“Keen observation, emotional intensity and innovation are at the heart of the poetry of Gerard Manley Hopkins.”
Discuss with reference to the ideas and style of poetry evident in the poems you have studied. Use quotes.
Without a doubt, Gerard Manley Hopkins’s use of self-developed techniques and neologisms make him one of the most unique poets of his time. His strong, detailed descriptions and the intensity with which he writes makes it seem as though he is speaking directly to you, making the reading of his poetry all the more enjoyable and fascinating. This can clearly be seen in three of his poems, “Spring”, “Inversnaid” and “The Windhover”.
Hopkins begins his poem “Spring” with a very bold statement of his philosophy. His contention that spring is the most beautiful season is stated with absolute conviction, and allows for no debate. This is a very common occurrence in his poetry. He states his opinions and beliefs as absolute fact, not even considering other options as truth. His strong sense of self-assurance and firm Christian beliefs allow him to speak about his subject with such strong emotional intensity that we are unknowingly compelled to agree with whatever he has to say.
“Nothing is so beautiful as spring.”
Much of the innovative and original approach to his subject matter that had been used in “Spring” is replicated in Hopkins’s second poem celebrating the beauty of nature, “Inversnaid”. In both poems, Hopkins is trying to capture the inscape, or essence, and instress, or energy, of the subjects of these poems. The essence and energy of spring is captured by Hopkins’s use of enjambment and his skipping of words. In Inversnaid, the river is captured through Hopkins’s attention to rhythm and musical qualities. The consistent, sprung rhythm of Inversnaid mimics the flow of a river, and we are pulled along by the poem as though we are being pulled along by the river itself. The intensity of this poem makes it, like Hopkins’s other poems, a pleasure to read.
“This darksome burn, horseback brown,
His rollrock highroad roaring down,
In coop and comb the fleece of his foam
Flutes and low to the lake falls home.”
In “The Windhover”, Hopkins uses many of his familiar techniques in order to capture the inscape and instress of the bird in its natural habitat, and the result is a very unique and distinctive poem. This poem is simply bursting with emotional intensity. So much so, that he decided to dedicate the poem to Christ. We are left in no doubt that the poet is in awe of this beautiful bird. The falcon is repeatedly compared to the power of god, which is a great compliment coming from such a religious man. The poet is amazed by the falcon’s outstanding “brute beauty”, to the point where the poem is no longer composed from sentences and phrases, but simply a list of adjectives honouring this magnificent beast. The emotional intensity of this poem is impossible to ignore with every line bursting with raw admiration and emotion.
“Brute beauty and valour and act, oh, air, pride, plume, here
Buckle! And the fire that breaks from thee then, a billion
Times told lovelier, more dangerous, O my chevalier!”
Keen observation is yet another common factor in Hopkins’s poetry. In “Spring”, the octet describes nature and Hopkins’s appreciation shines through in his descriptive language. Hopkins observes and describes the scene with such enthusiasm and detain that we are able to easily picture the parts of nature in the springtime which we had never before noticed. Every aspect of the season is described with intricate and loving detail - thrushes, pear-tree leaves, weeds, lambs, eggs and more. The way weeds shoot up unexpectedly, the way thrushes’ eggs seem to mimic the sky above them, the shrillness of the thrush’s call, the glassiness of the pear-tree leaves and the sheer raw energy of young lambs are lovingly and carefully explained to us, so that we might notice them next time we get the chance.
“When weeds, in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush,
Thrush’s eggs look little low heavens, and thrush
Through the echoing timber does so rinse and wring
The ear, it strikes like lightnings to hear him sing;”
The same delicate descriptions and attention to detail are apparent in “Inversnaid”. Every single line of this poem provides a beautiful insight into how the stream looks and acts to the poet. Hopkins uses neologisms, colloquialisms, sprung rhythm and alliteration to accurately describe the small stream. His phrases and sentences often make no grammatical sense in order to achieve his rhythm which carefully mimics the flow of a stream, while the poet constantly switches from one aspect of the area to the next so that he might be able to involve details of the entire scene. Throughout the poem, Hopkins feels the need to make up his own words, or neologisms, in order to describe the scene as accurately as possible.
“A windpuff-bonnet of fâwn-fróth
Turns and twindles over the broth
Of a pool so pitchblack, féll-frówning,
It rounds and rounds, despair to drowning.”
In each of the poems of Gerard Manley Hopkins that I have studied, he easily shows his uniqueness. This poet has developed many of his very own techniques just to make sure he gets each of his beautiful, heart-felt descriptions just right, to show his respect for his god’s glorious creation. For a man as religious as he was, it would have been essential to show no less than perfection in each of his descriptions. Another result of his highly religious nature is the sheer emotional intensity of his works. Hopkins frequently adds seemingly unrequired exclamations into his poetry:
“O my chevalier!”
But these exclamations actually play a major role in his poetry. They show us, the people reading and digesting his distinguished works of art, just how emotional and excited he gets over the little aspects of life he so beautifully describes. Not only this, but the exclamations make it seem as though Hopkins is not only talking to us, but talking directly to his god, to thank him for creating such fine creatures and landscapes, and to show him just how amazing he thinks they are. In this way, Hopkins's innovation, emotional intensity and keen observation all draw us into his poetry, and give his poetry a heart, a topic, and a reason to be. There is no doubt that these features all play a major part in the work of Gerard Manley Hopkins. Such individuality and such unique poetry make Hopkins easily one of the most unique and outstanding poets of his time.
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Hopkins begins his poem “Spring” with a very bold statement of his philosophy. His contention that spring is the most beautiful season is stated with absolute conviction, and allows for no debate. This is a very common occurrence in his poetry. He states his opinions and beliefs as absolute fact, not even considering other options as truth. His strong sense of self-assurance and firm Christian beliefs allow him to speak about his subject with such strong emotional intensity that we are unknowingly compelled to agree with whatever he has to say.
“Nothing is so beautiful as spring.”
Much of the innovative and original approach to his subject matter that had been used in “Spring” is replicated in Hopkins’s second poem celebrating the beauty of nature, “Inversnaid”. In both poems, Hopkins is trying to capture the inscape, or essence, and instress, or energy, of the subjects of these poems. The essence and energy of spring is captured by Hopkins’s use of enjambment and his skipping of words. In Inversnaid, the river is captured through Hopkins’s attention to rhythm and musical qualities. The consistent, sprung rhythm of Inversnaid mimics the flow of a river, and we are pulled along by the poem as though we are being pulled along by the river itself. The intensity of this poem makes it, like Hopkins’s other poems, a pleasure to read.
“This darksome burn, horseback brown,
His rollrock highroad roaring down,
In coop and comb the fleece of his foam
Flutes and low to the lake falls home.”
In “The Windhover”, Hopkins uses many of his familiar techniques in order to capture the inscape and instress of the bird in its natural habitat, and the result is a very unique and distinctive poem. This poem is simply bursting with emotional intensity. So much so, that he decided to dedicate the poem to Christ. We are left in no doubt that the poet is in awe of this beautiful bird. The falcon is repeatedly compared to the power of god, which is a great compliment coming from such a religious man. The poet is amazed by the falcon’s outstanding “brute beauty”, to the point where the poem is no longer composed from sentences and phrases, but simply a list of adjectives honouring this magnificent beast. The emotional intensity of this poem is impossible to ignore with every line bursting with raw admiration and emotion.
“Brute beauty and valour and act, oh, air, pride, plume, here
Buckle! And the fire that breaks from thee then, a billion
Times told lovelier, more dangerous, O my chevalier!”
Keen observation is yet another common factor in Hopkins’s poetry. In “Spring”, the octet describes nature and Hopkins’s appreciation shines through in his descriptive language. Hopkins observes and describes the scene with such enthusiasm and detain that we are able to easily picture the parts of nature in the springtime which we had never before noticed. Every aspect of the season is described with intricate and loving detail - thrushes, pear-tree leaves, weeds, lambs, eggs and more. The way weeds shoot up unexpectedly, the way thrushes’ eggs seem to mimic the sky above them, the shrillness of the thrush’s call, the glassiness of the pear-tree leaves and the sheer raw energy of young lambs are lovingly and carefully explained to us, so that we might notice them next time we get the chance.
“When weeds, in wheels, shoot long and lovely and lush,
Thrush’s eggs look little low heavens, and thrush
Through the echoing timber does so rinse and wring
The ear, it strikes like lightnings to hear him sing;”
The same delicate descriptions and attention to detail are apparent in “Inversnaid”. Every single line of this poem provides a beautiful insight into how the stream looks and acts to the poet. Hopkins uses neologisms, colloquialisms, sprung rhythm and alliteration to accurately describe the small stream. His phrases and sentences often make no grammatical sense in order to achieve his rhythm which carefully mimics the flow of a stream, while the poet constantly switches from one aspect of the area to the next so that he might be able to involve details of the entire scene. Throughout the poem, Hopkins feels the need to make up his own words, or neologisms, in order to describe the scene as accurately as possible.
“A windpuff-bonnet of fâwn-fróth
Turns and twindles over the broth
Of a pool so pitchblack, féll-frówning,
It rounds and rounds, despair to drowning.”
In each of the poems of Gerard Manley Hopkins that I have studied, he easily shows his uniqueness. This poet has developed many of his very own techniques just to make sure he gets each of his beautiful, heart-felt descriptions just right, to show his respect for his god’s glorious creation. For a man as religious as he was, it would have been essential to show no less than perfection in each of his descriptions. Another result of his highly religious nature is the sheer emotional intensity of his works. Hopkins frequently adds seemingly unrequired exclamations into his poetry:
“O my chevalier!”
But these exclamations actually play a major role in his poetry. They show us, the people reading and digesting his distinguished works of art, just how emotional and excited he gets over the little aspects of life he so beautifully describes. Not only this, but the exclamations make it seem as though Hopkins is not only talking to us, but talking directly to his god, to thank him for creating such fine creatures and landscapes, and to show him just how amazing he thinks they are. In this way, Hopkins's innovation, emotional intensity and keen observation all draw us into his poetry, and give his poetry a heart, a topic, and a reason to be. There is no doubt that these features all play a major part in the work of Gerard Manley Hopkins. Such individuality and such unique poetry make Hopkins easily one of the most unique and outstanding poets of his time.
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