Ponderings

Tag: writing

  • In Xanadu

    On the 21st October, 1772 the English poet, literary critic, philosopher and theologian Samuel Taylor Coleridge was born. Coleridge was a prominent member of a rarefied group of writers and artists known collectively as the Romantics. This was an intellectual movement dedicated to the cultivation of the human imagination, regarded as the ultimate source of enlightenment and the key to the development and progression of civilisation.

    In our modern understanding of the term, Romantics are idealistic dreamers with an excessively optimistic perception of human nature and its destiny. Romantics were the heirs of utopians, who themselves had too much faith in humankind, at least in terms of solving the almost intractable problems of existence. However we are living in a time of cynicism and scepticism, and these concepts do not have much significance or resonance, but in the past these ideas were considered radical.

    Writers associated with utopianism include the moral philosopher William Godwin.

    In 1793 Godwin published “An Enquiry Into Political Justice”. This essay fired the imagination of a young William Wordsworth. He implored others, in a spirit of reckless extravagance to “throw aside your books of chemistry” and urged his contemporaries to focus on Godwin’s theories instead. Coleridge himself was encouraged by his message and composed a “hymn” honouring him, announcing in emphatic tones.

    “For that thy voice, in Passion’s stormy day,

    When wild I roam’d the bleak heath of Distress,

    Bade the bright form of Justice meet my way-

    And told me that her name was HAPPINESS.”

    At this time, Coleridge was young and fiery and determined to rid the world of all of its iniquities.

    He was a bold and ambitious young man with tremendous zeal. However he was also afflicted with a sensitivity that was frequently misunderstood and maligned by mainstream society and its institutions. He was invalided out of the Army, and in spite of early academic promise, failed to graduate from Cambridge University. He published his first volume of poetry in 1796, which also featured poems from Charles Lamb and Robert Southey.

    One year later he moved to a cottage in Nether Stowey, Somerset. He resided there for a year and created his best work, including “Kubla Khan”. This visionary, extraordinary poem was composed after an opium induced dream. The poem describes Xanadu, the summer capital of Mongol China. It details Emperor Kublai Khan’s pleasure dome, situated next to a holy river. The poem is a testament to the sacred and hallowed elements of the natural world.

    Voyages into far flung lands are enduring themes in English literature. These are mythic tales which are not meant to be literally true. These are works designed to represent a national sensibility. These reflect a common experience living on a cold, dark island cut off from the rest of the world. The yearning for escape to more exotic climes speaks to an insular people who have a deep longing for a land of promise, a paradise, or even a garden of Eden.

    Coleridge and his fellow Romantics were deeply committed to the artistic recreation of Godwin’s utopia. Utopia is more of a symbol than an actual destination, it represents the centre of goodness and harmony. The political philosophy of utopia has dwindled, but the art it inspired has left a lasting and profound legacy.

  • Irish Blood, English Heart

    Next week, the singer-songwriter Morrissey will celebrate his 66th birthday. He has enjoyed a long and fruitful career in music, but at the same time his name has become synonymous with “controversy”. He is the bete noire in an increasingly bland, anodyne and conformist industry.

    The music industry is dominated by big and powerful corporations. Consequently, the link between pop music and art has weakened. The record labels are solely motivated by commercial concerns, and this is the reason why he is currently without a recording contract.

    He has deliberately cultivated his outsider status, not in a spirit of cynicism or contrarianism, but as a purely artistic principle. Freedom of speech, and freedom of expression includes, as the saying goes, the freedom to say things that others do not want to hear. He makes other people feel uncomfortable, and that is the point. Art exists to challenge. Individuality is scorned in music, and groupthink perpetuates.

    It is bizarre to reflect on the amount of abuse and vitriol heaped upon just one artist for daring to express an opinion. It is considered acceptable to share mainstream opinions on political and cultural issues, but it is regarded as unacceptable to deviate or disagree. Modern pop stars resemble clones rather than real people with authentic voices. They are all marketed to fit into narrow boxes.

    It is an abhorrent situation which reveals a distinct absence of imagination. The end result is equally distasteful. The product churned out from the record labels does not sound like music at all, rather it is rendered an audible “mush”. These are identical, soulless creations made by computers rather than human beings.

    It is obvious that if an industry attempts to create flawless musicians, then the human connection is severed. The whole process is fake and artificial, and alienates the listener. On the other hand, if the industry allows its artists to reveal their human side then the listener can relate and empathise, and the link is strengthened. Morrissey has not deliberately “courted controversy” as the media like to claim, he has just been honest about how he feels about the world. His feelings are shared by many people.

    The media are not representative of society, they are not the spokespeople. Sometimes they convince themselves that they understand, and suggest that they reflect our views. However, like the music industry, they are simply a corporate business. They do not exist to enhance our wellbeing, only to make a profit from their product. They are not creative or imaginative people either, most journalists write basic, formulaic pieces. Again, it is purely a commercial, rather than an artistic product.

    Dull, unimaginative people lack the intelligence to understand the unique importance of art. It is tragic, but it is also comical to read the levels of ignorance that emanate from the critics. Unfortunately narrow minded people are very fond of stereotypes, and are perplexed when there are individuals who do not fit their ideas of how certain people should express themselves. They have a peculiar fixation on group identities, which are inventions themselves.

    The criticism has just provided Morrissey with yet more material to base songs around, like his hero Oscar Wilde he uses wit and subversion in his writing. However this just goes over the heads of the literal minded who fail to recognise irony. Wilde, the Irish born outsider who charmed the English intelligentsia was ultimately scorned by the very people who made his literary career. The British Establishment did not realise at the time that his apparent polite drawing room comedies were actually satirical dramas in disguise. Hopefully Morrissey, rather than the behemoth enterprise that calls itself the recording industry will have the last laugh.

  • In Praise of Cats

    The English poet, Christopher Smart was born on the 11th April, 1722. He is chiefly remembered for his startling and innovative religious poetry. However he was misunderstood in his lifetime. He was part of the tradition of fragile genius, epitomised by other original and solitary poets like John Clare. Clare was declared mad and confined to an asylum, an unhappy experience which nonetheless allowed him free rein to develop his poetic sensibility.

    It is a fine line to tread, as the division between truly original thought and madness is tenuous. Conventional society is suspicious of free thinkers, and those who are blessed with the gift of imagination often find the business of ordinary living stifling. It is hard to feel confined by the everyday restrictions of life, and authority figures always attempt to undermine anyone who dares to be creative. It is therefore inevitable that artistic and creative people are prone to mental illness as they are overwhelmed by prejudices and philistinism.

    In 1757, Smart was committed to St Luke’s Hospital for Lunatics. He was isolated in this bleak, forbidding asylum with only his beloved cat Jeoffry for company. While interned at St Luke’s he composed a moving paean to Jeoffry. In “My Cat Jeoffry”, Smart pays tribute to a creature who, in his mind, embodies godly virtues. According to the poet, every action, no matter how banal, is Jeoffry’s way of communing with God.

    However the poem is much more than an outpouring of love for a cherished pet, it is actually an important lesson in humility. This is something that humanity rarely takes heed, as it is a species in which the ego is paramount. As Smart acknowledges,

    “For he is good to think on, if a man would express himself neatly.”

    The poem is reminiscent of St Francis’ profound eulogies to animals. The animals are holy and noble, and part of the wonder and beauty of God’s creation.

    Smart’s verse resonates with anyone who has ever had the privilege of owning a cat. It is not far-fetched to state that they are imbued with a distinct quality of magic wisdom. Jeoffry was just one remarkable cat among a magnificent species.