Thomas
Grey
By
Alessia Ciacco
The Romantic age
In the second half of the 18th century literary styles
were changing…. sensibility and imagination began
to replace rationality and harmony.
Romantic is
“EMOTIONAL MATTER IN AN IMAGINATIVE
FORM”
highlights the key concepts of the literature of the
age: emotions and imagination.
The poets’ main interest became the workings of their minds, thus
introducing a strong autobiographical element.
The poet became a prophet and a teacher who wanted to be
understood by everybody.
Poets also developed a greater interest in nature, seeing it as a
source of inspiration.
Pre-romantic poets
Two writers in particular represent this complex age
of transition in England:
• The first was Thomas Gray. His poetry is classical
in form, but introduced new theames.
• The second writer, William Blake, was a forerunner
of the Romantic poets. Most of his poetry is easy to
understand, but at the same time presents visionary
elements and symbolism that have made him unique.
The life
Thomas Gray was born in London and he was the fifth and
only surviving child of twelve. His father, Philip, was
a money scrivener in the City of London, described by his
wife in their separation papers as ‘a scoundrel and a
brute’.
In 1725 his mother, at her own expense, sent him
to Eton, where Thomas befriended the young Horace
Walpole, Richard West and Thomas Ashton, who together
formed the ‘quadruple alliance’, and with whom Gray had
lasting, possibly homosexual, relationships.
He read widely in Greek, Latin, French and Italian, and developed interests in
architecture, mediaeval literature and natural history. He was a brilliant scholar,
called by one of his friends “the most learned man in Europe”.
However, he did not produce many literary works. He is most remembered for his
“Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” composed after the death of his friend,
Richard West. He also produced a certain amount of satirical verse, most of which
was destroyed after his death. He died in 1771 and a memorial was erected for him
in Poet’s Corner in Westminster Abbey.
Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard
Characteristic of the Romantic poets Gray moves away
from the neo-classical themes towards a more Romantic
sensitivity.
The poem is an elegy in name but, not in form;
Made up of thirty-two quatrains with an ABAB rhyme
scheme, the structure of Gray’s “Elegy” is decidedly
neo-classical with a rich and complex language, that
produce the macabre atmosphere which have made Gray’s
Elegy’ so famous.
Gray’s poem is a meditation on death. The poet’s thoughts move the moment of
death back to the lives which preceded it and he ponders how social
differences are all destined to be extinguished after death.
Gray’s Elegy was much more influential, so that the Italian writer Foscolo, was
inspired by it for “Dei Sepolcri”.
Elegy
Elegy is a mournful poem which speaks about death in
general or the death of a specific person or people.
HISTORY
The Greek term elegeia originally referred to any verse written
in elegiac couplets and covering a wide range of subject matter
(death, love, war). The term also included commemorative verses.
The Latin elegy was most often erotic or mythological.
Even if, examples of ancient elegy as a the poem of mourning
include Catullus' Carmen 101, on his dead brother.
The
form
reached
its
zenith
with
the
collections
of Tibullus, Propertius, and several collections of Ovid. Indeed
Ovid wrote elegies bemoaning his exile, which he likened to a death.
Grey vs Foscolo
The Italian poet Ugo Foscolo was inspired by Gray’s Elegy’ when he wrote “Dei
Sepolcri”. Foscolo had come into contact with and read a great deal of English
literature, having lived in the country for many years.
There are many similarities and difference between the two works
Gray
GRAVE: it doesn’t matter, if we
have an impressive monument or a
humble tomb, because death is seen
as having a democrating effect it
that it brings all people down to the
same level.
Foscolo
GRAVE: as the symbol of the illusion
of life after death and as the link
between the dead and the living.
It is a Patriotic poem written as a
protest against Napoleon.
Thanks for
watching…
Alessia Ciacco
Classe IV A
Anno Scolastico
2014/2015