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In this sonnet, Hopkins juxtaposes the wonders of God against the achievements of humankind.
God and humankind are presented as opposites, not so much Goodness vs Evil but rather
Perfection vs Imperfection.
Humankind, our works and our deeds are portrayed as tainted, common and ugly as opposed
to God whose creation is perceived as fresh and warm and sparkling with life and light. In this
poem, one should examine closely the words which the poet uses to portray each of these
juxtapositions.
ABOUT THE POET
Gerard Manley Hopkins was born in 1844, the first of nine children. His parents were staunch
Anglicans.
He attended a grammar school in Highgate and then continued on to Oxford University. His
search for religion, however, caused him to fall under the influence of the great Catholic
convert, John Henry Newman. As a result, Hopkins became a Catholic in 1866 and then joined
the Society of Jesus the following year.
Initially Hopkins burned all his early poetry because he believed it was a symbol of ambition in
the world. He later changed his mind, being influenced by the writings of the medieval scholar
Duns Scotus who saw art as a reflection of God within the world.
From this concept, Hopkins developed his philosophy of Inscape and Instress.
Inscape is the underlying form that marks the essence of all things, the God-principle
which exists in everything. Instress, on the other hand, is our ability to experience that
God-principle.
Everything has Inscape. In other words, everything has a God-principle. However, not
everyone has Instress. The person who watches the glory of the setting sun but is
reminded of a poached egg clearly lacks Instress.
The poet studied Theology in Wales, which is probably where he picked up the Welsh lyrical
way of speaking and writing. He would translate this into his poetry in what he called Sprung
Rhythm.
Hopkins was ordained a priest in 1877 and then worked as a curate in Sheffield, Oxford and
London before moving on to become parish priest in slum parishes in Manchester, Liverpool
and Glasgow. None of this was intellectually suitable for a man who had such a brilliant mind.
He then became a professor of Latin and Greek, first at Stonyhurst College in Lancashire and
then at University College in Dublin. His frustration, however, at having to mark a plethora of
mediocre scripts sent him spiralling into a state of deep depression from which he would not
emerge.
He died of typhoid fever in 1889. He was 44 years of age.
Have you looked at the questions in the right column?
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TEST YOURSELF!
Read the left column and then answer the following questions:
"And though the last lights off the black West went
Oh, morning, at the brown brink eastward, springs."
- Explain in your own words what the poet is describing in these two lines. (4)
[Need help?]
The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. At dawn, therefore, the eastern sky is being
illuminated in brown while the west is still black. If one looks west, of course, the last lights can
still be seen -- the lights of the city haven't yet been extinguished.
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- Indicate, with reference to the text, what language devices are being used
here. (4)
[Need help?]
There are at least TWO language devices used here:
alliteration: "last lights" and "black, brown, brink"
personification: the morning is a person who can be spoken to, and who springs into
action.
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"Because the Holy Ghost over the bent
World broods with warm breast and with ah! bright wings."
- The term "Holy Ghost" is seldom used any more. What is the modern
term? (1)
[Need help?]
The term "Holy Ghost" has been replaced in the modern Christian Church by the term
"Holy Spirit".
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- What is the connection between the "Holy Ghost" and the "warm breast" and
"bright wings"? (4)
[Need help?]
The "Holy Ghost" or "Holy Spirit" has always been portrayed in art as a
dove descending from heaven. This comes from the description in the Acts of the
Apostles of the Holy Spirit descending as a dove upon the apostles and the gathering people.
The dove is always regarded as a peaceful bird and would have a warm breast to protect her
chicks. Her wings also flash purple -- a royal colour -- when the dove is in flight.
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What point is the poet making in the OCTAVE? (4)
[Need help?]
In the Octave, the poet contrasts the grandeur of nature -- God's creation -- with the
ugliness of the modern industrial city -- the creation of man. The world of God is ultimately
beautiful whereas the world of man is the beat of ugly machines and the turgid smell of oil. Man
turns his back on God's creation in favour of the ghastly creation of his own.
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How does the SESTET contrast with the Octave? (4)
[Need help?]
Having dealt with the ugly, turgid world of man's industrial city, the poet looks to the east to see
the sunrise and the beauty of God -- and is filled with a sense the tranquillity and harmony of
nature.
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