Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

In "The Nineteenth Century as a Song," Robert Hass intricately weaves a tapestry of historical, literary, and personal references to capture the multifaceted essence of the 19th century. The poem opens with a reflective line, "How like a well-kept garden is your soul," borrowed from John Gray's translation of Verlaine's "Clair de lune." This line serves as a motif, juxtaposing the cultivated beauty of a garden with the tumultuous nature of the era.

The poem then shifts to a mundane yet evocative scene: Baudelaire being shorted by his butcher in 1861. This anecdote not only humanizes the great poet but also illustrates the quotidian struggles amidst the grand literary and philosophical developments of the time. The butcher, wiping "calves’ blood from his beefy hands," represents the gritty reality contrasting with the lofty ideals of poets and thinkers.

Hass seamlessly transitions to a pastoral image, with "the sweet blue sky" and clouds "made of sugar tinged with blood," painting a serene yet ominous landscape. This duality reflects the 19th century's blend of beauty and brutality, encapsulated in the songs of Moravian virgins, which symbolize purity and tradition amidst societal changes.

The poem's refrain, "The poet is a monarch of the clouds," underscores the poet's elevated yet detached perspective. Swinburne’s mistaken elegy for Baudelaire, whom he imagined in "a deep division of prodigious breasts," highlights the romanticized and often erroneous perceptions poets held about each other.

In a dramatic shift, Marx is depicted in "library gloom," delving into the socioeconomic realities of the weavers of Tilsit. This image contrasts sharply with Bakunin, whose revolutionary activities and tactile engagement with both aristocracy and violence stand in stark opposition to Marx's intellectual pursuits. Bakunin's "numb hands" from his sensual exploits transitioning to bomb-making symbolize the visceral and violent undercurrents of the century.

Hass masterfully captures the essence of the 19th century by blending the serene with the savage, the intellectual with the sensual, and the mundane with the monumental. The repetition of "the poet is monarch of the clouds" reinforces the idea that while poets and thinkers soared above the common fray, their lives and works were deeply intertwined with the era's complexities. This poem becomes a meditation on the juxtaposition of beauty and brutality, the personal and the political, ultimately portraying the 19th century as a rich, turbulent symphony of human experience.

Copyright (c) 2025 PoetryExplorer

Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!

Other Poems of Interest...