later poems-第4节

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and　for　doing　so　have　encountered　the　anger　rather　than　the
argument　of　those　who　cannot　admire　a　pretty　lyric　but　they　must
hold　reason　itself　to　be　in　error　rather　than　allow　that　a　line　of
it　has　chanced　to　get　turned　in　the　rhyming。


IN　EARTH


〃I　ever　saw　anything；〃　says　Charles　Lamb；　〃like　this　funeral　dirge；
except　the　ditty　which　reminds　Ferdinand　of　his　drowned　father　in
the　Tempest。　　As　that　is　of　the　water；　watery；　so　this　is　of　the
earth；　earthy。　　Both　have　that　intentness　of　feeling　which　seems　to
resolve　itself　into　the　element　which　it　contemplates。〃


SONG　（Phoebus；　arise！）


All　Drummond's　poems　seem　to　be　minor　poems；　even　at　their　finest；
except　only　this。　　He　must　have　known；　for　the　creation　of　that
poem；　some　more　impassioned　and　less　restless　hour。　　It　is；　from
the　outset　to　the　close；　the　sigh　of　a　profound　expectation。　　There
is　no　division　into　stanzas；　because　its　metre　is　the　breath　of
life。　　One　might　wish　that　the　English　ode　（roughly　called
〃Pindaric〃）　had　never　been　written　but　with　passion；　for　so　written
it　is　the　most　immediate　of　all　metres；　the　shock　of　the　heart　and
the　breath　of　elation　or　grief　are　the　law　of　the　lines。　　It　has
passed　out　of　the　gates　of　the　garden　of　stanzas；　and　walks　（not
astray）　in　the　further　freedom　where　all　is　interior　law。　　Cowley；
long　afterwards；　wrote　this　Pindaric　ode；　and　wrote　it　coldly。　　But
Drummond's　（he　calls　it　a　song）　can　never　again　be　forgotten。　　With
admirable　judgment　it　was　set　up　at　the　very　gate　of　that　Golden
Treasury　we　all　know　so　well；　and；　therefore；　generation　after
generation　of　readers；　who　have　never　opened　Drummond's　poems；　know
this　fine　ode　as　well　as　they　know　any　single　poem　in　the　whole　of
English　literature。　　There　was　a　generation　that　had　not　been
taught　by　the　Golden　Treasury；　and　Cardinal　Newman　was　of　it。
Writing　to　Coventry　Patmore　of　his　great　odes；　he　called　them
beautiful　but　fragmentary；　was　inclined　to　wish　that　they　might
some　day　be　made　complete。　　There　is　nothing　in　all　poetry　more
complete。　　Seldom　is　a　poem　in　stanzas　so　complete　but　that　another
stanza　might　have　made　a　final　close；　but　a　master's　ode　has　the
unity　of　life；　and　when　it　ends　it　ends　for　ever。

A　poem　of　Drummond's　has　this　auroral　image　of　a　blush：　　Anthea　has
blushed　to　hear　her　eyes　likened　to　stars　（habit　might　have　caused
her；　one　would　think；　to　bear　the　flattery　with　a　front　as　cool　as
the　very　daybreak）；　and　the　lover　tells　her　that　the　sudden
increase　of　her　beauty　is　futile；　for　he　cannot　admire　more：　　〃For
naught　thy　cheeks　that　morn　do　raise。〃　　What　sweet；　nay；　what
solemn　roses！

Again：

〃Me　here　she　first　perceived；　and　here　a　morn
Of　bright　carnations　overspread　her　face。〃

The　seventeenth　century　has　possession　of　that　〃morn〃　caught　once
upon　its　uplands；　nor　can　any　custom　of　aftertime　touch　its
freshness　to　wither　it。


TO　MY　INCONSTANT　MISTRESS


The　solemn　vengeance　of　this　poem　has　a　strange　tonenot　unique；
for　it　had　sounded　somewhere　in　mediaeval　poetry　in　Italybut　in　a
dreadful　sense　divine。　　At　the　first　reading；　this　sentence　against
inconstancy；　spoken　by　one　more　than　inconstant；　moves　something
like　indignation；　nevertheless；　it　is　menacingly　and　obscurely
justified；　on　a　ground　as　it　were　beyond　the　common　region　of
tolerance　and　pardon。


THE　PULLEY


An　editor　is　greatly　tempted　to　mend　a　word　in　these　exquisite
verses。　　George　Herbert　was　maladroit　in　using　the　word　〃rest〃　in
two　senses。　　〃Peace〃　is　not　quite　so　characteristic　a　word；　but　it
ought　to　take　the　place　of　〃rest〃　in　the　last　line　of　the　second
stanza；　so　then　the　first　line　of　the　last　stanza　would　not　have
this　rather　distressing　ambiguity。　　The　poem　is　otherwise　perfect
beyond　description。


MISERY


George　Herbert's　work　is　so　perfectly　a　box　where　thoughts
〃compacted　lie；〃　that　no　one　is　moved；　in　reading　his　rich　poetry；
to　detach　a　line；　so　fine　and　so　significant　are　its　neighbours；
nevertheless；　it　may　be　well　to　stop　the　reader　at　such　a　lovely
passage　as　this　…

〃He　was　a　garden　in　a　Paradise。〃


THE　ROSE


There　is　nothing　else　of　Waller's　fine　enough　to　be　admitted　here；
and　even　this；　though　unquestionably　a　beautiful　poem；　elastic　in
words　and　fresh　in　feeling；　despite　its　wearied　argument；　is　of　the
third…class。　　Greatness　seems　generally；　in　the　arts；　to　be　of　two
kinds；　and　the　third　rank　is　less　than　great。　　The　wearied　argument
of　The　Rose　is　the　almost　squalid　plea　of　all　the　poets；　from
Ronsard　to　Herrick：　　〃Time　is　short；　they　make　the　better　bargain
who　make　haste　to　love。〃　　This　thrifty　business　and　essentially
cold　impatience　wastime　out　of　mindunknown　to　the　truer　love；
it　is　larger；　illiberal；　untender；　and　without　all　dignity。　　The
poets　were　wrong　to　give　their　verses　the　message　of　so　sorry　a
warning。　　There　is　only　one　thing　that　persuades　you　to　forgive　the
paltry　plea　of　the　poet　that　time　is　briefand　that　is　the
charming　reflex　glimpse　it　gives　of　her　to　whom　the　rose　and　the
verse　were　sent；　and　who　had　not　thought　that　time　was　brief。


L'ALLEGRO


The　sock　represents　the　stage；　in　L'Allegro；　for　comedy；　and　the
buskin；　in　Il　Penseroso；　for　tragedy。　　Milton　seems　to　think　the
comic　drama　in　England　needs　no　apology；　but　he　hesitates　at　the
tragic。　　The　poet　of　King　Lear　is　named　for　his　sweetness　and　his
wood…notes　wild。


IL　PENSEROSO


It　is　too　late　to　protest　against　Milton's　display　of　weak　Italian。
Pensieroso　is；　of　course；　what　he　should　have　written。


LYCIDAS


Most　of　the　allusions　in　Lycidas　need　no　explaining　to　readers　of
poetry。　　The　geography　is　that　of　the　western　coasts　from　furthest
north　to　Cornwall。　　Deva　is　the　Dee；　〃the　great　vision〃　means　the
apparition　of　the　Archangel；　St。　Michael；　at　St。　Michael's　Mount；
Namancos　and　Bayona　face　the　mount　from　the　continental　coast；
Bellerus　stands　for　Belerium；　the　Land's　End。

Arethusa　and　MinciusSicilian　and　Italian　streamsrepresent　the
pastoral　poetry　of　Theocritus　and　Virgil。


ON　A　PRAYER…BOOK


〃Fair　and　flagrant　things〃Crashaw's　own　phrasemight　serve　for　a
brilliant　and　fantastic　praise　and　protest　in　description　of　his
own　verses。　　In　the　last　century；　despite　the　opinion　of　a　few；　and
despite　the　fact　that　Pope　took　possession　of　Crashaw's　line　…

〃Obedient　slumbers　that　can　wake　and　weep；〃

and　for　some　time　of　the　present　century；　the　critics　had　a　wintry
word　to　blame　him　with。　　They　said　of　George　Herbert；　of　Lovelace；
of　Crashaw；　and　of　other　light　hearts　of　the　seventeenth　century
not　so　much　that　their　inspiration　was　in　bad　taste；　as　that　no
reader　of　taste　could　suffer　them。　　A　better　opinion　on　that
company　of　poets　is　that　they　had　a　taste　extraordinarily　liberal；
generous；　and　elastic；　but　not　essentially　lax：　　taste　that　gave
now　and　then　too　much　room　to　play；　but　anon　closed　with　the　purest
and　exactest　laws　of　temperance　and　measure。　　The　extravagance　of
Crashaw　is　a　far　more　lawful　thing　than　the　extravagance　of
Addison；　whom　some　believe　to　have　committed　none；　moreover；　Pope
and　all　the　politer　poets　nursed　something　they　were　pleased　to
call　a　〃rage；〃　and　this　expatiated　（to　use　another　word　of　their
own）　beyond　all　bounds。　　Of　sheer　voluntary　extremes　it　is　not　in
the　seventeenth　century　conceit　that　we　should　seek　examples；　but
in　an　eighteenth　century　〃rage。〃　　A　〃noble　rage；〃　properly
provoked；　could　be　backed　to　write　more　trash　than　fancy　ever
tempted　the　half…incredulous　sweet　poet　of　the　older　time　to　run
upon。　　He　was　fancy's　child；　and　the　bard　of　the　eighteenth　century
was　the　child　of　common　sense　with　straws　in　his　hairvainly
arranged　there。　　The　eighteenth　century　was　never　content　with　a
moderate　mind；　it　invented　〃rage〃；　it　matched　rage　with　a　flagrant
diction　mingled　of　Latin　words　and　simple　English　words　made　vacant
and　ridiculous；　and　these　were　the　worst；　it　was　resolved　to　be
behind　no　century　in　passionnay；　to　show　the　way；　to　fire　the
nations。　　Addison　taught　himself；　as　his　hero　taught　the　battle；
〃where　to　rage〃；　and　in　the　later　years　of　the　same　literary　age；
Johnson　summoned　the　lapsed　and　absent　fury；　with　no　kind　of
misgiving　as　to　the　resulting　verse。　　Take　such　a　phrase　as　〃the
madded　land〃；　there；　indeed；　is　a　word　coined　by　the　noble　rage　as
the　last　century　evoked　it。　　〃The　madded　land〃　is　a　phrase　intended
to　prove　that　the　law…giver　of　taste；　Johnson　himself；　could　lodge
the　fury　in　his　breast　when　opportunity　occurred。　　〃And　dubious
title　shakes　the　madded　land。〃　　It　would　be　hard　to　find　anything；
even　in　Addison；　more　flagrant　and　less　fair。

Take　The　Weeper　of　Crashawhis　most　flagrant　poem。　　Its　follies
are　all　sweet…humoured；　they　smile。　　Its　beauties　are　a　quick　and
abundant　shower。　　The　delicate　phrases　are　so　mingled　with　the
flagrant　that　it　is　difficult　to　quote　them　without　rousing　that
general　sense　of　humour　of　which　any　one　may　make　a　boast；　and　I　am
therefore　shy　even　of　citing　the　〃brisk　cherub〃　who　has　early
sipped　the　Saint's　tear：　　〃Then　to　his　music；〃　in　Crashaw's
divinely　simple　phrase；　and　his　singing　〃tastes　of　this　breakfast
all　day　long。〃　　Sorrow　is　a　queen；　he　cries　to　the　W