While reading this poem I went back and analyzed the symbolism in this poem. Spring and fall both symbolize change. Spring symbolizes birth, fresh new life, birth and to many people a new beginning. Autumn on the other hand symbolizes the beginning of the end, change, the coming of death. The fact that this poem is addressed to a young child makes me believe that this was Hopkins’ way of explaining death to a young child. Hopkins even compares man to leaves, which change with time. Like man, not only go through a change but they die as well.
“Leaves, like the things of man, you
With your fresh thoughts care for, can you?
Ah, as the heart grows older
It will come to such sights colder” (Line 3-6)
When I was younger I remember the first time that I realized that children could die as well. Like the poem, I connected death with change however I realized that this change not only happened to things that were old but my “fresh thoughts” were demolished with the death of another child.
The poem is so short but yet the way that it is presented to the child makes a simple connection from an everyday aspect that a child is able to comprehend to a subject that some adults still have difficult time dealing with. Hopkins even finds the correct position to touch on the subject of ghosts which frightens most children. By doing this she makes the subject more personable by referring to the death of a loved one.
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Enjoyed your post. I wrote about this passage as well..though with a different perspective. Your post gave me a different way to look at it..I can see the the connection that you made about him explaining death to a child and relating that to changes in season.
ReplyDeleteSimone,
ReplyDeleteVery good post on Hopkins's poem! You do a good job of framing your engagement with and exploration of the poem for your blog readers. Good use of textual evidence, too.