Essay on Percy Bysshe Shelley Defends Poetry - 1608 Words

Percy Bysshe Shelley Defends Poetry â€Å"While Mrs. Bush understands the right of all Americans to express their political views, this event was designed to celebrate poetry.† – Office of the First Lady, in regards to the cancellation of a poetry symposium. (Benson) In â€Å"A Defence of Poetry,† Percy Bysshe Shelley puts forth the claim that poets are the â€Å"unacknowledged legislators of the world† (810). Although Mrs. Bush might disagree, Shelley argues convincingly in favor of such a position. To deny poets their right to speak to that which is political would be in essence denying them their existence as poets. Poets must fulfill this role, according to Shelley, because out of all people, they are most capable of doing so. In†¦show more content†¦It is not only a poet’s natural inclination to act so, but his duty to make order or sense out of that which is in disorder, whether it be a country going to war for the wrong reasons, or a country fallen out of grace. The poets who spoke against the war saw the need to exercise a ‘poetic authority,’ in the hopes that they would spark similar dissent among the masses. Shelley, facing his own national demons, also felt such an impetus. In his sonnet, Shelley creates not only an image of a wretched King, but the way he goes about doing so is elaborate, showing both his contempt and disdain for the current ruler of the country. The first line of the sonnet is packed full of five different adjectives, all negative, and none commonly used to describe a ‘king.’ His use of alliteration here is effective, for it reinforces the meaning of the line by making it resonate in the listener’s ear; George III is an â€Å"old, mad, blind, despised, and dying King† (1). While the present seems to be in disarray, the future does not look any brighter, as those who await the crown, are no more than the â€Å"dregs of their dull race† (2). The speaker’s word choice is specific, the sound of the words ‘dregs’ and ‘dull’ creates a consonance that helps to debase any positive hope for future leadership his readers might have. The princes are scorned by the public (much like theShow MoreRelated Allen Ginsbergs America Essay2026 Words   |  9 Pagesinterpretation of A Defense of Poetry by Percy Bysshe Shelley and Democratic Vistas by Walt Whitman, one can gain a holistic sense of poetry, what it is and what it does, that can be applied to literary texts of all times. One can better understand Allen Ginsbergs America through an examination of the aforementioned texts as well. The literary merit of the poem is best recognized through Walt Whitmans Democratic Vistas, although Percy Bysshe Shelleys A Defense of Poetry also contributes some veryRead More Frankenstein Kickass Paper2707 Words   |  11 Pages nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;The daughter of an active feminist, Mary Woolstonecraft Shelley eloped with the famous poet Percy Bysshe Shelley at the age of 15, and after was continually and profoundly influenced by his words and writings. Her novel Frankenstein is named among the best written and most meaningful of the gothic works, and is one of the few still popularly read today. A precursor to the Romantic trend in art and intellect, gothic novels rejected of the precepts of order, balance