'Stanzas from the Grande Chartreuse' by Matthew Arnold
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Through Alpine meadows soft-suffused
With rain, where thick the crocus blows,
Past the dark forges long disused,
The mule-track from Saint Laurent goes.
The bridge is cross'd, and slow we ride,
Through forest, up the mountain-side.
The autumnal evening darkens round,
The wind is up, and drives the rain;
While, hark! far down, with strangled sound
Doth the Dead Guier's stream complain,
Where that wet smoke, among the woods,
Over his boiling cauldron broods.
Swift rush the spectral vapours white
Past limestone scars with ragged pines,
Showing--then blotting from our sight!--
Halt--through the cloud-drift something shines!
High in the valley, wet and drear,
The huts of Courrerie appear.
Strike leftward! cries our guide; and higher
Mounts up the stony forest-way.
At last the encircling trees retire;
Look! through the showery twilight grey
What pointed roofs are these advance?--
A palace of the Kings of France?
Approach, for what we seek is here!
Alight, and sparely sup, and wait
For rest in this outbuilding near;
Then cross the sward and reach that gate.
Knock; pass the wicket! Thou art come
To the Carthusians' world-famed home.
The silent courts, where night and day
Into their stone-carved basins cold
The splashing icy fountains play--
The humid corridors behold!
Where, ghostlike in the deepening night,
Cowl'd forms brush by in gleaming white.
The chapel, where no organ's peal
Invests the stern and naked prayer--
With penitential cries they kneel
And wrestle; rising then, with bare
And white uplifted faces stand,
Passing the Host from hand to hand;
Each takes, and then his visage wan
Is buried in his cowl once more.
The cells!--the suffering Son of Man
Upon the wall--the knee-worn floor--
And where they sleep, that wooden bed,
Which shall their coffin be, when dead!
The library, where tract and tome
Not to feed priestly pride are there,
To hymn the conquering march of Rome,
Nor yet to amuse, as ours are!
They paint of souls the inner strife,
Their drops of blood, their death in life.
The garden, overgrown--yet mild,
See, fragrant herbs are flowering there!
Strong children of the Alpine wild
Whose culture is the brethren's care;
Of human tasks their only one,
And cheerful works beneath the sun.
Those halls, too, destined to contain
Each its own pilgrim-host of old,
From England, Germany, or Spain--
All are before me! I behold
The House, the Brotherhood austere!
--And what am I, that I am here?
For rigorous teachers seized my youth,
And purged its faith, and trimm'd its fire,
Show'd me the high, white star of Truth,
There bade me gaze, and there aspire.
Even now their whispers pierce the gloom:
What dost thou in this living tomb?
Forgive me, masters of the mind!
At whose behest I long ago
So much unlearnt, so much resign'd--
I come not here to be your foe!
I seek these anchorites, not in ruth,
To curse and to deny your truth;
Not as their friend, or child, I speak!
But as, on some far northern strand,
Thinking of his own Gods, a Greek
In pity and mournful awe might stand
Before some fallen Runic stone--
For both were faiths, and both are gone.
Wandering between two worlds, one dead,
The other powerless to be born,
With nowhere yet to rest my head,
Like these, on earth I wait forlorn.
Their faith, my tears, the world deride--
I come to shed them at their side.
Oh, hide me in your gloom profound,
Ye solemn seats of holy pain!
Take me, cowl'd forms, and fence me round,
Till I possess my soul again;
Till free my thoughts before me roll,
Not chafed by hourly false control!
For the world cries your faith is now
But a dead time's exploded dream;
My melancholy, sciolists say,
Is a pass'd mode, an outworn theme--
As if the world had ever had
A faith, or sciolists been sad!
Ah, if it be pass'd, take away,
At least, the restlessness, the pain;
Be man henceforth no more a prey
To these out-dated stings again!
The nobleness of grief is gone
Ah, leave us not the fret alone!
But--if you cannot give us ease--
Last of the race of them who grieve
Here leave us to die out with these
Last of the people who believe!
Silent, while years engrave the brow;
Silent--the best are silent now.
Achilles ponders in his tent,
The kings of modern thought are dumb,
Silent they are though not content,
And wait to see the future come.
They have the grief men had of yore,
But they contend and cry no more.
Our fathers water'd with their tears
This sea of time whereon we sail,
Their voices were in all men's ears
We pass'd within their puissant hail.
Still the same ocean round us raves,
But we stand mute, and watch the waves.
For what avail'd it, all the noise
And outcry of the former men?--
Say, have their sons achieved more joys,
Say, is life lighter now than then?
The sufferers died, they left their pain--
The pangs which tortured them remain.
What helps it now, that Byron bore,
With haughty scorn which mock'd the smart,
Through Europe to the Ætolian shore
The pageant of his bleeding heart?
That thousands counted every groan,
And Europe made his woe her own?
What boots it, Shelley! that the breeze
Carried thy lovely wail away,
Musical through Italian trees
Which fringe thy soft blue Spezzian bay?
Inheritors of thy distress
Have restless hearts one throb the less?
Or are we easier, to have read,
O Obermann! the sad, stern page,
Which tells us how thou hidd'st thy head
From the fierce tempest of thine age
In the lone brakes of Fontainebleau,
Or chalets near the Alpine snow?
Ye slumber in your silent grave!--
The world, which for an idle day
Grace to your mood of sadness gave,
Long since hath flung her weeds away.
The eternal trifler breaks your spell;
But we--we learned your lore too well!
Years hence, perhaps, may dawn an age,
More fortunate, alas! than we,
Which without hardness will be sage,
And gay without frivolity.
Sons of the world, oh, speed those years;
But, while we wait, allow our tears!
Allow them! We admire with awe
The exulting thunder of your race;
You give the universe your law,
You triumph over time and space!
Your pride of life, your tireless powers,
We laud them, but they are not ours.
We are like children rear'd in shade
Beneath some old-world abbey wall,
Forgotten in a forest-glade,
And secret from the eyes of all.
Deep, deep the greenwood round them waves,
Their abbey, and its close of graves!
But, where the road runs near the stream,
Oft through the trees they catch a glance
Of passing troops in the sun's beam--
Pennon, and plume, and flashing lance!
Forth to the world those soldiers fare,
To life, to cities, and to war!
And through the wood, another way,
Faint bugle-notes from far are borne,
Where hunters gather, staghounds bay,
Round some fair forest-lodge at morn.
Gay dames are there, in sylvan green;
Laughter and cries--those notes between!
The banners flashing through the trees
Make their blood dance and chain their eyes;
That bugle-music on the breeze
Arrests them with a charm'd surprise.
Banner by turns and bugle woo:
Ye shy recluses, follow too!
O children, what do ye reply?--
"Action and pleasure, will ye roam
Through these secluded dells to cry
And call us?--but too late ye come!
Too late for us your call ye blow,
Whose bent was taken long ago.
"Long since we pace this shadow'd nave;
We watch those yellow tapers shine,
Emblems of hope over the grave,
In the high altar's depth divine;
The organ carries to our ear
Its accents of another sphere.
"Fenced early in this cloistral round
Of reverie, of shade, of prayer,
How should we grow in other ground?
How can we flower in foreign air?
--Pass, banners, pass, and bugles, cease;
And leave our desert to its peace!"
Editor 1 Interpretation
Stanzas from the Grande Chartreuse: A Masterpiece of Victorian Poetry
One of the most remarkable poems in Victorian literature, Matthew Arnold's "Stanzas from the Grande Chartreuse" is a haunting meditation on the relationship between nature, spirituality, and human existence. Written in 1855, the poem reflects the author's experiences during a visit to the Grande Chartreuse monastery in the French Alps and his contemplation of the sublime beauty and terror of the natural world. In this essay, we will explore the themes, imagery, and language of the poem to uncover its deeper meaning and significance.
The Setting: Nature and Spirituality
The Grande Chartreuse monastery, located in the mountains near Grenoble, is the perfect setting for Arnold's poem, as it embodies the tension between the natural world and the spiritual realm. The monastery, founded in the 11th century, is renowned for its strict adherence to the Carthusian order, which emphasizes silence, contemplation, and solitude as the path to spiritual enlightenment. The monks who live there are dedicated to a life of prayer, study, and work, and they have little contact with the outside world. The monastery's location in the mountains, surrounded by forests, cliffs, and streams, adds to its isolation and sense of otherworldliness.
Arnold's poem captures the sense of awe and wonder that the monastery's setting inspires. The first stanza describes the mountains as "eternal, sublime," and "solemn," suggesting that they are a manifestation of divine power and majesty. The second stanza introduces the idea of "Nature's self," which is portrayed as a force that is both beautiful and terrifying. The speaker imagines the mountains as "the dread mother of us all," suggesting that they are the source of both life and death, and that they have a power over human beings that is both maternal and fearsome.
The Monks: Withdrawal from the World
The monks who live at the Grande Chartreuse monastery are the embodiment of the Carthusian ideal: they have withdrawn from the world in order to focus on their spiritual lives. In the poem, they are depicted as figures of great wisdom and insight, who have attained a level of spiritual enlightenment that is beyond the reach of ordinary mortals. The third stanza describes the monks as "cloistered seers," suggesting that they have a special ability to see into the mysteries of the spiritual world. The speaker imagines them as "watching the silent stars," suggesting that they are attuned to the movements of the heavens and the patterns of the universe.
The fifth stanza portrays the monks as "hermits," who have chosen isolation and solitude as the path to spiritual growth. The speaker suggests that their lifestyle is a kind of sacrifice, as they have given up the pleasures and distractions of the world in order to pursue a higher goal. The image of the "lone, serious bird" in the sixth stanza reinforces this idea, as it suggests that the monks are like solitary creatures who have found their niche in the natural world.
The Human Condition: Mortality and Transcendence
At the heart of Arnold's poem is a meditation on the human condition, and the tension between mortality and transcendence. The speaker suggests that human beings are caught between the beauty and terror of nature, and that we are aware of our mortality in a way that other creatures are not. The fourth stanza describes the sound of the "plunge of the avalanche," which is both thrilling and terrifying. The speaker suggests that this sound reminds us of our own mortality, and that it is a symbol of the fragility of human existence. The image of the "caverns measureless to man" in the seventh stanza reinforces this idea, as it suggests that there are depths and mysteries to the natural world that we can never fully comprehend.
Despite this awareness of our mortality, the speaker suggests that human beings have the capacity to transcend it, and to connect with the spiritual world. The eighth stanza describes the "slowly gliding sail," which is a symbol of the human soul, moving through the world and towards the spiritual realm. The image of the "unseen pilots" suggests that there are forces at work in the universe that guide us towards our destiny, and that we are not alone in our journey.
Language and Style: Musicality and Imagery
One of the most striking features of Arnold's poem is its musicality and imagery. The poem is written in a series of quatrains, with a regular rhythm and rhyme scheme, which gives it a sense of unity and coherence. The language is rich and evocative, with vivid images and metaphors that capture the beauty and terror of the natural world. The use of alliteration and assonance throughout the poem creates a sense of continuity and harmony, and reinforces the idea of the natural world as a unified whole.
The imagery of the poem is both vivid and symbolic, with each image representing a deeper idea or theme. The mountains, for example, are a symbol of divine power and majesty, while the monks are symbols of spiritual wisdom and enlightenment. The image of the "slowly gliding sail" is a symbol of the human soul, moving through the world and towards the spiritual realm. The use of metaphor and symbolism throughout the poem creates a sense of depth and complexity, and invites the reader to engage with the poem on multiple levels.
Conclusion: A Masterpiece of Victorian Poetry
In conclusion, Matthew Arnold's "Stanzas from the Grande Chartreuse" is a masterpiece of Victorian poetry, which explores the themes of nature, spirituality, and the human condition with great depth and insight. The poem's vivid imagery, musicality, and symbolism create a sense of unity and coherence, and invite the reader to engage with the poem on multiple levels. Through its meditation on the beauty and terror of the natural world, the poem invites us to contemplate our mortality and our capacity for transcendence, and to connect with the spiritual realm that lies beyond.
Editor 2 Analysis and Explanation
The Grande Chartreuse is a poem written by Matthew Arnold, a renowned Victorian poet, in 1855. The poem is a tribute to the Carthusian monks who reside in the Grande Chartreuse monastery in the French Alps. The poem is divided into four stanzas, each with its own unique structure and theme. In this analysis, we will delve into the intricacies of each stanza and explore the underlying themes that Arnold seeks to convey.
The first stanza of the poem is a description of the natural beauty of the Grande Chartreuse. Arnold paints a vivid picture of the rugged terrain and the majestic mountains that surround the monastery. He describes the "wild and lonely" landscape, where "the pine-forests with their fallen leaves" create a "solemn music" that echoes through the valleys. The stanza is written in iambic pentameter, with a rhyme scheme of ABABCC. The use of iambic pentameter gives the stanza a rhythmic quality, which mimics the natural music of the landscape. The rhyme scheme, on the other hand, creates a sense of harmony and balance, which is reflective of the beauty of the natural world.
The second stanza of the poem is a description of the Carthusian monks who reside in the Grande Chartreuse. Arnold portrays the monks as a group of men who have chosen to live a life of solitude and contemplation. He describes them as "men who, here, / Live on amid the lonely hills unseen." The stanza is written in iambic tetrameter, with a rhyme scheme of ABAB. The use of iambic tetrameter gives the stanza a more subdued and contemplative tone, which is reflective of the monks' way of life. The rhyme scheme, on the other hand, creates a sense of unity and harmony, which is reflective of the monks' communal way of life.
The third stanza of the poem is a description of the spiritual life of the Carthusian monks. Arnold portrays the monks as a group of men who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of spiritual enlightenment. He describes them as "men who, when they hear the world's mad roar, / Turn, as we turn the vexed aside, to adore." The stanza is written in iambic pentameter, with a rhyme scheme of ABABCC. The use of iambic pentameter gives the stanza a more elevated and spiritual tone, which is reflective of the monks' pursuit of spiritual enlightenment. The rhyme scheme, on the other hand, creates a sense of harmony and balance, which is reflective of the monks' spiritual way of life.
The fourth and final stanza of the poem is a reflection on the transience of life. Arnold portrays the Carthusian monks as a group of men who have chosen to live a life of contemplation in order to prepare themselves for the inevitable end of life. He describes them as "men who have learned to live, and learned to die." The stanza is written in iambic tetrameter, with a rhyme scheme of ABAB. The use of iambic tetrameter gives the stanza a more subdued and contemplative tone, which is reflective of the monks' acceptance of the transience of life. The rhyme scheme, on the other hand, creates a sense of unity and harmony, which is reflective of the monks' acceptance of the inevitability of death.
In conclusion, The Grande Chartreuse is a poem that celebrates the natural beauty of the French Alps and pays tribute to the Carthusian monks who reside in the Grande Chartreuse monastery. The poem is divided into four stanzas, each with its own unique structure and theme. The first stanza is a description of the natural beauty of the landscape, the second stanza is a description of the Carthusian monks, the third stanza is a description of the spiritual life of the monks, and the fourth stanza is a reflection on the transience of life. The use of iambic pentameter and iambic tetrameter, as well as the rhyme schemes, create a sense of harmony and balance throughout the poem, which is reflective of the beauty and spirituality of the natural world and the Carthusian way of life.
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