The Forces of Nature in the Poetry of Charles G. D. Roberts and E. J. Pratt
Charles G. D. Roberts and E. J. Pratt are two of the best known Canadian poets, both belonging roughly to the same late Romantic tradition. Their poetry has often been put side by side, especially due to the major prevalence of nature as a poetic theme in their all their writings. In turns, both Roberts and Pratt have been likened to one of the great English Romantic poets who were their predecessors. Thus, Roberts is indebted to Wordsworth, whom he follows faithfully in most of his work. On the other hand, connections can be found between Pratt's and William's Blake poetry, although in this case the influence may have been less conscious. A comparative analysis of two of Roberts' and Pratt's best-known poems, Tantramar Revisited and Silences respectively, reveals the very different, almost opposed significance of nature in their poems. In Tantramar Revisited, Roberts conceives of nature in a very similar manner to that of Wordsworth: for him, nature is invested with spirituality. The contemplation of a natural landscape urges the poet-speaker to musings and deep meditations. As the work of God, the beauty of nature calls for spiritual renaissance. The thoughts of the poet blend with the landscape he contemplates. On the other ha
"(Pratt, 17) Birth and death are never followed by any commentaries. As such, nature for instance was not viewed homogenously by these poets. There are even elements and phrases in the description that point to the fact that the poet projects his own feelings on the natural view he contemplates. / An oath would have flawed the crystallization of the hate. / And these introductory salutes followed by a hail of gutturals / and sibilants are often the beginning of friendship, for who would / not prefer to be lustily damned than to be half-heartedly blessed?"(Pratt, 17) The power of speech is a divine gift in man that differentiates him from the rest of nature. Obviously, thought and speech are closely related, and man is seen as the only being capable of conscious acts. Tantramar Revisited, as the title indicates, the poet returns to a river flowing by Sackville and called Tantramar. If Roberts described a river in his poem, Pratt focuses his attention on the underwater world. Pratt's humanism recalls thus William Blake's insistence on the divinity of the human imagination, which he equated with the actual natural environment. Each landscape and each different season correspond to different states of mind. Nevertheless, the landscape view is not pure: the author obviously superposes the present landscape with the one he takes from his own memory. "(Roberts, 102) Nature is seen here as evocative and revealing, it can 'talk' about the past and the future, and it is closely related to the spirit of man. Thus, the two Canadian poets differ to the greatest extent in their representation of nature. In opposition to this, man thinks and communicates even when he goes to war: "Two men may end their hostilities just with their battle-cries, / 'The devil take you,' says one.
Common topics in this essay:
Tantramar Revisited,
Word Pratt,
Roberts' Pratt's,
Revisited Roberts,
Likewise Pratt's,
English Romantic,
Pratt Canadian,
Silences Pratt,
William Blake's,
Revisited Silences,
roberts nature,
natural description,
tantramar revisited,
canadian poets,
natural landscape,
roberts pratt,
nature primitive,
primitive world sea,
world sea,
reels empty,
primitive world,
pratt nature primitive,
fishing boats dry,
reels empty idle,
spiritual unity pratt,
|
Acceptance Essays
