Voice of the Country-House Poem
Voice of the Country-House Poem
There exists a small genre of poetry, dating from the early seventeenth century, known as the country-house poem. Ostensibly the impulse of these poems was to praise and please a wealthy patron, thereby gaining favour, status and wealth. A less apparent facet also existed within these poems, and that was the poet's embedded observations with regard to social values of the time that subtly and effectively criticized and praised the existing system. The dexterity with which a poet combined these opposing purposes, while avoiding implicating the intended patron in the criticism ultimately ensured continuation of the crucial patronage, which pervaded all aspects of the period's social system. Ben Jonson's To Penhurst, often touted as the prototype of the country-house poem, extols the Sydney estate as the archetype of the country estate that is both bounteous and cultured, while subtle irony reveals the innate criticism of the system of which Penhurst is a part without endangering the indispensable patronage.
In Jonson's time patronage was the cornerstone of the social system that permeated all elements of existence and was therefore vital to anyone who wished to succeed in building a secure place for himself within that system. Since power and wealth rested in the hands of the landowners it was they who extended patronage at their whim to those who they felt merited the distinction. In a time of shifting loyalties and preferences security, social status and a sense of self depended on enduring patronage and the sometimes-difficult intent of the poet to retain and increase any patronage became the primary objective. Ben Jonson demonstrated a remarkable adeptness in securing his place as a flourishing patronage poet. Robert Evans said
"Over the course of a career that spanned four decades and the reign of three very different monarchs, Ben Jonson became perhaps the most successful patronage poet of his era. House-guest of well-connected nobles, perennial author of holiday masques, and recipient of royal grants of money and sack, Jonson by middle age had become a fixture at the Jacobean court." (2)
Perhaps Jonson's enduring and seemingly intuitive ability to write poetry that garnered patronage inspired him to choose the landowner's seat of the power, the country house, as a subject to pay tribute to affording another means to maintain his patronage standing.
The country estate established the aristocratic landowner in his status and sphere of influence. It became a symbol that defined and encompassed how others regarded him and his family within his own ruling class and the various other classes that comprised the system of which all were a part. Mary Anne C. McGuire noted
"The ...
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Perhaps Jonson's enduring and seemingly intuitive ability to write poetry that garnered patronage inspired him to choose the landowner's seat of the power, the country house, as a subject to pay tribute to affording another means to maintain his patronage standing.
The country estate established the aristocratic landowner in his status and sphere of influence. It became a symbol that defined and encompassed how others regarded him and his family within his own ruling class and the various other classes that comprised the system of which all were a part. Mary Anne C. McGuire noted
"The estate was thought to reflect its owners efforts as local governor and thus his effectiveness as a member of the ruling class; as farming generally provided the landowner with his primary source of income, the estate was essential to aristocratic wealth; it served as a political base for governmental offices and thus was essential to civil power; and as the bulk of an inheritance passed from father to eldest son, the country house served as a dynastic symbol." (94)
From this dynastic haven, the nucleus of his power, the landowner dispensed the largess and authority expected of the ruling class. Since the house and its bounty is equivalent to the owner, any praise of the house and its estate reflects praise back to its owner marking it as unmistakable opportunity for the focus of a successful patronage poem. It also provided a superb vehicle for the astute poet to scrutinize and pass judgment on the workings of the current social system. To Penhurst admirably realizes both tasks.
Initially To Penhurst meets the design of the country-house poem in a negative fashion as Jonson begins by stating what Penhurst is not rather than what she is. He writes
"Thou art not, Penhurst, built to envious show
Of touch or marble, nor canst boast a row
Of polished pillars, or a roof of gold;
Thou hast no lantern whereof tales are told,
Or stair, or courts; but stand'st an ancient pile," (1-5)
This negative beginning accomplishes two things in that it reveals a pleasing reticence in Penhurst that suggests that she has no need to put herself forward with ostentatious show and sets up a stark contrast between the modesty of her appearance and the bountiful paradise the house itself is surrounded by. By extension this indicates that her owner's, the Sydneys, are also secure enough within their sphere that they have no need to push themselves forward to prove their worth.
Having set the stage with this unpretentious vision of the house Jonson proceeds to render an account of the lavish bounty that Penhurst abounds with whether it is animal, bird, fish or plant and assures that there exists an abundance for all, great and humble to partake of. Jonson emphasizes this largesse when he declares
"A waiter, doth my gluttony envy.
But gives me what I call, and lets me eat;
He knows below he shall find plenty meat," (68-70)
He enhances the idyllic picture with a description of the relatively equal treatment meted out to all who grace the estate, no matter what their place in the social hierarchy. The farmer and the clown receive the same admirable hospitality as the King and the Prince, which aptly praises the management and domestic skills of Lady Sydney. While To Penhurst certainly praises and flatters the Sydney dynasty in acquainting the reader with what Penhurst offers in comparison to similar estates Jonson manages to insert a subtle criticism of the system itself through the implication that other estates are not as idyllic and generous as Penhurst.
On the initial surface reading the poem appears to simply extol the virtues of Penhurst and by extension her aristocratic owners, the Sydneys. In reexamining the extravagance of the praise and purposely ignoring the primary function of the country-house poem the underlying irony and satire becomes apparent. The same lines that tell us that Penhurst was not built to impress suggest that some of the other great county-houses were and implies a criticism of that capitalistic tendency. In discussing the abundance of food that is available for all, no matter their rank, and praising the hospitality of Penhurst there is again the indication that there are not many others who would treat all guests and servants as unstintingly. Jonson brings out a definite sense that few of the great houses are as generous and willing to set all on an equal footing and definitely implies that uninvited guests, particularly those of common rank, would find very little welcome at most of these houses. Although Jonson portrays the country life as bountiful and satisfying there is a certain satire present in the descriptions he uses to convey these images. The image of nature in the poem is jarringly unreal. The notion that the animals and fish just quietly wait quite willing to give their lives to gratify the appetites of the residents of Penhurst is patently unbelievable and gives raise to the perception that paradise is not perfect. In representing the Sydney family as truly educated and generous people Jonson dexterously plants the seeds that suggest flaws exist in the social system of which they are part. The discovery of these flaws enhances the picture of this intelligent, munificent, culturally ideal family while expressing criticism for aspects of the system through the contrast that sets their country-house estate apart from others.
Jonson masterfully intertwines the two previously stated purposes of the country-house poem in To Penhurst. Just as one line praises the country-house of the Sydneys at the same time it brings forth a subtle sense that draws attention to an otherwise unnoticed imperfection of the system. As he praises the security and comfort to be found at Penhurst Jonson hints that this is not necessarily the case at other places.
"Nor, when I take my lodging, need I pray
For fire or lights or livery: all is there," (72-73)
Perhaps it is this subtle blend of flattery and almost undetectable criticism that places this poem as the prototype of the country-house poem rather than the now defunct idea that it was the first of its type.
As a form of literature the country-house poem in the hands of the skillful poet provided much more than a domestic design to praise and flatter a wealthy patron. As an instrument to garner the patronage so vital to the well being of anyone who wished to be successful and keep his place in the social system of the time the county-house poem became a two bladed sword. If wielded proficiently one blade sliced cleanly to the heart of the matter, using the vision of the ideal family and the ideal house and grounds to effectively elevate the family and elicit the patronage the poet sought raising him above those of his own circle just as the poem does the patron. The counterpart of this was that the other blade was free to strike at the ways in which the other households did not measure up to the same mark thereby providing a channel for critical commentary based on the very same social values used to praise. This skillful convergence of the two emerged as vitally important in defining the country-house poem.
Works Cited
Evans, Robert C. "Literature as Equipment for Living: Ben Jonson and the Poetics of Patronage". CLA Journal 30.3 March, 1987: 2.
Jonson, Ben. "To Penhurst". The Broadview Anthology of Seventeenth-CenturyVerse & Prose Volume 1: Verse ED. Alan Rudrum, Joseph Black & Holly Faith Nelson. Peterborough: Broadview Press Ltd., 2001. 68-70.
McGuire, Mary Anne C. "The Cavalier Country-House Poem. Mutation on a Ben Jonson Tradition": Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900. 19.l Winter, 1979: 94.
