To finish off my month of looking at William Cowper, here is an essay that I have written on his life and work – an attempt to draw together the threads of life that was simultaneously dark and beautiful. I hope you find it a helpful read. William Cowper – The Waiting Soul
Author Archives: Matthew Pullar
Sonnet for Nat
Today I had a day of study, working on an assignment for my Masters degree that is due in two and a half weeks. My brain began the day as slop, and by the end was sloppier still, not helped by the fact that most of the reading involved trying to understand Ludwig Wittgenstein (aContinue reading “Sonnet for Nat”
A Fable (After William Cowper’s “The Poet, the Oyster and the Sensitive Plant”)
Although best known for his more serious work, William Cowper was also a master of comic verse. His most famous comic poem was the hilarious tale, based on a true story, of John Gilpin – well worth a read if you don’t know it already. However, he wrote a number of very clever minor poemsContinue reading “A Fable (After William Cowper’s “The Poet, the Oyster and the Sensitive Plant”)”
Solitude and Grace (After William Cowper’s “The Solitude of Alexander Selkirk”)
One of William Cowper’s more famous poems, “The Solitude of Alexander Selkirk” takes on the perspective of the real-life inspiration for Robinson Crusoe, a buccaneer cast away on an island in the South Pacific for four years. Though much less famous than Defoe’s novel, Cowper’s poem brought English the saying, “The monarch of all I survey”.Continue reading “Solitude and Grace (After William Cowper’s “The Solitude of Alexander Selkirk”)”
Buried Above Ground (After William Cowper’s “Sapphics”)
I suspect that one of the darkest poems in the English language is William Cowper’s “Lines Written During a Period of Insanity”, or, as it is sometimes more tactfully called, “Sapphics”. Written after his first suicide attempt, the poem deals with the idea of eternal condemnation which was one of his greatest fears. In theContinue reading “Buried Above Ground (After William Cowper’s “Sapphics”)”
Clouds and Crowns No.7
No longer sure that clouds say what is true, I look upon the crown of golden days And see instead a stretching, open haze, A space which does not shift for signs of You. Eternity confuses me; I view The openness of time with halting gaze, A rupturing of boundaries, blinding daze, The fear ofContinue reading “Clouds and Crowns No.7”
Clouds and Crowns No.6
And I am caught by wonders of new birth, Not knowing yet how quickly all things die, Assuming as I run that I can fly, That life springs always out in vibrant mirth. Still all my dreams are equal in their worth; The clouds collect expectant in the sky, With promises and oceans to supply,Continue reading “Clouds and Crowns No.6”
Clouds and Crowns No.5
The overture of forests, dead, remade, Whispers pianissimo through leaves. Although the burnt-out wilderness still grieves And ashen dust hangs densely in the shade, The smallest stems of green, a micro-glade, Peek out through fire-black trunks in smoky breeze, The first-fruits of our chlorophyll reprieves, The peaceful eye after the storm is paid. All thisContinue reading “Clouds and Crowns No.5”
Clouds and Crowns No.4
And nothing pure dies when safe in truth, For truth and life flow from the same deep spring, Restoring, making new each broken thing, Our death and dying fading into youth. And if our doubting hearts required proof, The flowers promise too what time can bring: A crown of roses for a weary king AndContinue reading “Clouds and Crowns No.4”
Clouds and Crowns No.3
And You can reign, though nailed to a tree, A truth my mind cannot as yet contain, Defying my small child’s concept of “reign”, A word that conjures up the king in me: King of the hills, imagination’s sea; The waves cow-tow, the soil receives my train, My dreams subduing everywhere I deign To stretchContinue reading “Clouds and Crowns No.3”
The Consolations of Writing 