence and Experiene,” written in 1794. In his poem “The Chimney Sweeper” in the Songs of Experience section, the chimney sweeping boy is described as a young man having died from his job cleaning the soot from the chimneys, whose parents from the boy’s of view “clothed me in the clothes of death/And taught me to sing the notes of woe” (Blake 47). The poem in Songs of Experience is slightly different from that of the Songs of Innocence version, having a more matured tone and an overall less unsettling vibe as far as imagery is concerned, the children being “lock’d up in coffins of black” in the former (Blake 44). The poems both raise the question of how moral it really is to put children to work in such harsh conditions when it affects their health so negatively, often resulting in death. In order to literally imprint this image into the minds of the readers, Blake created a visual component to enhance his poetic intention.

The huddled figure to the left is clothed darkly and wandering in the pouring rain. The look on the boy’s face is one of melancholy or longing, as if he knows he will soon be dead from his long days scrubbing the depths of blackened chimneys. The boy walks alone in an empty street to an unknown destination, evoking his isolation and lonely death. This version of “The Chimney Sweeper” is from Songs of Experience. The poem itself rests above in the clouds, beyond the rain, as if they are the boy’s thoughts. The color not just in this image, but all other available prints seen here, are of dark tonality and earthy tones of brown and blue, effectively translating a visual sense of mood to whoever views the piece.

   Songs of Innocence provides a much different picture of the children and their plight. Here the image is mostly text with a small, but salient image of the “angel who had a bright key/and he open’d the coffins & set them all free,” referring to the children liberated from death’s grasp by an Angel of the Lord. The children are still somewhat black and soot covered, but the Angel is completely white and pure, lending a hand to a child just rising from his coffin. The children seem to be happy and cheering, with their hands in the air as they prance away from death in jubilation. In contrast to the image of “The Chimney Sweeper” from Songs of Experience, there is more than one child. This specific image speaks more broadly and for that reason, perhaps more effectively on the topic of dangerous work conditions for children, the Songs of Experience poem being much more personal and individually focused, almost as if the event were specific and therefore a one-time occurrence. Both of these poems, as well as the rest of Blake’s ekphrastic poetry give illiterate or semi-literate commoners, who are mostly the subjects of his poems, the chance to visually assess what they may not be able to perceive with words. By focusing his poems mostly on the poor and the common man, Blake, like Cowper, gives the common a voice by publishing his work and circulating it in a unique and very visual manner.

     Thomas Hardy’s ‘The Darkling Thrush” comments on the social and physical changes that occur with the dawn of the twentieth century. As JHam mentions in his post titled Revolution of an Industrial Kind, Hardy’s “lack of faith in humanity’s ability to sustain itself” is present at the beginning of the poem, as “every spirit upon earth/seemed fervorless” and void of human passion (Hardy 862). JHam also points out the imagery associated with death “represented by factories” as the narrator describes the gloomy scene that contrasts with the solitary, but hopeful voice of the thrush singing its song. As “the land’s sharp features seemed to be/The Century’s corpse outleant,” these features refer to the jagged and unnatural buildings of the industrial revolution and the dawning of a new century that has moved away from an old, natural form, whether the allegory be for literature or just culture and the appreciation for nature in general (Hardy 862). It could be said that the thrush “bears an unmistakable resemblance to the sixty-year-old Hardy himself,” being described as “an aged thrush, frail gaunt and small,” Hardy being the one singing the tune of jubilance with all the volume he can muster, just as he feels alone in his attempt to reactivate and revive what literary traditions have been lost (Bennett 1). Hardy’s social commentary stirs an emotional reaction within the reader and the language is not so high brow that the common working folk, the ones in the factories, wouldn’t be able to grasp the metaphor of the thrush as a faint hope in a time where there is none, or a desperate last voice calling out in vain on the deaf ears of people who have already embraced the new social trends.

     Poetry throughout history has been an essential source of social commentary, poets being quite aware of their audience and the content of their works, whether it be hidden or blatant. As an effective vehicle to spread an idea or notion of culture, poetry ends up becoming a historical record and a reflection of the world’s defining moments.

Works Cited

Bennett, Bruce. "Thomas Hardy’s Artistry in "The Darkling Thrush"" – Contemporary Poetry Review. N.p., 15 Nov. 2012. Web. 07 May 2013.

Hardy, Thomas, and William Blake. The Broadview Anthology of British Literature: Concise Edition. By Joseph Black. Peterborough, Ont.: Broadview, 2009. N. pag. Print.

"Robert Burns." - Poets.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2013.

Roy, George R. "Merry Muses of Caledonia by Robert Burns." Robertburns.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2013.

"Songs of Innocence and of Experience." (1789, 1794 1789 (objects 2-29, 34-37 as Arranged in This Copy), 1794 (objects 1, 30-33, 38-55 as Arranged in This Copy).): Electronic Edition. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2013.

"William Blake." William Blake. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2013.