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.

His request to Julia

JULIA, if I chance to die
Ere I print my poetry,
I most humbly thee desire
To commit it to the fire;
Better 'twere my book were dead
Than to live not perfected


This poem is written to an assumed lover, giving her instructions on what to do, shall the writer perish. He is claiming that if he does die, he wishes Julia to set ablaze his works, becuase they have not yet been perfected. This theory he had probably carried over to living his life too. "Better 'twere my book dead Than to live not perfected" could easily be seen as a way to live, meaning live your life to the fullest and to it's fullest extent. I chose this poem, because I agree with him. Every time I have attempted to write poetry, whether for class or for pleasure, I have stopped and thrown it away because it wasn't good enough for my standards. With writing, I generally am a perfectionist, and that doesn't usually bode well for my stabs at writing a decent poem.

An Assessment

I have always enjoyed the traditional literature class structure, so this class was a huge shock to my system from day one. I thought the classic setting for a lit class was appropriate and definitely facilitated the material and made it easy to learn. It was always easier for me to learn poetry if a teacher held my hand and walked me through it. This class threw me for a loop in that the focus had completely deviated from the norm. This class is more self-exploration and reflection with each poem. I had great difficulty with this at first, seeing as in all my years of schooling, I had never really encountered a class like this. It's a much more demanding style than I'm used to. More critical thinking, less critical listening. I definitely thought that I was learning a lot less about the poems than I had in my previous classes in the beginning, but I think that as we have progressed, my skills of interpretation have improved, and thus I've gathered more on my own. I have never been particularly good at analyzing poems, but I feel that I am better now than ever before. This class has structure, being mainly student-content driven has been very rewarding and interesting to me. Usually there is very little participation by students in my literature classes, but this is definitely an exception. I like the idea of classes being experimental like this, but I feel that one thing must be changed. I feel that in the course description, it should give heed that this is a very experimental class and is not for everyone. I could see those who are in a more science or math oriented field having great difficulty. That is the main thing I would change, because we all essentially entered this class blindfolded with no idea where we were going. I feel that I have greatly improved my skills in dealing with poetry in this class. It is sometimes difficult to post blogs at a fast pace for me, because I like to take as much time as I can to work on something before posting it, but I feel that I have done a pretty decent job keeping up and still being thorough with my work. I would like to see more classes like this in the future, and less of the whole read a poem, professor walks you through it, test, then research paper classes I'm used to.

The Pillar of Fame

Fame's pillar here at last we set,

Out-during marble, brass or jet;
Charmed and enchanted so
As to withstand the blow
O f o v e r t h r o w;
Nor shall the seas,
O r o u t r a g e s
Of storms, o'erbear
What we uprear;
Tho' kingdoms fall,
This pillar never shall
Decline or waste at all;
But stand for ever by his own
Firm and well-fixed foundation.


Click Here for the Actual Format of the Poem.


The poem begins with the pillar of fame being set and will outlast the tangible traces it can leave behind, such as statues or shrines. Fame is "Charmed and enchanted so as to withstand the blow of overthrow," meaning that it has been tempered as to be able to endure whatever may challenge it and try to bring the person down from prominence. It is saying that once you have ascended the pillar of fame, you will stay there. The Robert Herrick's The Pillar of Fame next sentence states that it cannot even be toppled by the wrath of mother nature, or wars that could take down a kingdom. The Pillar of Fame will outlast all and endure beyond the one who is on top of it. The line, "But stand for ever by his own firm and well-fixed foundation," is saying that fame is self-supporting and can live forever.