Symbolist Poetry Movement: June 2009

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

My Poem

My poem “Marsh Graveyard” is inspired by Symbolist poetry and is my attempt at the movement. Several images are evoked in my poem and death is a prevalent symbol, which was common of many Symbolist poems. I create some rhymes, but the poem is not forced into a rigid structure. The scene of a marsh and Native American burial site inspired this poem. I have tried to bring out some of the feelings within this scene.

Marsh Graveyard

Brilliant morning light warms the dew

Your hard rocks surround the gentle tree of pale red

Within the garden, slowly eaten alive

Petals fall and lie like the dead

Old memories you refuse to hide

Falling softly where others have bled

A sea of mourning conceals with high tide

Nature has danced their dance since they wed

No need for epiphany, their spirit is known

Haunting the earth with beauty hidden

To their fate no one is forbidden.

Symbolist Art

Main representatives of Symbolist art

The Death of the Gravedigger

This painting is known as “The Death of the Gravedigger” by Carlos Schwabe. The scene is within a graveyard covered with a thin layer of snow. The main visual is of an old gravedigger standing within a grave and looking up to an angel dressed in black. She holds a green light in her hand and it reflects on her neck. He holds his heart as he watches her, therefore the light signifies his soul the angel is taking. The gravedigger and angel clearly show death, but there is life surrounding them. In the forefront there are small buds growing out of the snowy ground and a tree branch cascades over them. In the background the graveyard looks calm and peaceful, the snow is untouched. Schwabe’s painting is clearly a part of the Symbolist movement. Many common Symbolist themes are present in this painting. Death is the major symbol and captures attention at first glance of the poem. Angels are another motif that is common to Symbolist work. The angel in this painting is representing death which is a unique technique at the time to connect death with angels and beauty. It is suggestive of ideas explored in a few of the Baudelaire poems that intertwine beauty with demise. The poses of the two main figures clearly show the emotions they feel. Understanding the emotions within is an essential part of Symbolism. The feeling of the painting is also heightened by the forefront being contrasted with the pure, calm snow behind. Carlos Schwabe was a Swiss-German Symbolist painter. This shows the effect that Symbolism had on the world. Schwabe studied for a time in France and developed his own sense of the Symbolist movement. In his painting he captures emotions through his powerful image.

The Symbolist Movement

Symbolism was a movement that occurred at the end of the 19^th century that originated in French poetry and art. Poets focused on their own existence and also explored various groups and countries for inspiration. They used their poems to express deep feelings and their poems gave life to the sensations of everyday subjects. Symbolists rejected conventions and gave their poems individuality. Naturalism and Realism are movements that had come before that Symbolism rebelled from. Those movements were very literal in everyday reality while Symbolism tried to capture the spirituality within. Charles Baudelaire was the earliest Symbolist poet. Baudelaire expressed the sorrow in his life through many of his poems. The work of Edgar Allan Poe influenced the movement. Baudelaire admired him and translated his work into French. An important aspect of Symbolist poems is their sound. The poets focused on the language and symbols when creating their poems. Many such as Baudelaire, Mallarmé, and Verlaine had been writing in Symbolist style, but the term was established in 1885 by Jean Moréas. He wrote the Symbolist Manifesto and believed that poets should aim to find truth that could be found indirectly through poems. Symbolist poets argued to be seen as a new group. In the mid 1880s there was criticism that they were connected with the Decadent movement. This is what brought on Moréas’s Manifesto that defended the movement. The Symbolist poets were outside society and often lead tragic lives. Many turned to isolation, drugs, alcohol, and prostitution. By the end of the 19^th century the Movement waned with the death of leading poets, such as Mallarmé. The Symbolist movement did not last long in France; however, it greatly influenced the rest of the world. A few French poets, such as Paul Valéry and Paul Claudel, continued to use Symbolist style in their work. Beyond France Symbolism was also prevalent in Spain, Germany, America, and Eastern Europe. Symbolism loosened the constrictions on poetry at the time and allowed freer thought. The movement spanned countries as well as art forms and captured change in thought that was beginning at that time.

Work Cited

"French Symbolist Poetry ." Nineteenth-Century Literary Criticism. 2009. eNotes. 1 Jun 2009 .

Holcombe , John. "Symbolist Poets." Textetc.com. 2007. 31 May 2009 .

"Symbolism (Arts)." Wikipedia. 29 May 2009. Wikipedia. 1 Jun 2009 .

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

An Explication of “The Eyes of Beauty” by Charles Baudelaire

In “The Eyes of Beauty” Baudelaire is speaking about the eyes of a beautiful woman. He talks about the sadness that is within him from memories he has. He says that she wants his heart, but it has already been destroyed by women. He goes into detail about his heart’s ruin and women’s evil ways. Then he gets distracted by the woman he is with and changes his mind. He claims that beauty controls his emotions and he gives into them. Baudelaire plays with the language within this poem, first by speaking to the reader and giving him the role of beauty. He also speaks about beauty in the third person in the end, as if it is no longer personal but rather out of his control. Baudelaire uses a lot of images to convey his emotions. In the first stanza he compares his blood to the sea. This gives weight to his sadness and gives the reader the ability to relate to his bitterness to salt left from the ocean and its “surges, and ebbing”. Next he tells her that her touch serves no purpose because the heart that she searches for has been damaged by past women. He characterizes them as evil by their “tooth and talon” and by calling them dogs. He goes farther in explaining his pain by explaining how they separated and tore his heart and filled themselves with his destruction. At this point the poem shifts, “A perfume swims about your naked breast!” He changes his tone, but not for her heart, but for her body that is irresistible. Now giving into beauty he claims that it is the cause of all his problems. The eyes of beauty are now described as “flame-like” that he believes shine on him only to further destroy him, “eyes that at bright feasts have flared”. His view of women is of evil creatures that want to devastate him. In the last line he gives in and tells her to “burn” what is left of himself. In the end by connecting this woman with fire he is explaining the passion he finds in her and the destruction she will cause him. In this poem Baudelaire explains beauty as being a surface quality. The beautiful women that he speaks of are destructive, but alluring.

The Eyes of Beauty

The Eyes of Beauty by Charles Baudelaire

Reflection

The Symbolism poetry movement was a French poetry movement that attempted to express the feelings of everyday reality. This movement went against naturalism and realism that had come before. Symbolism instead delved into spirituality, the imagination, and dreams. Strong emotions were emphasized and poems were written in freer verse than they had been previously. Symbolism interprets everyday experiences in interesting ways in order to capture its reality and true feelings. After reading several symbolist poems it is clear that the poets delve into the ordinary and find its meaning rather than writing about the ideal. One way the poets accomplish this is through their imaginative word choices. Another aspect that stands out is the use of rhyme in all the poems. Stéphane Mallarmé uses interesting word choices and combinations to enrich his poems. In “Sea-Wind” he creates the line, “ancient gardens mirrored in the eyes.” In “Moonlight” Paul Verlaine also uses creative word choices, to describe moonlight he uses the phrase “lovely melancholy light.” In Verlaine’s “Like city’s rain, my heart…” he expresses his own emotions by comparing them to the rain. Verlaine is inventive in his poem “For Charles Baudelaire” as he addresses Charles Baudelaire who is another Symbolist poet. Baudelaire gets at unique ideas in his poetry. In “Beauty” he explores death within beauty. In “The Dance of Death” he contrasts death with life to evoke the feelings of death. In “The Eyes of Beauty” he uses strong imagery to convey his thoughts and his lost ability to love. Arthur Rimbaud also uses imagery in his poem “Ophelia” as he evokes the feelings of her drowning. In “Dance of the Hanged Men” Rimbaud ironically uses a playful tone to discuss the dead. Laforgue’s poem “Harlequins (they have principles)” uses a style different from many of the other poems. He includes parts of a conversation within his poem. Each of the Symbolist poems I read express emotions in unique, powerful ways. They focus on the mood and are mainly concerned with the feelings their poems evoke.