Poets' Meeting: George Herbert, R.S. Thomas, and the Argument with GodGeorge Herbert (1593-1633) and R.S. Thomas (1913-2000), each a major English poet and an Anglican priest, lived in very different times, one before the Scientific Revolution, the Enlightenment, and industrialization, and one following. Yet the two men and their poetry bear striking resemblances: Both loved nature and music, both were pacifists, and both struggled with the claims of faith, the nature of the spiritual life, and the recurrent silences of God. This book demonstrates that when their lives and poems are studied side by side, each man enhances our understanding of the other. The first essay deals with their sense of calling as priests and poets. The work then explores topics that relate to their roles as parish priests: ministry, the Bible, the Eucharist, and prayer. Several essays follow dealing with broader questions of the human condition: faith, sin, love, reason and science, and nature. The work concludes by considering their poems about Christmas, Good Friday, and Easter. |
From inside the book
Results 1-3 of 36
... line underscores that valuation by both stressing the effort involved and defining as his purpose singing best the Lord's name . The final two lines lead naturally into the opening stanza of " The Church- porch " : Thou , whose sweet ...
... lines passe , except they do their dutie Not to a true , but painted chair ? Is it no verse , except enchanted groves And sudden arbours shadow course - spunne lines ? Must purling streams refresh a lovers loves ? Must all be vail'd ...
... lines , spare description that reminds one of a pen and ink drawing , and an ending with sting . And , for all its brevity and tightness of form , the almost chiseled quality of the language , it has a central ambiguity . The final lines ...
Contents
Preface | 1 |
The Vocations of Priest and Poet | 13 |
Country Parsons | 36 |
Copyright | |
9 other sections not shown
Other editions - View all
Poets' Meeting: George Herbert, R.S. Thomas, and the Argument with God William J. McGill Limited preview - 2003 |