Ode to Melancholy
Thomas Hood, 1799 – 1845
Come, let us set our careful breasts,
Like Philomel[JE1] , against the thorn,
To aggravate the inward grief,
That makes her accents so forlorn;
The world has many cruel points,
Whereby our bosoms have been torn,
And there are dainty themes of grief,
In sadness to outlast the morn, —
True honor’s dearth, affection’s death,
Neglectful pride and cankering scorn,
With all the piteous tales that tears
Have water’d since the world was born.
The world! — it is a wilderness,
Where tears are hung on every tree;
For thus my gloomy phantasy
Makes all things weep with me!
Come let us sit and watch the sky,
And fancy clouds, where no clouds be;
Grief is enough to blot the eye,
And make heav’n black with misery.
Why should birds sing such merry notes,
Unless they were more blest than we?
No sorrow ever chokes their throats,
Except sweet nightingale; for she
Was born to pain our hearts the more
With her sad melody.
Why shines the sun, except that he
Makes gloomy nooks for Grief to hide,
And pensive shades for Melancholy,
When all the earth is bright beside?
Let clay wear smiles, and green grass wave,
Mirth shall not win us back again,
Whilst man is made of his own grave,
And fairest clouds but gilded rain!
I saw my mother in her shroud,
Her cheek was cold and very pale;
And ever since I’ve look’d on all
As creatures doom’d to fail!
Why do buds ope, except to die?
Ay, let us watch the roses wither,
And think of our loves’ cheeks:
And, O, how quickly time doth fly
To bring death’s winter hither!
Minutes, hours, days, and weeks,
Months, years, and ages shrink to nought;
An age past is but a thought!
Ay, let us think of him a while,
That, with a coffin for a boat,
Rows daily o’er the Stygian[JE2] moat,
And for our table choose a tomb:
There’s dark enough in any skull
To charge with black a raven plume;
And for the saddest funeral thoughts
A winding-sheet hath ample room,
Where Death, with his keen-pointed style,
Hath writ the common doom.
How wide the yew-tree spreads its gloom,
And o’er the dead lets fall its dew,
As if in tears it wept for them,
The many human families
That sleep around its stem!
How cold the dead have made these stones,
With natural drops kept ever wet!
Lo! here the best, the worst, the world
Doth now remember or forget,
Are in one common ruin hurled,
And love and hate are calmly met;
The loveliest eyes that ever shone,
The fairest hands, and locks of jet.
Is’t not enough to vex our souls,
And fill our eyes, that we have set
Our love upon a rose’s leaf,
Our hearts upon a violet?
Blue eyes, red cheeks, are frailer yet;
And, sometimes, at their swift decay
Beforehand we must fret:
The roses bud and bloom again;
But love may haunt the grave of love,
And watch the mould in vain.
O clasp me, sweet, whilst thou art mine,
And do not take my tears amiss;
For tears must flow to wash away
A thought that shows so stern as this:
Forgive, if somewhile I forget,
In woe to come, the present bliss.
As frighted Proserpine[JE3] let fall
Her flowers at the sight of Dis[JE4] ,
Even so the dark and bright will kiss.
The sunniest things throw sternest shade.
And there is even a happiness
That makes the heart afraid!
Now let us with a spell invoke
The full-orbed moon to grieve our eyes;
Not bright, not bright, but, with a cloud
Lapped all about her, let her rise
All pale and dim, as if from rest
The ghost of the late buried sun
Had crept into the skies.
The moon! she is the source of sighs,
The very face to make us sad;
If but to think in other times
The same calm, quiet look she had,
As if the world held nothing base,
Of vile and mean, of fierce and bad;
The same fair light that shone in streams,
The fair lamp that charmed the lad;
For so it is, with spent delights
She taunts men’s brains, and makes the mad.
All things are touched with melancholy,
Born of the secret soul’s mistrust,
To feel her fair ethereal wings
Weigh’d down with vile degraded dust;
Even the bright extremes of joy
Bring on conclusions of disgust,
Like the sweet blossoms of the May,
Whose fragrance ends in must.
O give her, then, her tribute just,
Her sighs and tears, and musings holy!
There is no music in the life
That sounds with idiot laughter solely;
There’s not a string attun’d to mirth,
But has its chord in Melancholy.[1]
Thomas Hood, 1799 - 1845
Thomas Hood was born in London on May 23 1799 to Thomas Hood and Elizabeth Sands. In 1811 upon the death of his father, his mother moved to Islington where Thomas had a schoolmaster that fostered Hood’s growing appreciation for literature and learning. Under the care of this teacher, Hood earned a few guineas by revising for the press a new edition of the 1788 novel Paul and Virginia. However, when he reached the age of 14, he left and was admitted into a counting house of family friend. Hood suffered from poor health and his career in the counting house negatively affected and he began to study engraving instead. This proved to be no better for his health and he moved to Dundee, Scotland where he stayed with his maternal aunt, Jean Keay.
He only stayed with his aunt for a short while, and then moved to a boarding house of one of his friends, Mrs. Butterworth, where he lived for the rest of his time in Scotland. During this time Hood lived an avid outdoor lifestyle, and made a number of close friends. At this time, he also began to earnestly write poetry and appeared in print for the first time in the Dundee Advertiser.
Hood continued to contribute humorous and poetical pieces to provincial newspapers and magazines, and in 1818 he returned to London and continued to apply himself through his engravings. In 1821, John Scott editor of The London Magazine, was killed in a duel and periodical passed into the hands of some friends of Hood. These friends proposed to make him sub-editor and the post immediately introduced him to the “Keats Circle.” Hood became an associate of John Hamilton Reynolds, Charles Lamb, Henry Cary, Thomas de Quincey, Allan Cunningham, Bryan Procter, Serjeant Talfourd, Hartley Coleridge, and even John Clare to name a few of the contributors. Having found himself within the crowd he began to develop his own literary writing.
His future brother-in-law John Hamilton Reynolds first introduced Hood to John Keats. Well, his writing at least. Due to being introduced to Keats, Hood began to write and mimic the style of the author. In his first attempt, Odes and Addresses printed 1824 was so close to the style and language of Keats that Coleridge wrote to Lamb averring the book must be a work of Lambs. This was, in a way, a very strong compliment for Hood who began to contemplate a second series. Hood also wrote The Plea of the Midsummer Fairies, 1827, and a dramatic romance Lamia, published later. However, all of this early work of Hood was largely unsuccessful and led Hood to focus upon his natural style.
Hood developed his style and verse to follow a more satirical and humorous style of writing. His most famous work in his life time, “The Song of the Shirt” which was a satirical piece focused upon a seamstress within the city of London became a powerful sensation and inspired social activists in defense of the laboring women living in poverty. However, due to his poor health and weak physical constitution Hood lapsed into invalidism by the age of 41 and died at the age of 45 on 3 May 1845. William Michael Rossetti in 1903 called him, “the finest English poet” between the generations of Shelley and Tennyson.
Explication
As was stated in the biography, Hood’s early poetry, on his return to London, was largely based off of his introduction to John Keats. This influence from Keats can be seen in several of his pieces, and would dominate his verse for the next six years or so. Some of his pieces even share a title so similar that there was little change in them at all. “Ode to Melancholy” is one such of these poems that have been largely influenced by Keats. Hood seems to be the first major English poet to truly be influenced by the language and verse of John Keats. Though he spent six years following in the footsteps of Keats, and developing his verse through it, this selection of his verse was largely unsuccessful.
There is without a doubt a serious influence from John Keats within these works. When we look at “Ode to Melancholy” we can even pinpoint such events. For example, John Keats would commonly use Greek imagery and stories to convey certain aspects within his work. One such example of this in Hoods’ “Ode to Melancholy” is his reference to Philomel. Philomel, or Philomela is a minor figure in Greek mythology. She is raped and mutilated by her sister’s husband and turns into a Nightingale. Hoods references the River Styx through the name of Stygian and doesn’t stop there. Like Keats, Hood begins to mix and match Greek mythological characters and stories with Roman ones. He references Proserpine who is the Roman Goddess of Springtime and wife of Pluto. He also references Dis, now Dis is an interesting character. Originally, Dis was the roman god of minerals Dis Pater. Through this implication he became associated with the underworld of Pluto. As literature would continue to remember him, his actual position as the god of minerals would be forgotten and instead, he would simply come to represent a location or part of the underworld. This is of particular importance in Dante’s Inferno where he became The City of Dis in the lower realms of hell.
Though Hood followed many aspects of Keats, and largely tried to follow his example. Within the piece we can clearly see his remarkedly different verse and style. Keats has a way with language to draw the reader into deep physical feelings through his figurative language and is able to convey the even his thoughts and feelings on the matter as well. Hood, though he does have some powerful lines and figurative language, fails to exact the same feeling with his writing. Though the tone through “Ode to Melancholy” is meant to be somber and difficult, there is a sense of lightness to it. There is a sense of hope at the end of the tunnel. Hoods style of verse was largely humorous, and when he did write seriously it was often in a satirical position to draw attention to aspects of the city life. The true reason for his lack of success with serious verse is largely due to his own personal nature. Hood was a practical joker, and loved to tease and humor his family through these. By his very nature he opposed the melancholy and deep emotional difficulties that Keats writes into his very work.
Though it is not regarded as his best work within his serious verse, that goes to “I Remember,” there is something to be found within “Ode to Melancholy.” Keats language usually pulled and drove for longer meanings and very rarely do we see short lines unless it is driving home a point. Hood on the other hand writes completely in short verse. However, this shortness does not take away from the profound impact lines can have at their end. “And there is even a happiness/That makes the heart afraid!” By keeping the lines short it allows for Hood to strike his readers with the images and ideas that he is trying to convey. His language is just as figurative and powerful as Keats, but the true difference is that Hood uses simple language when Keats can delve into figurative language that can leave the reader reeling trying to discern the meaning, “Even so the dark and bright will kiss./The sunniest things throw sternest shade.” By keeping his language figurative but simple, Hood is able to convey the thoughts that are driving him further through the poem. This can influence the reader to a great deal. Difficult language allows a reader to mull over the true intent of the piece, and they can spend hours trying to decipher the truths hidden within the language. Simplicity, though it does not hurt the poem, does not suit a poem that is targeting something as difficult to handle as melancholy. Each reader is going to have their own personal thoughts on the matter, and using such simplistic language can drive the reader away. This short simplistic style would serve Hood much better as he eventually continued to write in humorous and satirical verse. Though his language was well written, and the short simplicity of the verse allows for the reader to grasp and understand what the intentions of the author was; Hood’s serious work lacks the extreme depth to which critics attribute to Keats; and I believe that this was the ultimate reason as to why his “serious series” was largely unsuccessful.
Bibliography
Eden, Helen Parry. “Thomas Hood.” Blackfriars, Vol. 7, No. 78. September, 1926. 554-567. Accessed November 15, 2020. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43810645.
Jerrold, Walter. The Complete Poetical Works of Thomas Hood. Oxford University Press, 1906. 190-192. Accessed November 15, 2020. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=I28dAAAAIAAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR3&dq=Ode+to+Melancholy+by+Thomas+Hood&ots=Gz5NzO965_&sig=mvtd385lKAJ6TfzPGUe9sTdasgc#v=onepage&q&f=false.
Whitley, Alvin. "Keats and Hood." Keats-Shelley Journal 5 (1956): 33-47. Accessed December 12, 2020. http://www.jstor.org/stable/30212551.
Wikipedia. "Thomas Hood." Accessed December 14, 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Hood.
There is without a doubt a serious influence from John Keats within these works. When we look at “Ode to Melancholy” we can even pinpoint such events. For example, John Keats would commonly use Greek imagery and stories to convey certain aspects within his work. One such example of this in Hoods’ “Ode to Melancholy” is his reference to Philomel. Philomel, or Philomela is a minor figure in Greek mythology. She is raped and mutilated by her sister’s husband and turns into a Nightingale. Hoods references the River Styx through the name of Stygian and doesn’t stop there. Like Keats, Hood begins to mix and match Greek mythological characters and stories with Roman ones. He references Proserpine who is the Roman Goddess of Springtime and wife of Pluto. He also references Dis, now Dis is an interesting character. Originally, Dis was the roman god of minerals Dis Pater. Through this implication he became associated with the underworld of Pluto. As literature would continue to remember him, his actual position as the god of minerals would be forgotten and instead, he would simply come to represent a location or part of the underworld. This is of particular importance in Dante’s Inferno where he became The City of Dis in the lower realms of hell.
Though Hood followed many aspects of Keats, and largely tried to follow his example. Within the piece we can clearly see his remarkedly different verse and style. Keats has a way with language to draw the reader into deep physical feelings through his figurative language and is able to convey the even his thoughts and feelings on the matter as well. Hood, though he does have some powerful lines and figurative language, fails to exact the same feeling with his writing. Though the tone through “Ode to Melancholy” is meant to be somber and difficult, there is a sense of lightness to it. There is a sense of hope at the end of the tunnel. Hoods style of verse was largely humorous, and when he did write seriously it was often in a satirical position to draw attention to aspects of the city life. The true reason for his lack of success with serious verse is largely due to his own personal nature. Hood was a practical joker, and loved to tease and humor his family through these. By his very nature he opposed the melancholy and deep emotional difficulties that Keats writes into his very work.
Though it is not regarded as his best work within his serious verse, that goes to “I Remember,” there is something to be found within “Ode to Melancholy.” Keats language usually pulled and drove for longer meanings and very rarely do we see short lines unless it is driving home a point. Hood on the other hand writes completely in short verse. However, this shortness does not take away from the profound impact lines can have at their end. “And there is even a happiness/That makes the heart afraid!” By keeping the lines short it allows for Hood to strike his readers with the images and ideas that he is trying to convey. His language is just as figurative and powerful as Keats, but the true difference is that Hood uses simple language when Keats can delve into figurative language that can leave the reader reeling trying to discern the meaning, “Even so the dark and bright will kiss./The sunniest things throw sternest shade.” By keeping his language figurative but simple, Hood is able to convey the thoughts that are driving him further through the poem. This can influence the reader to a great deal. Difficult language allows a reader to mull over the true intent of the piece, and they can spend hours trying to decipher the truths hidden within the language. Simplicity, though it does not hurt the poem, does not suit a poem that is targeting something as difficult to handle as melancholy. Each reader is going to have their own personal thoughts on the matter, and using such simplistic language can drive the reader away. This short simplistic style would serve Hood much better as he eventually continued to write in humorous and satirical verse. Though his language was well written, and the short simplicity of the verse allows for the reader to grasp and understand what the intentions of the author was; Hood’s serious work lacks the extreme depth to which critics attribute to Keats; and I believe that this was the ultimate reason as to why his “serious series” was largely unsuccessful.
Bibliography
Eden, Helen Parry. “Thomas Hood.” Blackfriars, Vol. 7, No. 78. September, 1926. 554-567. Accessed November 15, 2020. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43810645.
Jerrold, Walter. The Complete Poetical Works of Thomas Hood. Oxford University Press, 1906. 190-192. Accessed November 15, 2020. https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=I28dAAAAIAAJ&oi=fnd&pg=PR3&dq=Ode+to+Melancholy+by+Thomas+Hood&ots=Gz5NzO965_&sig=mvtd385lKAJ6TfzPGUe9sTdasgc#v=onepage&q&f=false.
Whitley, Alvin. "Keats and Hood." Keats-Shelley Journal 5 (1956): 33-47. Accessed December 12, 2020. http://www.jstor.org/stable/30212551.
Wikipedia. "Thomas Hood." Accessed December 14, 2020. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Hood.
[JE1]Philomel, or Philomela, is a minor figure in Greek mythology; after being raped and mutilated by her sister’s husband she turns into a Nightingale. She is frequently invoked within Western literature, art, and music.
[JE2]Reference to the River Styx of Greek Mythology.
[JE3]Roman goddess of Springtime and wife of Pluto, ruler of the underworld.
[JE4]Originally, Dis Pater was the Roman god of minerals and became associated with the underworld of Pluto. Later literature would shorten his name to simply, Dis, and would be used to name hell or a place within it such as The City of Dis in the lower realms of hell in Dante’s Inferno.