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Tennyson’s Expression Of Personal Alergy In “In Memoriam” Poem
In Memoriam is a large collection of poems written by Alfred Lord Tennyson. Although there are different aspects that emerge from the series of poems, Tennyson generally mourns death of his friend, Arthur Hallam. Tennyson expresses his true feelings towards the death of his friend and discloses his deep thoughts on particular issues (Hass, Jasper & Jay, 2007). His expression of feelings and thoughts through the collection of poems is quite emotional and beautiful. Among the key aspects that emerge in the series of poems is grief. Throughout the series of poems, Tennyson shows the great impact that grief has on his life. The whole series consists of 133 stanzas (Cantos). This paper evaluates Tennyson’s expression of personal alergy in the poem.
Discussion
In the beginning, Tennyson presents himself as suffering from grief and feeling of helplessness. He is extremely obsessed with the death of Hallam. He is full of grief to the extent that he does not want to continue living. In Canto 16, he says “Or has the shock, so harshly given, confused me like the unhappy bark that strikes by night a craggy shelf, and staggers blindly ere she sinks? And stunned me from my power to think and all my knowledge of myself” (Tennyson, 2006). He finds that the grief has major negative effects on his mind. He even wonders whether he has become insane. At some point, he goes to the house where Hallam was living before he died and starts missing him. He is sad to realize that he will no longer see Hallam. In Canto 7, he says “Behold me, for I cannot sleep, and like a guilty thing I creep at earliest morning to the door.” In short, Tennyson is trying to portray the suffering that people go through during the initial stages of grieving after losing a close relative or friend. To most people, the world becomes overwhelming and meaningless.
However, Tennyson does not allow himself to get completely despaired. He eventually accepts that that the emotions he is going through are normal and necessary. However, he does so by trying to downplay the situation. In Canto 6, he tries to identify himself with other sufferers of loss (Block, 2007). At this point, the narrator shows how people try to come into terms with the situation. Usually, individuals experience feelings of denial and tend to question the reality. As Kessler and Kübler-Ross (2005) explain, the reactions during this stage help people to survive the loss. By downplaying the feelings as usual, Tennyson is trying to preserve self through denial. As well, Tennyson isolates himself and decides to write a poem which he describes in Canto 5 as having “dull narcotic”, “[pain-numbing]” effect on his mind (Tennyson, 2006). This is also a way of self-preservation.
Later, Tennyson decides to find comfort in Christianity, especially in the bible. Unfortunately, he does not find much comfort in the New Testament (Tennyson, 2006). He comes across resurrection symbols such as Easter and Lazarus. He starts to view life as a vale of soul-making. At some point, he perceives the state of eternal life after death as a potential answer to his problem. However, he still does not get a definitive answer (Tennyson, 2006). Generally, Tennyson demonstrates how individuals try to find alternative solutions when self-preservation strategies fail to alleviate grief or stress. In Canto 28, Tennyson says “This year I slept and woke with pain, I almost wished no more to wake, and that my hold on life would break, Before I heard those bells again” (Tennyson, 2006). Here, Tennyson believes that solution to his problem could be found in Christianity. Generally, finding alternative solutions occur when an individual acknowledges the traumatic event. At this point, most people are aggressive at finding solutions to overcome the grief by weighing all possible alternatives. However, as demonstrated by Tennyson, it may be difficult to get definitive solution to grief.
After failing to get a definitive answer to his problem, Tennyson starts examining questions related to nature and God (Tennyson, 2006). He wonders how God can let human beings to suffer, yet He is all good and all powerful. He tries to balance such themes as knowledge and wisdom, the eternal and the temporal and science and faith. At some point, he starts wondering about the purpose of human life. He discusses about the wasteful appearance of nature. However, he still opines that there could be an answer in the eternal life (Tennyson, 2006). Here, Tennyson demonstrates how people become depressed after all attempts to lessen, delay or prevent the impact of loss are unsuccessful. The depression leads to profound sadness, anger and resentment. At this point, individuals start exploring and questioning the reality. In some cases, they start bargaining with God.
Later, Tennyson expresses his social concern, stating that Hallam is both a humanitarian and a social creature. He accepts the idea of eternal life after death and develops a vision of Hallam. On this note, he seeks to avoid isolating himself from other people. Eventually, Tennyson starts to have some resolution to his problem. He starts viewing human beings as having a higher purpose. He argues that knowledge serves as a source of wisdom. As well, he starts viewing soul as the source of immortality (Tennyson, 2006). At this point, Tennyson has reached the final stage of grieving (acceptance). Acceptance is a natural process and a sign that the grieving person has found his peace. In Canto 106, he says “ring out the old, ring in the new” (Tennyson, 2006). Here, Tennyson is trying to show his acceptance for the reality. As portrayed in the poem, the grieving period usually ends with acceptance of the reality and acknowledgement of the challenges that human beings come across in life. After the grieving period is over, people usually start focusing on social progress (Williams, 2012). They start the process of healing and laying foundations to make the future better. This is well expressed by Tennyson who decides to reject isolationism and stresses the need for cooperation. In the poem, Tennyson shows that one way of working towards change after the grieving period is over through marriage.
However, there are several critical issues that emerge from the poem’s structure. Being a collection of poems, In Memoriam seems to lack a unified plot. As well, it lacks direction of some epics. It is clear that the different parts of the whole poem were not originally written together. They are written in different styles and some of them are incompatible. The three major elements that are explicit in the poem are Tennyson’s grief over the death of Hallam, his battle with religious doubts and questions of philosophical nature. Clearly, the three varying elements do not seem to work together (Williams, 2012). Although Hallam is present in the poem, he is not presented clearly as the dead friend. Lastly, the narrator seems to conclude that human beings should believe in eternal life or else, they are lost ethically, socially and politically. However, he does not give real substantive basis to support his faith. Despite this, it is vital to note that, as expressed in the poem, faith can help an individual to re-order natural facts in a way that helps to achieve a new philosophical view and pattern. In other words, the faith can help an individual to view the issues that have happened in a new way (Williams, 2012).
Conclusion
In conclusion, In Memoriam portrays how Tennyson cared for, Hallam and the extreme effect that the death of Hallam has on Tennyson. The series of poems demonstrate how Tennyson goes through powerful grief after the death of Hallam and the effects it has in his life. Initially, Tennyson tries to overcome the grief through self-preservation strategies. When the strategies are unsuccessful, he seeks comfort in Christianity. He also does not get a definitive answer from Christianity. Eventually, he accepts the situation but he still believes that a solution could be found in eternal life. He sticks to the new faith and decides to change and to move on with life. Generally, In Memoriam mirrors the emotional challenges that most people go through after losing friends and relatives through death. Although it is vast in nature, the poem is interesting and relevant since it proposes a solution to a problem that affects all people.
Works Cited
Block, Susan D. et al. “An Empirical Examination of the Stage Theory of Grief.” JAMA. 297.7 (2007):716-723. Web.
Hass, Andrew, David Jasper and Elisabeth Jay. The Oxford Handbook of English Literature and
Theology. Oxford University Press, 2007
Kessler, David and Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. On Grief and Grieving: Finding the Meaning of Grief
through the Five Stages of Loss. New York: Scribner, 2005. Print.
Tennyson, Alfred. “In Memoriam A.H.H.” Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol. II
(eighth ed.). Ed. Stephen Greenblatt. New York: Norton, 2006. 1138-88. Print
Williams, Todd O. A Therapeutic Approach to Teaching Poetry. London: Palgrave Macmillan,
2012
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