Text 102

From The Song of Solomon

Chapter 1, Verse 5-6

I am dark, but lovely,

О daughters of Jerusalem,

Like the tents of Kedar,

Like the curtains of Solomon.

Do not look upon me, because I am dark,

Because the sun has tanned me.

My mother's sons were angry with me;

They made me the keeper of the vineyards,

But my own vineyard I have not kept.

7.3 Romanticists' Loves

The Elizabethan and post-Elizabethan love poetry was frank, sincere, and declarative. Those were declarations indeed. During the next two centuries, the feeling, though changed little, became clothed somewhat differently. The Revolution and the Restoration left little space for intimate lyrics. The Enlightenment Age was witty and skeptical accepting love sentiments with a grain of salt.

It was the Romantic Movement that sanctified love and passion afresh. In the silence of their hearts those poets experienced shattering tempests. And most often, they weren't very happy in love in the traditional sense. The music that love begot in them never failed to be tragic. Hear the voice of George Gordon Byron in Stanzas for Music (1814):

I speak not, I trace not, I breathe not thy name;

There is grief in the sound, there is guilt in the fame;

But the tear which now burns on my cheek may impart

The deep thoughts that dwell in that silence of heart.

Perhaps, Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792—1822) did share a more optimistic view in his public life, but his lyrical poems are always deeply sad and tragic. Why so? Shelley, on the surface, had no trouble in living a 'decent' life. He came from an aristocratic family, and was financially independent. Probably, his financial security explained how he could manage to indulge in unconventional behaviour. Love of freedom, love for women were the root of all his 'evil' ways, making him an outcast for the rest of his days. In 1811, at the age of 19, he eloped to Italy with Harriet Westbrook who was only sixteen. In 1814, he fell in love with Mary Godwin (sweet seventeen then) who later became his second wife. Obviously, the poet was an opponent of existing marriage laws and an advocate of universal love.

Still Shelley once complained that nothing in human nature is permanent: 'nought may endure but Mutability'. Maybe, his restless mind found consolation in revolt – a sort of adolescent rebellion against all existing laws, customs, and religion. This spirit is self-pitying, over-intense, and as immature as a rush of acne. In fact, such poetry seems to be not all-too-difficult to write (provided that you have got talent, of course). Shelley did have talent. As a lyrical poet of Nature, Shelley makes the greatest appeal. He possesses subtle sensitivity and an enchanting melodic power. The following poem is a classic example of the above said quality. Hear the tragic voice of the romantic bard!