Self Assessment II

Self Assessment for the Second Half of the Semester

I feel that as this class has gone on, that the whole idea of an electronic classroom has grown on me quite a bit. I had been skeptical for the better part of the semester, but after getting used to it I have changed my opinion. I feel that having us search online for the interpretations and commentary on the poems greatly helped me in my understanding of them. I have never been very good at analyzing the meanings of poetry, but I feel that I really have taken a great step forward in this aspect thanks to this class. Having each of us take poems and work on them individually, with the internet as our source, really helped to develop my ability to analyze poetry. My understanding of researching poetry has also expanded. I learned of several new databases to look through for information. After experiencing this class, I would like to have an increasing number of technology-involved classes in the future. There is an overwhelming amount of information on web 2.0 and having classes that focus on tapping into that knowledge gives students a limitless learning environment.

Milton's Sonnet 12

Sonnet 12
by John Milton

I did but prompt the age to quit their cloggs
By the known rules of antient libertie,
When strait a barbarous noise environs me
Of Owles and Cuckoes, Asses, Apes and Doggs.
As when those Hinds that were transform'd to Froggs
Raild at Latona's twin-born progenie
Which after held the Sun and Moon in fee.
But this is got by casting Pearl to Hoggs;
That bawle for freedom in their senceless mood,
And still revolt when truth would set them free.
Licence they mean when they cry libertie;
For who loves that, must first be wise and good;
But from that mark how far they roave we see
For all this wast of wealth, and loss of blood.








This sonnet was one of Milton's works on his divorce. The negativity in his divorce work usually prevails over reason. This work in particular was said to be targeted at one of two groups, Presbyterians who had rejected his divorce pamphlets, or the radical sects who had welcomed them too enthusiastically.

I did but prompt the age to quit their cloggs By the known rules of antient libertie, When strait a barbarous noise environs me Of Owles and Cuckoes, Asses, Apes and Doggs.
The first section of this sonnet is Milton asking readers to leave behind their thoughts on the divorce laws and to not listen to the opinions swirling around you from others.


As when those Hinds that were transform'd to Froggs Raild at Latona's twin-born progenie Which after held the Sun and Moon in fee. But this is got by casting Pearl to Hoggs;

This part is a reference to Apollo and Diana, the deities of the sun and moon, and their mother, Latona. Latona went to drink from a pool of water, and the villagers did not allow it, so they were all turned to frogs. The line of the sun and moon holding them in fee means that Apollo and Diana could hold the villagers as their own.


That bawle for freedom in their senceless mood, And still revolt when truth would set them free. Licence they mean when they cry libertie;

In this, he targets the Prebytarians and their rejection of divorce. It was said that Milton didn't target them for taking the Reformation too far, but rather, not taking it far enough.
For who loves that, must first be wise and good; But from that mark how far they roave we see For all this wast of wealth, and loss of blood. To close the sonnet, Milton says that the civil war took a toll on the people and their quality of life, but did so in vain. It is in vain because those now in power, the Presbytarians, have reverted to old habits that should be a thing of the past, rather than spreading liberty.

Milton's Sonnet 13

Sonnet 13 by John Milton

XIII

To Mr. H. Lawes, on his Aires.

Harry whose tuneful and well measur'd Song
First taught our English Musick how to span
Words with just note and accent, not to scan
With Midas Ears, committing short and long;
Thy worth and skill exempts thee from the throng,
With praise enough for Envy to look wan;
To after age thou shalt be writ the man,
That with smooth aire couldst humor best our tongue
Thou honour'st Verse, and Verse must send her wing
To honour thee, the Priest of Phoebus Quire
That tun'st their happiest lines in Hymn or Story
Dante shall give Fame leave to set thee higher
Then his Casella, whom he woo'd to sing
Met in the milder shades of Purgatory.








Harry whose tuneful and well measur'd Song
First taught our English Musick how to span
Words with just note and accent, not to scan
With Midas Ears, committing short and long;

This poem was written as an introduction to Henry Lawes' 1648 arrangement of the Psalms, which was dedicated to King Charles. Lawes was a music instructor and close friend of John Milton. The first section of the poem is about Lawes being the first to write a truly musical English song. His music was said to preserve the poets' rhythm and stress patterns when he composed it. The scanning is picking up those patterns and rhythm that he wrote them with. According to myth, Midas lacked the ability to recognize these, so Apollo gave him the ears of a donkey. The short and long in this stanza is short syllables being combined with long notes.



Thy worth and skill exempts thee from the throng, With praise enough for Envy to look wan; To after age thou shalt be writ the man, That with smooth aire couldst humor best our tongue

This stanza is saying that Lawes' skill as a writer and composer distinguishes him from the rest of the writers of his time. The praise he received was enough to "bruise" other writers with envy. After his time is over, he will be remembered as one of the best, who could write in a manner most appealing to singers and listeners.



Thou honour'st Verse, and Verse must send her wing To honour thee, the Priest of Phoebus Quire That tun'st their happiest lines in Hymn or Story

In this stanza, it is said that his ability to write not only pleases listeners, but brings honor upon the verse in which the psalm is written. It is work worthy of the choir of Apollo, the god of music and poetry.



Dante shall give Fame leave to set thee higher Then his Casella, whom he woo'd to sing Met in the milder shades of Purgatory.

The last stanza is a reference to Dante and his entrance to purgatory, where he ran into his friend, Casella, a friend who was a musician. Dante requests a song played, and Casella plays Purgatorio, which was Dante's work put to music by the musician.

The Mower's Song

The Mower's Song
By Andrew Marvell


My Mind was once the true survey
Of all these Meadows fresh and gay;
And in the greenness of the Grass
Did see its Hopes as in a Glass;
When Juliana came, and she
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

But these, while I with Sorrow pine,
Grew more luxuriant still and fine;
That not one Blade of Grass you spy'd,
But had a Flower on either side;
When Juliana came, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

Unthankful Meadows, could you so
A fellowship so true forego,
And in your gawdy May-games meet,
While I lay trodden under feet?
When Juliana came , and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

But what you in Compassion ought,
Shall now by my Revenge be wrought:
And Flow'rs, and Grass, and I and all,
Will in one common Ruine fall.
For Juliana comes, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

And thus, ye Meadows, which have been
Companions of my thoughts more green,
Shall now the Heraldry become
With which I shall adorn my Tomb;
For Juliana comes, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

My Mind was once the true survey
Of all these Medows fresh and gay;
And in the greenness of the Grass
Did see its Hopes as in a Glass;
When Juliana came, and she
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

Green is the color of hope, and the glass is a mirror. I believe that to mean that when he looks inside himself, he sees hope for his future with Juliana. This is his overconfidence of his place in the natural order of things. His innocence can be better seen as ignorance. The last two lines say that what he does to the grass, cut it down with his scythe, is the same as what she does to his thoughts and self when she comes. This means that his yearning for her is truly tearing him apart.

But these, while I with Sorrow pine,
Grew more luxuriant still and fine;
That not one Blade of Grass you spy'd,
But had a Flower on either side;
When Juliana came, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

This stanza is saying that while he laments his sorrow, the grass grows more and more abundant. His sorrow is that he is not the center of the world and that it does not revolve around him. He then says that the flowers are not growing, perhaps signifying that their love is not blossoming as the mower would have hoped.

Unthankful Meadows, could you so
A fellowship so true forego,
And in your gawdy May-games meet,
While I lay trodden under feet?
When Juliana came , and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

This stanza is possibly saying that nature is ungrateful for the service Damon provides. The mower sees nature in his own narrow view of what is and what is not right in the world. He blames nature for being unnatural, but in all actuality, it is doing precisely what it is supposed to do. The line about gaudy may-games is said to be a reference to “The excessive zeal of the Puritan consciousness with which Marvell and other moderates had to contend.”

But what you in Compassion ought,
Shall now by my Revenge be wrought:
And Flow'rs, and Grass, and I and all,
Will in one common Ruine fall.
For Juliana comes, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

In the fourth stanza, the human nature of revenge becomes Damon’s motivation in life. He is saying that as he cuts the grass, so too will he fall. He says this because he is not with Juliana.

And thus, ye Meadows, which have been
Companions of my thoughts more green,
Shall now the Heraldry become
With which I shall adorn my Tomb;
For Juliana comes, and She
What I do to the Grass, does to my Thoughts and Me.

The last stanza here is about the Mower’s acceptance of his fate. He will not be with Juliana but he can still be with his meadow. It’s said that in this stanza, the mower is somewhat self-accepting, but only to a certain extent. The lines about heraldry and tombs suggest a lavish, aristocratic burial, yet Damon is a rural mower. It ends with him perhaps still not fully understanding how the world truly works.

Pastoral and Lyric Poems 1681

By Andrew Marvell, David Ormerod, Christopher Wortham

The Mower to the Glowworms

The Mower to the Glow-Worms
By Andrew Marvell

Ye living lamps, by whose dear light
The nightingale does sit so late,
And studying all the summer-night,
Her matchless songs does meditate;

Ye Country Comets, that portend
No war, nor princes funeral,
Shining unto no higher end
Than to presage the grasses' fall;

Ye glow-worms, whose officious flame
To wandring mowers shows the way,
That in the night have lost their aim,
And after foolish fires do stray;

Your courteous lights in vain you waste,
Since Juliana here is come,
For she my mind hath so displaced
That I shall never find my home.

Ye living lamps, by whose dear light
The nightingale does sit so late,
And studying all the summer-night,
Her matchless songs does meditate;

In this first stanza, the mower is overlooking his field on a summer night. The sun is down but light is still being emitted from the grass. It radiates from "living lamps" clinging to the blades of grass. These living lamps are the glowworms, who light the night for the other creatures who "sit so late." He is saying that the nightingale's song is it's way of meditating over the summer night.

Ye Country Comets, that portend

No war, nor princes funeral,

Shining unto no higher end

Than to presage the grasses' fall;

In the second stanza, he refers to the glowworms as country comets. Unlike real comets, he claims that these glowworms do not signify imminent catastrophe, such as the death of a prince or war. The only happening they forecast is the falling of the grass to the mower's blade.

Ye glow-worms, whose officious flame

To wandring mowers shows the way,

That in the night have lost their aim,

And after foolish fires do stray;

The glowworms emit their light, regardless the wishes of anyone around them. They serve as a runway to the mowers, thus guiding them in the night when they may have lost their aim. Perhaps though, they also serve a purpose to keep a mower focused if their minds had wandered from the task at hand. Foolish fires may be a reference to chasing Juliana, from the next stanza, and focusing on her when he is truly out there to do his job as a mower.

Your courteous lights in vain you waste,

Since Juliana here is come,

For she my mind hath so displaced

That I shall never find my home.

This stanza further expands on the ideas presented in the third stanza. He says the light emitted by the glowworms is appreciated, but wasted. Juliana has his full attention, thus rendering the light useless, for he is lost not in body, but mind. In the 17th century, it was believed that, "The world is full of such glow-wormes, that make some show of Spiritual Light from God." With this in mind, one may gather that the mower feels that he does not have room in his life for spirituality while Juliana holds captive his heart.



sources: http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=m9_7gQPe-tkC&oi=fnd&pg=RA1-PA175&dq=andrew+marvell+the+mower+to+the+glowworms+summary&ots=uMiWFj1R5r&sig=pu1q29oM-OP1dh1tF0f-SJI8h78#PRA1-PA169,M1

google images

http://faculty.goucher.edu/eng211/andrew_marvell.htm

Pictures by Thomas Hart Benton

The Glorious Revolution / Royalists vs Roundheads

Royalists vs. Roundheads




Headed by King Charles I, the Royalists were a party who believed strictly in the divine right of kings and that parliament had very little importance. This along with Catholic tendencies made for trying times in England. The Roundheads, or Parliament and their supporters, decided to take action against Charles and his regime by starting the English Civil War. The Roundheads chose Oliver Cromwell to lead their army against Charles. This was an issue of royal, professional soldiers taking on an army of the middle-class commoners.


The war became imminent when Charles continued to abuse his power to get what he willed. He dissolved parliament twice, and on the second, did so for eleven years. After a squashed uprising in Ireland, parliament feared Charles would use the army on them next. To counter this, the Roundheads chose Oliver Cromwell to lead their New Model Army. Cromwell hailed from a family who was not excessively rich, but still had power and influence.





Early in the war, the royalists held the upper hand, but the turning point came at the Battle of Naseby, in which the Roundheads destroyed a vast royalist force that would never be matched in skill, size, or power again by Charles and the Royalists. This was the end of the First English Civil War. The second war however was not far off. King Charles negotiated with the Scots, levying church reform, to get their backing. They agreed, thus beginning the Second English Civil War. This war, as the last one did boiled down to one battle, The Battle of Preston. In this battle, Cromwell’s Roundheads defeated the Royalists once again. This time, Charles
was to face the consequences of his actions. He was sent to trial for high treason, and was convicted. He was beheaded, thus ending his tyrannical reign. With a vacant throne, Oliver Cromwell was placed in charge as Lord Protector. This effectively ended the monarchy style of rule in England for the time being. It would not be a permanent end, but it was a beginning which was eventually achieved in the Glorious Revolution, in which England adopted a Parliamentary Monarchy. In this system, the monarch had powers with limits. Parliament held the power to overrule anything they saw as an abuse of power.

The Glorious Revolution

The 17th century in England had become one where its inhabitants had grown tired of absolute monarchy and Catholic rule. The Glorious Revolution, or Revolution of 1688, was one to overthrow the Catholic King James II of England. The one chosen to lead the revolution against James was William of Orange, husband of James’ daughter, Mary. Mary had been the heir to the throne until James had a son of his own. William had been third in line for the throne. James refused to accept them as true heirs though, due to their unwillingness to support his Catholic views, because they were Protestant. When James had a son, many saw this as the start of a Catholic dynasty being formed, so they decided action must be taken. William was chosen to lead this revolt against James, and had the backing of the parliament and many Protestant nobles. An army was prepared for William, and they reached England to take on James. When they arrived, James’ troops fled, leaving the king to fend for himself. James in turn fled to France, avoiding leaving his fate in the hands of William’s troops.

This is the reason it is called the Bloodless Revolution. The throne was abandoned without having a brutal struggle over it. James’ flight meant that the throne of England was now open though, so a replacement must be found. In 1689, William and Mary were chosen by parliament to lead England together. The means by which they would lead were greatly altered from prior monarchs though. They signed the English Bill of Rights, forming England as a constitutional monarchy, subjecting their leaders to parliament’s authority. No longer could monarchs rule as they pleased without consequence. William and Mary were forced to agree to this before they could rule. The bill of rights ended any chance of another Catholic monarch, as well as limited the powers to suspend laws, tax people, or have a standing army in a time of peace without consent from parliament.

Though the revolution was bloodless in England, that does not mean it had the same results everywhere. James returned to Ireland to gather Irish Catholic support to attempt to regain his throne. William’s forces were in battle with the French already, but they were able to muster a Protestant army who would defeat the Catholics in the Battle of Boyne, thus ending James’ attempts at reclaiming the throne.

James’ grandson, Bonnie Prince Charlie, also attempted to reclaim the throne in 1746, but was met by King George II and his army at Culloden. Bonnie Prince Charlie was defeated easily, and then went into exile in France, where he became a drunk and died, along with his younger brother, thus ending the Stuart monarch line

Bitter-Sweet Herbert

AH my deare angrie Lord,
Since thou dost love, yet strike;
Cast down, yet help afford;
Sure I will do the like.
   
I will complain, yet praise;
I will bewail, approve:
And all my sowre-sweet dayes
I will lament, and love.


This poem is the author saying that the lord has taken something from him.
Whether it be a lost love or a death, he is upset about what he has lost.
In the second stanza, he says, "I will complain, yet praise: I will bewail, approve,"
This is saying that though he disagrees with what was taken from him and misses it deeply,
he will still love and respect the lord and praise his name, just he is a little
more reluctant than usual. He claims, "And all my sour-sweet days I will lament
and love," This solidifies the fact that he has seen better days and is mourning at
the current time, but he will continue to love.