‘A man severe he was, and stern to view,’ Goldsmith describes the schoolmaster as one of these people that if you looked at him in the morning you could tell what type of mood he was in by his face.
‘Well had the boding tremblers learned to trace
The full days disasters in his morning face.’
The students even laughed excessively at his jokes even when they were not funny.
‘Full well they laughed with counterfeited glee.’
Goldsmith says that if the schoolmaster was sometimes quite cross they could not blame him for it was because of his love for learning and that he wanted to teach them.
The first fourteen lines of the poem describe the children’s view of the schoolmaster and the last ten describe the village’s view. In the village the schoolmaster is highly respected because he can read and write which was uncommon in Goldsmith’s time.
‘The village all declared how much he knew;
Twas certain he could write, and cypher too;’
In the poem Goldsmith describes the schoolmaster as omniscient all knowing and all-powerful. I think that this is very unconvincing that one person can be this powerful.
‘Lands he could measure, terms and tides presage,
And even the story ran he could gauge.’
The parson the other figure of respectability in the village at the time admitted how great the schoolmaster was.
‘While words of learned length and thundering sound
Amazed the gazing rustics ranged around.’
Alliteration in above two lines lengthens the words, which is effective.
Throughout the poem Goldsmith uses a chatty tone to get the reader on his side this works well throughout the poem.
The next two poems I studied were ‘Last Lesson of the Afternoon’ and ‘The Best of School by D.H. Lawrence. They are two contrasting poems from his book ‘The Schoolmaster.’
‘Last Lesson of the Afternoon’ is about Lawrence’s struggle as the schoolmaster against his pupils. The poem has a bitter and disillusioned tone. It contrasts with William Goldsmith’s poem ‘The Schoolmaster’ which describes the schoolmaster as being respected by all the pupils. While D.H. Lawrence has given up on trying to teach the pupils in this poem. In the poem he describes the debate he has in his mind while waiting for the bell to ring.
In the first verse he is physically shattered and urging the bell to ring.
‘When will the bell ring, and end this weariness.’
In the first verse he uses an extended hunting metaphor when describing the students.
‘How long have they tugged on the leash … I can haul them and urge them no more.’
Lawrence has little energy left and wants to keep what energy he has to himself. He wants to try and teach the students but they simply do not want to be taught.
Lawrence seems to have become disenchanted with his profession and is now even insulted at the books on their table which he describes as ‘several insults of blotted pages.’ He says that the situation he currently finds himself in does not benefit either him or the students. As neither pupil nor teacher want to be there. Lawrence grew up in an area where mining was common. The blast furnace extracts iron from ore; fuel was heaped into the furnace until the temperature increased sufficiently. In the third verse Lawrence uses this image. He says if he adds, to his soul, his precious life source that is fuel or energy. He can kindle a flame in order to consume their indifference but for Lawrence this does not work, as there is no reward in it for him. Lawrence makes an analogy between his soul and a furnace. Lawrence is quite definite that he will not waste his energy in that way.
‘Of their insults in punishment? – I will not!’
This rhetorical question indicates Lawrence is taking on a defiant tone.
As the poem goes on so does Lawrence’s lack of motivation.
‘Learning of theirs? It all goes down the same abyss.’
In the last verse Lawrence says four negatives in a row. This is effective as it shows Lawrence’s determination not to waste his energy on them.
‘I do not, and will not; they won’t and they don’t; and that’s all.’
In the last four lines Lawrence comes to a peace with himself.
He has decided that he will not waste his energy on them.
The next poem by D.H Lawrence ‘Best of School’ is in contrast with ‘Last Lesson of the Afternoon’. Both share similar settings but where written when Lawrence was in contrasting moods. In the previous poem ‘Last Lesson of the Afternoon’ Lawrence had to battle to teach the students but this time he does not have to do that. In the first verse Lawrence use an underwater image of the boys in the classroom. ‘Of underwater float: bright ripples run.’
There is contrast here with ‘The Last Lesson of the Afternoon’ in that poem he refers to the students as a ‘pack of unruly hounds’ to ‘lads’, which is used in this poem. This shows the contrasting moods Lawrence experiences in both poems and the feelings he has towards his students.
In ‘Last Lesson of the Afternoon’ Lawrence talks about his determination to save his energy. Now in ‘The Best of School’ he talks of the students determination with their work. The poem compares with ‘The Schoolmaster because it shows that the students respect the schoolmaster. Every so often they just have to look up at him for reassurance.
‘And then he turns again, with a little, glad
Thrill of his work when he turns again from me’
I feel that this is exaggerated and very unrealistic. I think that it is exaggerated that a student just has to look at him to find the answer to his question. In this poem it is as if they all depend on each other to live. It is a symbiotic existence.
‘That they cleave unto, and up which they climb
Up to their lives-so they to me’
The students are developing into adulthood and he is helping them on their way with an education.
Of the three poems ‘Last Lesson of the afternoon’ is my favourite because it is the one I can identify most with and is more realistic compared to the other two poems. I think that ‘The Best of School’ and ‘The Schoolmaster’ are unrealistic and very exaggerated.
