God's Grandeur

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In this sonnet, Hopkins juxtaposes the wonders of God against the achievements of humankind. God and humankind are presented as opposites, not so much Goodness vs Evil but rather Perfection vs Imperfection.

Humankind, our works and our deeds are portrayed as tainted, common and ugly as opposed to God whose creation is perceived as fresh and warm and sparkling with life and light. In this poem, one should examine closely the words which the poet uses to portray each of these juxtapositions.

Gerrard Manley Hopkins was born in 1844, the first of nine children. His parents were staunch Anglicans.

He attended a grammar school in Highgate and then continued on to Oxford University. His search for religion, however, caused him to fall under the influence of the great Catholic convert, John Henry Newman. As a result, Hopkins became a Catholic in 1866 and then joined the Society of Jesus the following year.

Initially Hopkins burned all his early poetry because he believed it was a symbol of ambition in the world. He later changed his mind, being influenced by the writings of the medieval scholar Duns Scotus who saw art as a reflection of God within the world.

From this concept, Hopkins developed his philosophy of Inscape and Instress. Inscape is the underlying form that marks the essence of all things, the God-principle which exists in everything. Instress, on the other hand, is our ability to experience that God-principle.

Everything has Inscape. In other words, everything has a God-principle. However, not everyone has Instress. The person who watches the glory of the setting sun but is reminded of a poached egg clearly lacks Instress. The poet studied Theology in Wales, which is probably where he picked up the Welsh lyrical way of speaking and writing. He would translate this into his poetry in what he called Sprung Rhythm.

Hopkins was ordained a priest in 1877 and then worked as a curate in Sheffield, Oxford and London before moving on to become parish priest in slum parishes in Manchester, Liverpool and Glasgow. None of this was intellectually suitable for a man who had such a brilliant mind.

He then became a professor of Latin and Greek, first at Stonyhurst College in Lancashire and then at University College in Dublin. His frustration, however, at having to mark a plethora of mediocre scripts sent him spiralling into a state of deep depression from which he would not emerge.

He died of typhoid fever in 1889. He was 44 years of age.

Read the left column and then answer
the following questions:


"Generations have trod, have trod, have trod;
And all is seared with trade; bleared, smeared with toil;
And wears man's smudge and shares man's smell."

• Comment on the poet's use of rhythm in these lines. (4)

[Need help?]

The rhythm here is a very distinct beat which represents the march of humankind through the ages, marching to the beat of the drum. Or does Hopkins have in mind the beat of the blacksmith's hammer on the anvil -- reflecting man's creation during the industrial age as opposed to the magnificence of God's creation through sheer power and beauty of nature?

• Comment on the language devices used in these lines. (4)

[Need help?]

Notice the poet's use of assonance -- the rhyming sound of two or more words that are placed near each other: "seared, bleared, smeared". Be aware too of his use of alliteration (the repetition of a consonant) and sibilance (the repetition of the hissing sound -- like steam in the industrial workshop): "trod, trod, trod, trade" "seared, smeared, smudge, smell"

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"The soil is bare now, nor can foot feel, being shod."

• What meaning do you see in the poet's use of antithesis: that the soil is bare but the foot is shod? (4)

[Need help?]

Is the poet contrasting the natural nakedness of the earth as opposed to the unnatural wearing of shoes? It is probable that the poet (being a priest) had in mind the natural nakedness of Adam and Eve before the fall, in contrast to them being clothed after the fall and the entry of sin. The poet has also been referring to the electrical charge that is in the earth, which is synonymous with the grandeur of God. The foot -- being shod -- is insulated against this charge. In other words, Man's creation -- reflected by his clothing -- has put a barrier between himself and the natural power of his God. Note too the harshness of the word "shod". It refers not just to any footwear but to something that is heavy-duty, like a military boot, or a miner's boot. One uses the expression, "to be shod of the whole thing", i.e. to be rid of it. By being shod, therefore, man has put a barrier between himself and his God.

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"And for all this, nature is never spent."

• What, do you think, does the poet mean when he uses the word "spent"? (4)

[Need help?]

"Spent" usually means finished or used up or exhausted. "I was totally spent after the match". And, "it was a spent cartridge". And "we spent all out money". Man through his creation of machines, becomes totally "spent" though his harsh labour. His ideas also are "spent". Whereas nature is never spent, never tires, never changes, never needs to rest. God is never-changing, never-tiring, and this characteristic is reflected through Nature.

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"There lives the dearest freshness deep down things."

• Identify the language device being used here and comment on its use in these lines. (4)

[Need help?]

We are looking at alliteration, are we not? The repeated "d" makes a really strong, forceful word to carry the idea of the power and the strength of the thought -- and of course of the strength of God.

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