My Science School

            Friedrich Holderlin was a fan of ancient poets, and a hero to modern poets. He admired Pindar and Sophocles. Holderlin in turn was a great influence on modern poets and philosophers notably Nietzsche, Rilke, Heidegger and Celan.

            Holderlin was born in Germany in 1770. He grew into a great lyric poet who included Christian and Greek elements in his works. He received his degree in 1793. He played a key role in the development of German Idealism. ‘Der Archipelagus’, ‘Brod und Wein’, ‘Patmos, Halfte des Lebens’, are prominent among his works.

            Holderlin himself translated ‘Oedipus the King’, and ‘Antigone’, written by Sophocles, into German in 1804.

            Friedrich Holderlin died on 7th June 1843. Sadly, his greatness was not recognized in his lifetime. Today, he ranks among the greatest of the German as well as European poets.

            In 2008, Maxine Chernoff and Paul Hoover translated the Selected Poems of Friedrich Holderlin and won a PEN USA Award for Translation.

 

 

            Robert Burns is widely regarded as the National poet of Scotland. During his short life, Burns created memorable poems and songs. His first song was ‘Handsome Nell’. ‘Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect’ is his first book. Published in 1786, this book made Burns famous.

            Most of his poems were penned between 1784 and 1785. Burns came to be known as a great peasant-poet. Burns wrote superb satires. These satires are marked by a brilliant use of both formal and spoken language.

            ‘Tam O’ Shanter’, a mock heroic poem, gained wide appeal. Burns also wrote histrionic poems. His song, ‘It was Upon a Lammas Night’, showcased his potential as a song writer.

            Burns achieved greatness as a writer of songs. Love, friendship and work are the recurring themes of his songs. Burns wrote well over three hundred songs. ‘A Red, Red Rose’, ‘Epigram on Rough Woods’, A Man’s A Man For A’ That’, are among his much loved songs and poems.

            Robert Burns was born in the village of Alloway on 25th January, 1759. He was inspired by the writings of Alexander Pope, Henry Mackenzie, and Laurence Sterne. Robert Burns passed way on July 21st, 1796. After his death he became a great source of inspiration to many.

 

               The genius of William Blake was not recognized during his lifetime. He was either ignored, or regarded as a madman. Today he is regarded as one among the greatest 18th century poet.

               Born in London on November 28, 1757, William Blake was schooled at home. The boy wished to be a painter, and his parents sent him to drawing school when he was ten years old.

               Blake’s first printed work, ‘Poetical Sketches’ is a collection of apprentice verse, mostly imitating classical models. The young poet attacked war and tyranny in these poems. ‘Songs of Innocence and of Experience’, is his widely known work of poetry that came out in 1789.

               Works such as The ‘French Revolution’, ‘America, a Prophecy’, ‘Visions of the Daughters of Albion’, and ‘Europe, a Prophecy’, express his opposition to the English monarchy. William Blake passed away in 1827.

 

               Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a German literary giant. He played many roles in his life. Goethe was poet, novelist, playwright, amateur artist, scientist, theatre director, critic, and statesman.

               Goethe is closely associated with Germany’s 18th century literary renaissance. Goethe wrote ‘Faust’. This long poem ranks not far behind Milton’s ‘Paradise Lost’, and Dante’s ‘Divine Comedy’. Interestingly, expert editing turned this poem into a play. Goethe produced his greatest works before he left for Weimar. ‘Gotz von Berlichingen’, was the tragedy that made Goethe famous. ‘The Sorrows of Young Werther’, cemented his status as a great writer. Innerlichkeit, a movement in German poetry, was inspired by Goethe’s poems. ‘Mignon’s Song’, written by Goethe, influenced several great music composers such as Mozart, Schubert, Berlioz and Wolf. And Goethe was a hero to Beethoven. Natural Science too held attractions for Goethe, and he wrote on colour theory and shapes of living things.

               Goethe was home-tutored along with his sister till he reached the age of sixteen. He showed an early flair for drawing. Fortunately, he channeled his energies into writing. 

 

               Oliver Goldsmith, born in 1728, was a gifted wordsmith. His creativity found expression in poems, novels, essays and plays. Even the classic children’s story, ‘The History of Little Goody Two-Shoes’, was believed to have been authored by Goldsmith in I765.

               His poem ‘The Traveller’ was published in 1764. As its name suggests, it is inspired by his wanderings through Europe. In 1770 he wrote ‘The Deserted Village’, his greatest poetic work. This book recreates homely rural life through a series of short poems.

               ‘The Good Natur’d Man’, and ‘She Stoops to Conquer’, were plays penned by him. ‘She Stoops to Conquer’, was an instant success. Goldsmith also wrote ‘The Hermit’, a romantic ballad which has 160 lines.

               The great poet Oliver Goldsmith passed away in 1774. 

 

               Thomas Gray wrote poems of great beauty and he was offered the position of Poet Laureate in 1757. However, Gray declined the offer. Gray was born in Cornhill on 26th December 1716, to Philip Gray and Dorothy Antrobus. They had twelve children. Among them, only Thomas Gray reached adulthood. Gray gained admission to Peterhouse College in Cambridge University, but he failed to get a degree.

               Gray was known for his elegies. An elegy is a sad poem, usually dedicated to the dead. Thomas Gray’s works played a key role in inspiring the beginnings of the Romantic Movement. Gray began writing poetry in 1742. ‘An Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard’, published in 1751, was his masterpiece. This poem brought him name and fame. ‘Ode on the Spring’, ‘Sonnet on the Death of Mr. Richard West’, ‘and Hymn to Adversity’ and ‘Ode on a Distant Prospect of Eton College’ are some of his other famous poems. Gray was hugely popular with the reading public, but he was a perfectionist who published just thirteen poems in his lifetime.

               Thomas Gray’s works played an important role in inspiring the coming generations. Gray ranks second in significance among the poets of the eighteenth century. 

               A dispute over a lock of hair attracted the attention of Alexander Pope, the great poet. Lord Peter had cut off a lock of hair from the head of Arabella Fermor. And Pope wrote ‘The Rape of the Lock’, a mock epic that poked fun at high society. It first published in 1712, with a revised version published in 1714.

               In May, 1709, Pope’s Pastorals was published. This brought Pope instant fame, and was followed by ‘An Essay on Criticism’, published in May 1711, which was equally well received.

               At the time the poem was published, the heroic couplet style in which it was written was a moderately new genre of poetry. Heroic couplet consists of rhyming pair of lines. Pope’s most ambitious work. ‘An Essay on Criticism’ was an attempt to identify and refine his own positions as a poet and critic. It gives the poet’s views on whether poetry should be natural, or written according to set rules.

               He translated both the ‘Illiad’ and the ‘Odyssey’. Pope’s translation of the ‘Illiad’, was published between 1715 and 1720 and the ‘Odyssey’, in 1726.

               ‘An Essay on Man’ is another famous philosophical poem by Alexander Pope.

               Alexander Pope was born in England in 1688, and died on 30th May, 1744. 

 

               John Dryden wrote his way to fame. So much so that, the period of Restoration England was known as the Dryden Age in literary circles.

               Dryden was born in England on August 9th, 1631. Dryden attended the Westminster school. In 1650, he was admitted to Trinity College, and he received his BA in 1654. His literary career began in the 1660s. ‘To His Sacred Majesty: A Panegyric on his Coronation’ and ‘To My Lord Chancellor’ were published in 1662. Dryden may have hoped to attract royal patrons with these publications. The long poem ‘Annus Mirabilis’ was published in 1667. Two victories achieved by the English fleet over the Dutch, and the escape of the Londoners from the Great Fire of 1666 are the subjects of this poem.

               ‘Mac Flecknoe’, ‘Absalom and Achitophel’ and ‘The Medal’ are outstanding examples of satiric verse. In 1682, he wrote ‘Religio Laici’, a collection of religious poems. John Dryden passed away on 12th May 1700, and was buried in St. Anne’s cemetery in Soho. However, ten days later, his body was taken out and buried in Westminster Abbey. 

               Andrew Marvell was an uncommon poet who sat in the House of Commons, which was the elected house of British Parliament.

               Marvell was born on March 31, 1621. His father was Rev. Andrew Marvell, was a lecturer at the Holy Trinity Church, and master of the Charter house.

               Although Andrew Marvell wrote much, little was published. A collection of Marvell’s writings appeared only after his death in 1681. His work was given the attention it deserved only in the twentieth century, and today Marvell is regarded as one of the greatest poets of the seventeenth century. His poetry is marked by biting political satire. A satire is a form of writing that uses humour to expose or criticize people’s stupidity. ‘A Horatian Ode Upon Cromwell’s Return from Ireland’, is Marvell’s political satire.

               ‘To His Coy Mistress’ is a love song, while ‘Upon Appleton House’ and ‘The Garden’ are about a nobleman’s house, and a garden respectively. 

 

 

               Richard Lovelace was a fighter and a writer. In the Civil War, he fought for the King. In fact, he was a cavalier poet of the 17th century. He took to writing while he was a student at Oxford. When he was only nineteen, his verse appeared in a volume of elegies dedicated to Princess Katherine. Lovelace wrote more than 200 poems.

               He was imprisoned for his controversial political stands. From there he wrote the famous poem ‘To Althea from Prison’ in 1642. ‘To Lucasta: Going to the Warres’, is one of his other famous poems. ‘The Rose’ and ‘The Scrutiny’ were also considered as his masterpieces.

               Lovelace was fascinated by animals, and he wrote ‘The Ant’, ‘The Grassehopper’ and ‘Spyder’. Lovelace’s connections with powerful personalities, and the politics of the time, influenced his writing. But the poet died in poverty in 1657.

               Posthumously published ‘Lucasta, Postume Poems’, was graver, compared to the works that were published in his lifetime. 

 

               John Milton lost his eyesight, but his poetic insight inspired generations of writers and readers. ‘Paradise Lost’, is his magnum opus.

               Being blind, Milton could not write, and he was forced to dictate his poem to friends or helpers who wrote it down. ‘Paradise Lost’ was written between 1658 and 1664 when the poet was living in poverty. The first version, published in 1667, consisted of ten books. ‘Paradise Regained’, also came out in 1671. Scholars regard 'Paradise Lost,' as the greatest epic in the English language.

               Milton was born in London on December 9th, 1608. He attended St. Paul’s School, and also Christ’s College, Cambridge. He wrote his poems in Latin, Italian, and English. ‘On Shakespeare’, written in 1630, was his first published poem.

               Milton published several minor prose works, such as the grammar textbook, ‘Art of Logic’, and a ‘History of Britain’. Milton suffered from kidney disease, and died on 8th November, 1674 and was buried in the church of St. Giles Cripplegate. 

 

 

               The range of John Donne’s poetry was astonishing. His prolific pen produced sonnets, love poems, religious poems, Latin translations, even sermons. Stylish in his use of language, Donne was also the master of the metaphor. He is regarded as the founder of Metaphysical Poetry.

               Donne was born in London in 1572. Donne has the distinction of attending both Oxford and Cambridge Universities as a teenager. In the last decade of the sixteenth century, Donne penned the majority of his love lyrics, and several sacred poems creating two major volumes of work: ‘Satires and Songs’ and ‘Sonnets’.

              ‘An Anatomy of the World’ and ‘A Nocturnal upon St. Lucy’s Day’ are some of his well known poems. His ideas on religion gave depth to his poems.

               He served as a member of Parliament in 1601 and in 1614. This genius passed away on 31st March 1631. 

 

               Ben Johnson used his creative wizardry to turn his emotions and feelings into great poetry. Moreover, Ben Johnson was also a playwright, a playwright second only to Shakespeare. Johnson penned a poem, ‘On my first Sonne’, in 1616 in response to his son’s untimely death.

               ‘To Penshurst’, and ‘To Celia’ are two of his celebrated poems. He avoided arguments about the use of rhyme and meter in poetry. ‘Every Man in His Humour’, ‘The Alchemist’, and ‘Bartholomew Fair’, are among his famous plays.

                Johnson was born on June 11th, 1572 in London. He was influenced by William Camden, the classical scholar. Johnson used his classical learning to good effect in his poems. Johnson passed away in 1637. His influence on English poetry continues to this day. 

 

               William Shakespeare was a literary genius. He is acknowledged as the greatest writer, the English speaking world has ever seen.

               Stratford-upon-Avon was the birthplace of Shakespeare. He was born in 1564 as the son of John Shakespeare and Mary Arden. He is believed to have studied at the King’s New School in Stratford.

               ‘Venus and Adonis’, his first poem, which was published in 1593, describes the failed love Venus had for Adonis. ‘The Rape of Lucrece’ followed in 1594. Both these poems are dedicated to Henry Wriothesley, the Earl of Southampton.

               Shakespeare is also known for his sonnets. He penned 154 sonnets in all. Each sonnet had three quatrains and a couplet. These sonnets can be divided into two sections. A young nobleman is the hero of sonnets 1 to126. An evil ‘Dark Lady’ with whom the poet falls in love is the subject of sonnets 127-152.

               Shakespeare authored more than thirty plays. ‘Romeo and Juliet’, ‘Hamlet’, ‘Othello’, and ‘Macbeth’ are among the most popular of his plays. He passed away in 1616. 

               Before Shakespeare, there was Marlowe. Christopher Marlowe’s beginnings were humble. Though his exact date of birth is not known, he was baptized on 26th February, 1564.

               Marlowe was popular as a dramatist, but he was a great poet too. Marlowe wrote ‘The Passionate Shepherd to His Love’. This poem was highly appreciated. Marlowe’s ‘Hero and Leander’ is a poem that retells the Greek myth of Hero and Leander. This poem was published posthumously in 1598.

               Marlowe popularized the dramatic blank verse. ‘The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus’ was Marlowe’s masterpiece, and ranks among the greatest dramas in the English language.

              ‘Tamburlaine the Great’, ‘The Jew of Malta’, etc, are some of his other acclaimed plays. Marlowe was murdered in 1593.