The Palace of Pleasure (poem)

Last updated

1802 title page Juvenilia Leigh Hunt 1802.jpg
1802 title page

The Palace of Pleasure is a poem by James Henry Leigh Hunt published in his 1801 collection Juvenilia. Written before he was even sixteen, the work was part of a long tradition of poets imitating Spenser. The Palace of Pleasure is an allegory based on Book II of Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene and describes the adventure of Sir Guyon as he is taken by airy sylphs to the palace of the "Fairy Pleasure". According to Hunt the poem "endeavours to correct the vices of the age, by showing the frightful landscape that terminates the alluring path of sinful Pleasure". [1]

Contents

Background

After Hunt entered into a series of competitions run by the Monthly Preceptor calling for the submission at the age of 15, his father Isaac Hunt collected his son's childhood poetry to publish them. Among these was The Palace of Pleasure, which was printed by James Whiting in 1801 in Hunt's Juvenilia after his family managed to collect over 800 subscriptions for the volume. The Palace of Pleasure was the final work in the volume, which was reprinted four times before 1805. [2] Attached to the beginning of the poem is a preface that shows Hunt discussing life in artistic and heroic terms, and he refers to himself when he describes "a Muse, who is entering into public in her sixteenth year, bashful on her first exhibition, and listening with trembling expectation, as she passes, to the shouts of disapprobation or applause that burst from the surrounding multitude." [3]

Poem

The poem is an allegory based on Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene Book II. The Palace of Pleasure describes the adventure of Sir Guyon as he is taken by airy sylphs to the palace of the "Fairy Pleasure". She is similar to Spenser's enchantress Arcasia, and, like Spenser's hero, Guyon is tested by an offer of pleasure by allegorical figures including Delicacy, Young Wantonness, and others. The Bacchian pleasure that they offer Guyon is revealed to be a sort of poison. As Guyon seeks to repent, he is attacked by creatures from hell and the allegorical figure connected to justice: [4]

And next him started on the knight, I wot,
A most surprising fiend, whose visage pale
Was branded all about with dusky spot
Made by the fiery iron, heavy bale
To him that doth with impious hand assail
The laws of righteous Justice; and he hight
Foul Infamy, ay driv'n by Woe and Wail,
And pointing Scorn of moderation light,
And brazen-tongu'd Reproach, ne silent in the night. (lines 298–307)

Eventually, Guyon is saved by the allegorical character Content and her allies Temp'rance, Repentance, and others. They take him mountain where he is able to come back to his senses and continue on adventuring. [5] In the final moments of the poem, it is Glory who gives him the encouragement to perform his political duty: [6]

"Go," sun she, striking her exalted lyre,
"Go lift th' oppress'd, and beat th' oppressor low;
Go, where sad Justice sees her sons expire,
And Tyranny quaffs down the tears of Woe!
Eternal peace shall chear thy breast below,
And when Heav'n calls thee to its arms above,
Immortal splendour beam around thy brow!
Go; Virtue calls thee; watch her guiding eye;
When Virtue draws the sword, tempests and storms defy!" (lines 531–540)

Themes

It is possible that Hunt derived his model of adapting Spenserian stanzas from James Thomson's use of them in The Castle of Indolence. [7] In terms of Romantic poetry, Hunt's poem is related to the allegories found in Percy Bysshe Shelley's Queen Mab and The Revolt of Islam along with those in Robert Southey's Thalaba and Curse of Kehama. [8] Hunt's Spenserian adaptation influenced John Keats's later use of Spenser as a model. However, Keats did not rely on the moral interpretation of spenser found in The Palace of Pleasure but instead on the side of Spenser emphasising the beautiful. [9]

Of the works that imitate Spenser's use of the "Bower of Bliss" in Book II of the Faerie Queene, The Palace of Pleasure is connected to Southey's Romance and William Jones's Palace of Fortune. The only real difference between Hunt's and Spenser's version is the name of the tempter and that Hunt moved the setting from a Bower to a castle. Like Southey, the poem's allegory is focused more on political justice than morality. [10] Hunt would later rely on the same Spenserian "Bower of Bliss" for the basis of a pleasure garden in The Story of Rimini written years later although he places more emphasis on the sexual aspects in the later work than on the meaning of the scene. [11]

The poem, according to Hunt, "endeavours to correct the vices of the age, by showing the frightful landscape that terminates the alluring path of sinful Pleasure". [1] In Guyon's story, many of the images connect to the description of Barbados. The land is a tropical paradise that tempts people with pleasure. This is biographically connected to Isaac Hunt's problems that come from his time in Barbados. [12]

Notes

  1. 1 2 Duff 1994 qtd. p. 83
  2. ↑ Roe 2005 pp. 50–56
  3. ↑ Blunden 1930 qtd p. 31
  4. ↑ Roe 2005 p. 56
  5. ↑ Roe 2005 pp. 56–57
  6. ↑ Duff 1994 p. 83
  7. ↑ Kucich 1991 p. 105
  8. ↑ Duff 1994 p. 82
  9. ↑ Kucich 1991 p. 148
  10. ↑ Duff 1994 pp. 82–83
  11. ↑ Edgecombe 1994 p. 82
  12. ↑ Roe 2005 p. 57

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allegory</span> Literary device

As a literary device or artistic form, an allegory is a narrative or visual representation in which a character, place, or event can be interpreted to represent a meaning with moral or political significance. Authors have used allegory throughout history in all forms of art to illustrate or convey complex ideas and concepts in ways that are comprehensible or striking to its viewers, readers, or listeners.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmund Spenser</span> English poet (1552–1599)

Edmund Spenser was an English poet best known for The Faerie Queene, an epic poem and fantastical allegory celebrating the Tudor dynasty and Elizabeth I. He is recognized as one of the premier craftsmen of nascent Modern English verse, and he is considered one of the great poets in the English language.

<i>The Faerie Queene</i> English epic poem by Edmund Spenser

The Faerie Queene is an English epic poem by Edmund Spenser. Books I–III were first published in 1590, then republished in 1596 together with books IV–VI. The Faerie Queene is notable for its form: at over 36,000 lines and over 4,000 stanzas, it is one of the longest poems in the English language; it is also the work in which Spenser invented the verse form known as the Spenserian stanza. On a literal level, the poem follows several knights as a means to examine different virtues. The poem is also an allegorical work. As such, it can be read on several levels, including as praise of Queen Elizabeth I. In Spenser's "Letter of the Authors", he states that the entire epic poem is "cloudily enwrapped in Allegorical devices", and that the aim of publishing The Faerie Queene was to "fashion a gentleman or noble person in virtuous and gentle discipline".

The Spenserian stanza is a fixed verse form invented by Edmund Spenser for his epic poem The Faerie Queene (1590–96). Each stanza contains nine lines in total: eight lines in iambic pentameter followed by a single 'alexandrine' line in iambic hexameter. The rhyme scheme of these lines is ABABBCBCC.

Phineas Fletcher was an English poet, elder son of Dr Giles Fletcher, and brother of Giles the Younger. He was born at Cranbrook, Kent, and was baptized on 8 April 1582.

The Spenserian sonnet is a sonnet form named for the poet Edmund Spenser.

<i>The Allegory of Love</i> Book by C. S. Lewis

The Allegory of Love: A Study in Medieval Tradition (1936), by C. S. Lewis (ISBN 0192812203), is an exploration of the allegorical treatment of love in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, which was published on 21 May 1936.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Ponsonby (publisher)</span> London publisher of the Elizabethan era

William Ponsonby was a prominent London publisher of the Elizabethan era. Active in the 1577–1603 period, Ponsonby published the works of Edmund Spenser, Sir Philip Sidney, and other members of the Sidney circle; he has been called "the leading literary publisher of Elizabethan times."

Hero and Leander is a poem by Leigh Hunt written and published in 1819. The result of three years of work, the poem tells the Greek myth of Hero and Leander, two lovers, and the story of their forlorn fate. Hunt began working on the poem during the summer of 1816, arousing the interest of the publisher John Taylor, and despite repeated delays to allow Hunt to deal with other commitments the poem was finished and published in a collection 1819. Dealing with themes of love and its attempt to conquer nature, the poem does not contain the political message that many of Hunt's works around that time do. The collection was well received by contemporary critics, who remarked on its sentiment and delicacy, while more modern writers such as Edmund Blunden have criticised the flow of its narrative.

Bacchus and Ariadne is a poem by Leigh Hunt written and published in 1819. The result of three years of work, the poem tells the Greek myth of Hero and Leander, two lovers, and the story of their forlorn fate. Hunt began working on the poem during the summer of 1816, arousing the interest of the publisher John Taylor, and despite repeated delays to allow Hunt to deal with other commitments the poem was finished and published in a collection 1819. Hunt later claimed in a poem about Bacchus and Ariadne that he was seeking to humanise myths and make them more understandable to the common people. The collection was well received by contemporary critics and poets, including Thomas Carlyle, while more modern writers such as Edmund Blunden have criticised the flow of its narrative.

<i>Juvenilia</i> (poetry collection)

Juvenilia; or, a Collection of Poems Written between the ages of Twelve and Sixteen by J. H. L. Hunt, Late of the Grammar School of Christ's Hospital, commonly known as Juvenilia, was a collection of poems written by James Henry Leigh Hunt at a young age and published in March 1801. As an unknown author, Hunt's work was not accepted by any professional publishers, and his father Isaac Hunt instead entered into an agreement with the printer James Whiting to have the collection printed privately. The collection had over 800 subscribers, including important academics, politicians and lawyers, and even people from the United States. The critical and public response to Hunt's work was positive; by 1803 the collection had run into four volumes. The Monthly Mirror declared the collection to show "proofs of poetic genius, and literary ability", and Edmund Blunden held that the collection acted as a predictor of Hunt's later success. Hunt himself came to despise the collection as "a heap of imitations, all but absolutely worthless", but critics have argued that without this early success to bolster his confidence Hunt's later career could have been far less successful.

The Literary Pocket-Book was a collection of works edited by Leigh Hunt and containing material by Hunt, Percy Bysshe Shelley, John Keats, and Bryan Waller Procter. The collection was put together during 1818, and proved so successful that Hunt was able to sell the copyright for £200 a year later. The collection includes written worked, lined pages to write notes on and lists of authors, artists, schools and libraries. It was a public success, bringing new readers to both Shelley and Keats, and served as a model for other collections of poetry written during the Victorian era. Critical reviews were also excellent, with The London Magazine describing it as "for the most part delightfully written", although Keats himself later wrote that the collection was "full of the most sickening stuff you can imagine".

<i>The Descent of Liberty</i> Masque written by Leigh Hunt

The Descent of Liberty was a masque written by Leigh Hunt in 1814. Held in Horsemonger Lane Prison, Hunt wrote the masque to occupy himself, and it was published in 1815. The masque describes a country that is cursed by an Enchanter and begins with shepherds hearing a sound that heralds change. The Enchanter is defeated by fire coming out of clouds, and the image of Liberty and Peace, along with the Allied nations, figures representing Spring and art, and others appear to take over the land. In the final moments, a new spring comes and the prisoners are released. It is intended to represent Britain in 1814, emphasising freedom and focusing on the common people rather than the aristocracy. Many contemporary reviews from both Hunt's fellow poets and literary magazines were positive, although the British Critic described the work as a "pert and vulgar insolence of a Sunday demagogue, dictating on matters of taste to town apprentices and of politics to their conceited masters".

<i>The Feast of the Poets</i> 1811 poem by Leigh Hunt

The Feast of the Poets is a poem by Leigh Hunt that was originally published in 1811 in the Reflector. It was published in an expanded form in 1814, and revised and expanded throughout his life. The work describes Hunt's contemporary poets, and either praises or mocks them by allowing only the best to dine with Apollo. The work also provided commentary on William Wordsworth and Romantic poetry. Critics praised or attacked the work on the basis of their sympathies towards Hunt's political views.

<i>The Story of Rimini</i>

The Story of Rimini was a poem composed by Leigh Hunt, published in 1816. The work was based on his reading about Paolo and Francesca in hell. Hunt's version gives a sympathetic portrayal of how the two lovers came together after Francesca was married off to Paolo's brother. The work promotes compassion for all of humanity and the style served to contrast against the traditional 18th century poetic conventions. The work received mixed reviews, with most critics praising the language.

The Nymphs was composed by Leigh Hunt and published in Foliage, his 1818 collection of poems. The work describes the spirits of a rural landscape that are connected to Greek mythology. The images serve to discuss aspects of British life along with promoting the freedom of conscience for the British people. The collection as a whole received many attacks by contemporary critics, but later commentators viewed the poem favourably.

The Calendar of Nature is a series of articles by Leigh Hunt about aspects of various months and seasons published throughout 1819 in the Examiner. It is also included in his Literary Pocket-Book and published on its own as The Months. The work places emphasis on the season of autumn as a time for justice and prosperity, and influenced John Keats's poem "To Autumn". The emphasis on both works is on a temperate landscape and the positive political aspects of living in such a place. The work also stresses the sickness that is connected to a temperate landscape, which is related to the physical problems that Keats was suffering from at the time.

"A Fig for Fortune" is a 1596 long allegorical poem by the English Catholic writer Anthony Copley written as a parodying response to Edmund Spenser's The Faerie Queene. It intended to reject both Protestant portrayals of English Catholics as inherently disloyal to Queen Elizabeth, as well as hard-line Jesuit calls for Catholics to become martyrs by resisting the Protestant Queen.

The House of Pride is a notable setting in Edmund Spenser's epic poem The Faerie Queene. The actions of cantos IV and V in Book I take place there, and readers have associated the structure with several allegories pertinent to the poem.

The Political and Ecclesiastical Allegory of the First Book of the Faerie Queene is a book written by Frederick Morgan Padelford to explain the allegories within the poem The Faerie Queene by Edmund Spenser. The book was first published in 1911 in Boston by Ginn and Company as part of a series of University of Washington publications. The book has been republished since and is widely cited in papers and books related to the study of Spenser and his works.

References

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.