Analysis of the Poem "The Sluggard" As it Relates to Children's Literature
The purpose of this paper is to introduce and analyze the poem "The Sluggard" by Isaac Watts. Specifically, it will contain a literary exploration of the poem as it relates to children's literature. In "The Sluggard," the author berates a lazy child for his behavior. He writes, "Thus he wastes half his days, and his hours / without number," (Watts 32). Is this a relevant poem for today's youth?At first glance, this poem seems outdated, even archaic in how it looks at life, work, and the "sluggard" who sleeps his days away. I believe, however, that even though this poem was written in 1715, when life was much more difficult and demanding, even for children, that it is still relevant, even significant, today. I believe this for a number of reasons, from the nightly news to my own experiences. Our society has become a society of many different opportunities and technologies that make life much easier than it used to be. In addition, there seems to be an aversion to hard work in many areas of society, especially hard labors like the poet discusses, such as maintaining a large garden, creating clothing, and continually reading the Bible for inspiration and guidance. Many people in today's society would avoid all those things
What does this mean for today's children? It means they may not develop many of the social skills they need to survive in the business world, and it means, like the "sluggard" of the poem, they may develop poor work habits and people skills, making them a poor candidate for success in industry as they grow older. In fact, the poet alludes to this in the poem. I believe that our society is enabling this behavior in many children, who spend their free time playing video games on the computer, or other pursuits that keep them from developing social and coping skills in the real world. The "sluggard" does not accomplish the things he needs to accomplish in his life, and so, he relies on others to help him make ends meet. " He cannot (or refuses to) rely on himself for survival, and he is not forced to, because others will support him. In another generation or so, we may see an entire group of young adults who have no real skills to make it in the business world, and who have little impetus to change their behavior. I have to wonder what the poet would think if he suddenly was transported nearly 300 years into the future and saw how people live today. As with most good children's literature, this poem offers a message at the end, something to inspire the child and help them learn from the mistakes of the sluggard. This is a common theme in children's literature. In conclusion, I think this poem is important for any number of reasons. However, for the most part, I believe the youth of today would ridicule this poem and its message, and would actually identify with the "sluggard" rather than the ideals of the poet. First, it really does still apply to our society - there are many "sluggards" who still depend on others for their survival and never take the imitative to amount to anything in their lives, simply because they are not forced to. He writes, "I pass'd by his garden, and saw the wild brier, / The thorn and the thistle grow broader and higher; / The clothes that hang on him are turning to rags;/ And his money still wastes till he starves or he begs" (Watts 32). The poet Watts is berating a young man for his laziness and lack of ambition. Text messaging, computer games, music downloads, and the related activities are all basically isolated activities that shut out the rest of the world.
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