From the Oxford Book of Short Poems, choose one poem by each of two poets. Do not choose those dealt with in lectures. Write brief analyses of your chosen poems, and in the course of these point out how the two poets tried to overcome the limitations of the short poem form.

        William Butler Yeats once wrote: “A line will take us hours maybe / Yet if it does not seem a moments thought / Our stitching and unstitching has been naught”. This “stitching and unstitching” does , in many ways, articulate the plight of the poet, particularly concerning the construction of the short poem. In a short poem the poet often determines to express deep concerns or ideas in a concise manner within a constricted format. It is this constricted format that sometimes leads to the short poem being characterised as limited. While the short poem can be classed as limited in that the poet does not have the liberty to expand (or labour) upon their subject in a verbal sense, the poet can use it to their advantage, as it can give an intensity or alacrity rarely found in longer verse. Using the craft of the short poem, poets can express deep concerns, ideas or emotions in a concise  manner that often best reflects the theme, be it vibrant or sullen, joyous or melancholic.

        Gerard Manley Hopkins was a poet who was able to use the format of the short poem to great effect, creating verse possessing unique energy and liveliness. “Pied Beauty”(pg.155)  is a poem that demonstrates this energy and liveliness in its purest form. A devout Jesuit Priest, Hopkins’ themes were heavily religious. Accordingly, “Pied Beauty” is a hymn celebrating what he saw as the immense beauty and diversity of nature, “dappled things” that God “fathers-forth”.

        Hopkins’s main thematical preoccupation concerned the theory of what he termed “inscape”. This theory entailed every earthly entity being charged with a God-given, intrinsic energy or inner landscape - hence the term “inscape”. In this form of the short poem, Hopkins is able to successfully fashion form and language to reflect these involved religious concerns. In his verse, Hopkins looked to express this theory through the application of what he termed “instress”- a vibrant form of writing that was meant to reflect the beauty and majesty of the inner landscape of the natural world. It is, in a sense, meant to create in the poem a similar energy to that constituting the natural world. In “Pied Beauty”, Hopkins has used a combination of argument, tone, innovative language devices and rhythm to create “instress” and hence reflect his involved concern of “inscape” in a concise manner.

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        First and foremost, the very progression of the argument in “Pied Beauty” portrays the all-encompassing beauty created by God. Hopkins begins with a simple statement proclaiming : “Glory be to God for dappled things” and initially Hopkins describes features of the natural world such as “skies of couple-colour”, “Rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim” and “Fresh-firecoal chestnut falls. This is then broadened to include humanity and its activities: “All trades their gear and tackle and trim”, and penultimately to include “All things counter, original, spare, strange”. Finally Hopkins attributes all of this wonder to God, proclaiming that the ...

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