Paradise Lost (Renaissance)

Paradise Lost: The Darkest Side of Humankind

Paradise Lost, by John Milton, is an epic poem that deals with history, religion, paganism, and the never-ending battle of good against evil; however, it also depicts the darkest side of humankind that leads people to hurt each other. Throughout time, people have accepted and idealized the proposal of being perverted by someone else. They disagree with the consequences of handling free will improperly. They have found it very comfortable to place the blame of their misbehaviors on someone else: Satan. Nevertheless, the author states that humans are malevolent beings deep inside, and he describes this feature through the demons that rise against God: Belial, Mammon, Beelzebub, Moloch and Satan. Moreover, he praises humans’ ability to recover from chaos and adversity; for example, Adam and Eve represent courage and optimism to overcome the toughest circumstances.

Every demon stands for a repulsive and negative characteristic that human beings have. Beelzebub represents resentment, ill will, malice, and a bitter soul. He is identified as the God of flies; he is a disgusting character unable to recover from rejection. He stands for the necessity of acceptance versus vengeance for being separated from a group. He depicts love and pleasure for causing suffering to others. He is not afraid of chaos and worries about finding the ways out to bite the hand that feeds. Furthermore, Beelzebub makes defiant vows; he promises to keep doing harm without feeling any regret. For instance, “To do ought good never will be our task/ But ever to do ill our sole delight,” (1.159-160). He will continue causing chaos just for the sake of pleasure. Another fallen angel that describes the dreadfulness of human kind is Belial. He represents pusillanimity, the lack of courage to do what it takes to defy God and conquer his reign. He stands for all those people who always complain about everything but do not have the strength to take some action and change it.

In addition, upon Mammon rests unmeasured ambition and selfishness as a different, but not less harmful, human thought and hidden feeling. Humans are envious by nature, but of course if you ask people, they will deny they are. However, when they live in poverty or unhappily, they may feel miserable and blessed-less. They will never be satisfied with the possessions and gifts and have been given. They will always look forward to obtaining more material possessions, though they do not really need it. Moreover, when it comes to power and submitting people may experience even darker feelings. For instance, the demon states: “Either to disinthrone the king of Heaven / We warr, if warr be best, or to regain / Our own right lost/ […] The latter: for what place can be for us” (2.229-231, 235). Ironically, humankinds tend to think that they do deserve better, though they may have not done anything to really merit it.

The fourth demon, Moloch, stands for pain, suffering and sacrifice that people have to undergo. He is strongly attached to chaos and panic that humans usually reject to show to their equals. At the same time, it represents pleasure that some people may feel towards others suffering without feeling any remorse or mercy. Humankind may be selfish by nature; however, they may pretend they feel pity for their brothers and sisters. Their morbid minds feed out of the catastrophes and natural phenomena others may experience, they may act as if they cared; unfortunately, just a few of them really do.

By Pamela Calderon

Shakespearean Sonnets (Renaissance)

Sonnet 29: Is It Love?

Shakespearean sonnets established a new kind of poetry in history. Many experts have analyzed these texts and they have even classified them in groups. That classification influences possible interpretations of the poems predetermining the reader response towards the poems. However, Shakespearean sonnet 29 reveals how love brings profound suffering to a person. The use of ironic phrases is extremely relevant to convey this meaning. For example, the heroic couplet at the end of the poem shows how love actually brings pain to his life. It says: “For thy sweet love rememb’red such wealth brings” (line 13). The use of words such as “sweet” and “wealth” in this line is sarcastic. In fact, this love that the speaker is talking about brings him suffering. It also shows frustration because the speaker has other expectations about his lover. For instance, in the first quatrain, the speaker blames his undesirable fate on his lover. It says: “When in disgrace with Fortune and men’s eyes…/ And look upon myself and curse my fate” (lines 1, 4). The speaker claims that all his deep suffering is his lover’s fault. He has no hope in his life and does not believe in being happy again. In line 12, the speaker reveals his desperation when he “From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven’s gate” asking for mercy to overcome that painful process. The state described in Shakespearean sonnet 29 cannot be called love because, ideally, real love neither hurt nor cause disgrace to a person. Real love does not bring suffering to a person’s life and does not make it miserable as the speaker in this sonnet is.

Death in Shakespearean Sonnet 73

Shakespearean sonnet 73 shows how human beings are destined to die. Death is totally inevitable in life; there is no life without death. The speaker is talking about his own death. He thinks that he will die soon. The sonnet is addressed to his lover. It seems that his lover does not care about the speakers’ death. The speaker depicts his actual state as sorrowful and desperate. He seems to be in the last time of his life, and he is alone. He describes all his sadness as a scene in fall when he claims: “That time of the year thou mayst in me behold/ When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang” (lines 1-2). In fall, everything seems to be sadder and more silent. His life and his soul are compared to a day in which everything seems to come to an end. He exaggerates his state to make his lover to feel sorry for him. The speaker is asking his lover for mercy. His lover makes his life more miserable because of her indifference. In the heroic couplet, he tries to convince her by saying:” This thou perceiv’st, which makes thy love more strong,/ To love that well which thou must leave ere long” (lines 13-14). The purpose of all the depiction about his death is to try to create a sense of guilt in his lover. However, he is sure that his lover is not going to be there when his life comes to an end. It seems that his lover actually hates him and does not care if he is dead or alive. The inevitability of his death creates desperation on him. He says that in him “Thou seest the twilight of such day as after sunset fadeth in the west” (lines 5-6). His death will be soon and he is desperate about being alone and facing this difficult process alone. Death is an unavoidable part of human life. It always generates fear and desperation when people think about what they could have done in a better way, and now they do not have time to fix anything. The idea of being alone at the end of his life makes the speaker beg his lover for mercy and company.

Destruction in Sonnets 64 and 65

The speaker in sonnets 64 and 65 denounces how human beings destroy valuable elements in life. These two sonnets are analyzed together because they deal with the destruction of wonderful buildings and human nature through time. In the first stanza of sonnet 64, the speaker shows a sorrowful tone when he says: “When I have seen by Time’s fell hand defaced/ The rich, proud cost of outworn buried age” (lines 1-2). In these lines, the speaker is trying to remind the audience of all the beautiful buildings that human beings have destroyed because of ambition and power. It is a reference to the empire and the construction of England and all the wars that devastated many buildings that are not going to be constructed again. In sonnet 65, the speaker deals again with the fragility of the buildings and of human beings. He says: “Since brass, nor stone, nor earth, nor boundless sea/ But sad mortality o’erways their power” (lines 1-2). Nothing is strong enough to resist human destructive nature. Everything in life can be affected by the strong power of destruction that people have. Human beings like to, ironically, make beautiful constructions and then destroy them to show their power. The speaker also compares the demolition of buildings to the destruction of human nature when he says: “When sometime lofty towers I see down-rased/ and brass eternal slave to mortal rage” (lines 3-4). The “rage” that human beings possess in their souls is manifested in their necessity of eliminating all the beauty that they once created. Human beings have lost many values that were intrinsically related to their nature and behaviors. They have reached a state in which they are no longer able to stop and control their destructive nature. When the speaker says: “I have seen such interchange of state, or state itself confounded to decay,” in sonnet 64, he reveals his total disagreement to those behaviors and how it seems to be a strong negative change without reversal (lines 9-10). Even though it seems to be a completely negative scenario, the speaker reveals hope at the end of sonnet 65. He says that “in black ink my love may still shine bright” to give the idea that through literature everything that is beautiful can be depicted. The descriptions made in literature of the most wonderful elements and feelings in life can give a perspective to future generations of everything that is beautiful in life now even if at the end it is destroyed by human beings.

By Noelia Zamora

The Comedy of Errors (Renaissance)

The Shakespearean play the Comedy of Errors depicts a naïve society in which people need to look for unconventional explanations to every single event. Shakespeare criticizes this society by depicting a situation that is unlikely to take place in reality. Four individuals were involved in what can be considered a hilarious event. These individuals happen to be two slaves with their masters, but the two masters are named Antipholus and the slaves are named Dromio. These men are involved in a misunderstanding caused by their immature attitude, which represents English society. The misunderstanding also reveals troublesome relationships among masters and slaves, husbands and wives, and the general situation of this society. Shakespeare clearly uses the characters of the play to reveal their incapability of reasoning and dealing with simple aspects of life. The first scene, Aegeon’s execution, shows the only moment of real tragedy in the play. As the misunderstanding takes place, the title of play starts making sense since it is the constant errors of the characters what causes negative implications for themselves. A relevant issue in the play is also the lack of identity. The confusion makes the four main characters of the play feel frustrated, alienated and even aggressive because they have not a clear identity and, therefore, no influence or authority. Even the ending of the play seems to reinforce Shakespeare’s criticism but in a subtle way. When both Dromios find each other, they decide to act as equals in friendly manner. This ending portrays Shakespeare’s purpose of trying to make people think rationally and act as a civilized and close society.

By Erick Pérez

When I Was Fair and Young (Renaissance)

Indifference and Pride in Queen Elizabeth’s When I Was Fair and Young

Queen Elizabeth mocks men through sarcastic and ironic phrases. She points out her position of power in her society by saying that she has always taken advantage of men. She enjoys the pleasures of life without ever thinking about feelings. She feels proud of her behaviors at all time. The speaker uses certain ironic expressions such as “How many weeping eyes I made to pine with woe, / How many sighing hearts, I have no skill to show” to give the sense that she regrets what she did. However, she does not actually repent about her actions. In fact, she is proud of all those situations. She mocks men by narrating these stories as if those were a reason to be proud. She takes advantage of not only her social position but also of her beauty. She describes herself as an extremely beautiful woman when she says: “When I was fair and young, and favor graced me.” She writes this poem to say that she has always done what she wants and that she has known how to place herself in the best position of all. Moreover, Anger grows on her when love tries to get into her life. She does not love someone because she prefers to be free to do what she wants without restrictions or moral impositions. She explains that “When he [Cupid] had spake these words, such/ change grew in my breast,/ That neither night nor day since that, I/ could take any rest.” She feels anger and disgust towards Cupid trying to change her life and make her think about other people’s feelings. She prefers to remain indifferent to what other people think or feel. The speaker has always been a proud woman and she does not want to change; she does not want to love someone or get attached to a person. She does not want any boundary or limit in her life. It will always be her will and her desires in spite of other people’s opinions.

By Noelia Zamora

Le Morte Darthur (Medieval Period)

Romantic texts deal with the human need of having King Arthur as an imaginary hero. The outstanding King Arthur emerged as the mighty man capable of defeating his enemies, an evident reference to the need of revenge against the Anglo-Saxons. This romantic text first shows the pride and respect of al the people In Camelot towards their savior. King Arthur, however, has a dream that can be considered a revelation of what is going to happen to him and his kingdom. Arthur is now an average human being who can be afraid and who may need help because he is not as brave as he is supposed to be. Although Gawain had died, he “came back” to warn King Arthur about Sir Mordred’s intentions. Despite of the “admiration and respect” towards King Arthur, ambition rots Camelot and threatens King Arthur’s position, which is no longer respected. Arthur is not really an upright man because he has an illegitimate son, Mordred, who is willing to kill his father and destroy this authority and almighty figure of Camelot. The kingdom was supposed to be a paradise, but nobody trusted each other. The truce agreed by Arthur and Mordred did not work and a tremendous battle started. The battle stands for the main relevant aspect of this romantic text not only because of Arthur’s death, but also because of Bedivere’s ambition. The legendary and meaningful sword Excalibur symbolizes the power of Arthur and everyone, including Bedivere, would desire to posses it. Bedivere betrays Arthur and this action reveals how this “loyal” knight stands for those who do enjoy serving somebody, even if he is his savior, and as soon as he had the chance he tried to keep Excalibur and become the new King Arthur.

By Erick Pérez

Barbara Allan (Medieval Period)

Ballads are characterized for having a song-melody, and they usually repeat words or phrases which in some cases could become a song. This is the case of Barbara Allen, which is a ballad from the Medieval Ages that currently has many versions that are sung. This poem for an unknown tells the story of two lovers that die for the love. The first stanza shows the time they met; however, the speaker says “the green leaves were a-fallin’,” which can be interpreted as decay—decay of true love—because people no longer believe in finding the person to share the rest of their life with. The poem continues telling us that Sir John has sent a man to bring Barbara to his death-bed. Nevertheless, on the third stanza the speaker mentions “O slowy , slowly rase she up” which means that she does not want to see him, which foreshadows that something not agreeable has happened between them. In fact, on the fifth stanza she tells him that once he has “slighted” her and this is the reason why she treats him so could when she says “Young man, I think you’re dying.”

Moreover, this poem deals with the idea of guilty because both of the lovers blame the other for the painful situation they are at. Indeed, on the sixth stanza as Sir John is almost dying, he says to his friends to be merciful with Barbara, even though she is guilty of his fate. Similarly happens to her when she says to her mother to built her grave; Barbara is blaming Sir John of her misfortune because now that her beloved one has died, she must died too. Nevertheless, the idea of guilty not only present in the sense of blaming someone else for oneself fate, but also in the sense of finding oneself guilty of the misfortune of other person. As example of this idea, on the eighth, the speaker says “every jow that the dead-bell ga’ed/It cried; ‘Woe to Barbara Allen’” which means that maybe she feels that she might have prevented the dead of Sir John. Every sound of the bells remember her the love that was between them.

Furthermore, it is important to point out that the love theme depicted on this ballad was not common during the Middle Ages since on those times literature procures to denounce social problems as it happens on the Canterbury Tales by Chaucer.

The following are two versions of the poem used as songs.

Was in the merry month of May
When green buds all were swelling,
Sweet William on his death bed lay
For love of Barbara Allen.

He sent his servant to the town
To the place where she was dwelling,
Said you must come, to my master dear
If your name be Barbara Allen.

So slowly, slowly she got up
And slowly she drew nigh him,
And the only words to him did say
Young man I think you're dying.

He turned his face unto the wall
When we were in the tavern,
Good-bye, good-bye, to my friends all
Be good to Barbara Allen.

When he was dead and laid in grave
She heard the death bells melling
And every stroke to her did say
Hard hearted Barbara Allen.

Oh mother, oh mother go dig my grave
Make it both long and narrow,
Sweet William died of love for me
And I will die of sorrow.

And father, oh father, go dig my grave
Make it both long and narrow,
Sweet William died on yesterday
And I will die tomorrow.

Barbara Allen was buried in the old churchyard
Sweet William was buried beside her,
Out of sweet William's heart, there grew a rose
From Barbara's a green briar.

They grew and grew in the old churchyard
Till they could grow no higher
At the end they formed, a true lover's knot
And the rose grew round the briar.

Sung by Joan Baez



All in the merry month of May
When green buds all were swelling,
Sweet William on his death bed lay
For love of Barbara Allen.

He sent his servant to the town
A place where she did dwell in,
Said master dear, has sent me here
If your name be Barbara Allen.

Then slowly, slowly she got up
And slowly she went to him,
And all she said, when there she came
Young man I think you're dying.

Don't you remember the other night
And death was in him welling,
You drank a toast to the ladies there
And slighted Barbara Allen.

He turned his face unto the wall
He turned his back upon her,
Adieu, adieu, to all my friends
And be kind, be kind, to Barbara Allen.

As she was wandering by the fields
She heard the death bells melling
And every note did seem to say
Hard hearted Barbara Allen.

The more it tolled the more she grieved
She bursted out a crying,
Oh pick me up and carry me home
I feel that I am dying.


They buried Willy in the old churchyard
And Barbara in the new one,
And from Willy's grave, there grew a rose
Out of Barbara Allen's a briar.

They grew and grew in the old churchyard
Till they could grow no higher
And there they tied in a true lover's knot
The red rose and the briar.

Sung by Garfunkel

By Pamela Regidor

Credits:

http://www.etni.org.il/music/barbaraallen.htm

Edward (Medieval Period)

Edward is a poem that deals with lack of values, the concept of family relationships, and how people tend to blame others when they have made a mistake. In fact, the first three stanzas illustrate the lack of values since Edward lies to his mother when she asks him whose blood is the one in his sword. He is not able to be honest because he knows that he has done something wrong, he has killed his father. This issue exemplifies that the need of values exists since remote epochs, so this poem could also be applied to societies of our times since, nowadays, people lie in order to hide their mistakes, and as a consequence they do not have to be responsible of their actions.

Furthermore, the relationships depicted in the poem are the ones of members of a family that do not care about each other. For instance, when the mother asks Edward what is going to happen to his family when he has gone, he says that he does not worry about them, that they will become beggars. Therefore, he does not care if he has to abandon them in order to be free, so he is saying that individuality prevails over everything else. Similarly to the sense of individuality depicted on the poem, currently people worry only about themselves and do not consider if others need help. Indeed, people tend to reach their goals no matter if they have to destroy others’ aspirations. It is the same as saying that the end justified the means because people only think in getting their desires without thinking if they cause damage to someone else.

At the end, the mother asks him what he will leave to her, and he answers that nothing because she is guilty of all his misfortune because she has given him the worst pieces of advice, maybe it was she who tells him to marry and have a family and that is the reason why he does not care about it because he does not want to have a family. He is only following directions. Therefore, the last stanza clearly exemplifies that people tend to blame other of their calamities since many of them are not able to assume the consequences of their acts. The same happens in our society. For instance, when someone makes a mistake that will cost millions to his/her company, he/she will look for excuses that justifies him/her, or maybe that person will try to blame someone else. This poem clearly exemplifies today’s society since it mirrors people who look for individualism, but when it comes to find the guilty person, everyone will avoid his/her responsibility.

By Pamela Regidor