Poetry Since 1800

Introduction

British and American poetry over the last two hundred years can be understood to come from the “Romantic” tradition. Even modern poetry is based upon this rebellion against conventional forms and the emphasis on the individual. This module will give a general overview of the central themes of this type of poetry.

Historical Overview of Poetry

Thus far the poetry of this course has been fairly old. We will now move to poetry's softer side (and darker side). As we move forward in history, we will continue to examine poetry through the lens of history. We will be reviewing how poetry has evolved from the ancient epics to the lyrical romantics and into the age of skeptical modernists. We will be surveying many poets as they journey through time: William Blake, Henry Wordsworth, Robert Frost, and T.S. Eliot to name a few.

Poems - Literary Movement Analysis

Without looking up the author or any other background, try to match the appropriate literary movement with the poem and provide a justification for your response. Your options are Romantic, Modernist, or Post-Modernist.

Poem 1
Poem 2
Poem 3

April is the cruellest month, breeding
Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing
Memory and desire, stirring
Dull roots with spring rain.
Winter kept us warm, covering
Earth in forgetful snow, feeding
A little life with dried tubers.
Summer surprised us, coming over the Starnbergersee
With a shower of rain; we stopped in the colonnade,
And went on in sunlight, into the Hofgarten,
And drank coffee, and talked for an hour.
Bin gar keine Russin, stamm’ aus Litauen, echt deutsch.
And when we were children, staying at the arch-duke’s,
My cousin’s, he took me out on a sled,
And I was frightened. He said, Marie,
Marie, hold on tight. And down we went.
In the mountains, there you feel free.
I read, much of the night, and go south in the winter.

Did I Miss Anything?
Nothing. When we realized you weren’t here
we sat with our hands folded on our desks
in silence, for the full two hours

Everything. I gave an exam worth
40 percent of the grade for this term
and assigned some reading due today
on which I’m about to hand out a quiz
worth 50 percent

Nothing. None of the content of this course
has value or meaning
Take as many days off as you like:
any activities we undertake as a class
I assure you will not matter either to you or me
and are without purpose

Everything. A few minutes after we began last time
a shaft of light suddenly descended and an angel
or other heavenly being appeared
and revealed to us what each woman or man must do
to attain divine wisdom in this life and
the hereafter
This is the last time the class will meet
before we disperse to bring the good news to all people on earth.

Nothing. When you are not present
how could something significant occur?

Everything. Contained in this classroom
is a microcosm of human experience
assembled for you to query and examine and ponder
This is not the only place such an opportunity has been gathered

but it was one place

And you weren’t here

Five years have past; five summers, with the length
Of five long winters! and again I hear
These waters, rolling from their mountain-springs
With a soft inland murmur.-Once again
Do I behold these steep and lofty cliffs,
That on a wild secluded scene impress
Thoughts of more deep seclusion; and connect
The landscape with the quiet of the sky.
The day is come when I again repose
Here, under this dark sycamore, and view
These plots of cottage-ground, these orchard-tufts,
Which at this season, with their unripe fruits,
Are clad in one green hue, and lose themselves
'Mid groves and copses. Once again I see
These hedge-rows, hardly hedge-rows, little lines
Of sportive wood run wild: these pastoral farms,
Green to the very door; and wreaths of smoke
Sent up, in silence, from among the trees!
With some uncertain notice, as might seem
Of vagrant dwellers in the houseless woods,
Or of some Hermit's cave, where by his fire
The Hermit sits alone.

Practice Activity

Use this quiz to check your responses.

Analysis

Now that you've read the poems and selected their movement, select each poem from the menu below for a brief analysis. How did this analysis compare to your own when deciding which era each poem belonged to?

Poem 1 Analysis

This passage is from T.S. Eliot’s longer work “The Waste-Land” and it fits into the Modernist understanding of poetry. Notice the obscurity of the references (i.e. arch-duke’s, German without translation), the mocking of nature (i.e. Spring being the cruel month, while winter keeps them warm), and a general sense that this is poetry not necessarily written for the masses. Also, a sense of disillusionment pervades the passage.

Poem 2 Analysis

This poem fits into the Post-Modernist time period, or just the more recent time period. Notice that the poem deals with an everyday event, a student asking a teacher if he/she missed anything. The tone of the poem has some lighthearted banter, but there are deeper questions about the individual’s role in not only this particular class but also the larger universe. The final two stanzas ask some existential questions about the relationship of the individual to the rest of the universe. Funny and deep at the same time.

Poem 3 Analysis

This is a Romantic poem from “Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey, On Revisiting the Banks of the Wye during a Tour. July 13, 1798” by William Wordsworth. Notice the emphasis on nature, the landscape, and even the passage of time in the opening line. Also, there is the tendency to “romanticize” the hermit who “sits alone” and takes in all of this nature. Finally, with the poet compares himself to his past self five years ago, he begins to show his awareness of his previous innocence.

Reflection

The background in this section will help you to guide your understanding of themes in the various poetic periods. Remember that poets don’t necessarily even consider themselves part of these various literary movements, and often their work will both include and challenge the conventions of the time period in which they write. The next lesson will focus on the unique qualities of poetry and how it functions as its own genre of literature.

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