'Gods In The Gutter' by Robert Service
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I dreamed I saw three demi-gods who in a cafe sat,
And one was small and crapulous, and one was large and fat;
And one was eaten up with vice and verminous at that.
The first he spoke of secret sins, and gems and perfumes rare;
And velvet cats and courtesans voluptuously fair:
"Who is the Sybarite?" I asked. They answered: "Baudelaire."
The second talked in tapestries, by fantasy beguiled;
As frail as bubbles, hard as gems, his pageantries he piled;
"This Lord of Language, who is he?" They whispered "Oscar Wilde."
The third was staring at his glass from out abysmal pain;
With tears his eyes were bitten in beneath his bulbous brain.
"Who is the sodden wretch?" I said. They told me: "Paul Verlaine."
Oh, Wilde, Verlaine and Baudelaire, their lips were wet with wine;
Oh poseur, pimp and libertine! Oh cynic, sot and swine!
Oh votaries of velvet vice! . . . Oh gods of light divine!
Oh Baudelaire, Verlaine and Wilde, they knew the sinks of shame;
Their sun-aspiring wings they scorched at passion's altar flame;
Yet lo! enthroned, enskied they stand, Immortal Sons of Fame.
I dreamed I saw three demi-gods who walked with feet of clay,
With cruel crosses on their backs, along a miry way;
Who climbed and climbed the bitter steep to which men turn and pray.
Editor 1 Interpretation
Gods In The Gutter: A Masterpiece by Robert Service
As I read through Robert Service's poem "Gods In The Gutter," I couldn't help but wonder, how did this man become such a master of words? How did he create such vivid imagery and capture the essence of the human experience in just a few stanzas?
The poem tells the story of a man who was once rich and powerful, but has now fallen on hard times and is literally lying in the gutter. Despite his lowly state, the man still maintains a sense of dignity and pride, refusing to let his circumstances define him.
Service's use of metaphor and personification is truly exceptional. The gutter is transformed from a dirty and unpleasant place into a sanctuary for those who have fallen from grace. The gods, who are typically associated with power and wealth, are now on the same level as the man lying in the gutter.
The line "The gutter is where the aristocrat and the panhandler meet" demonstrates the poem's central theme of equality. Service is saying that no matter how high or low one's status, we are all human beings with the same basic needs and desires.
The poem also touches on the idea of fate and the unpredictability of life. The man lying in the gutter could have been anyone, including the gods themselves. The fact that he has fallen from grace is not entirely his fault. The universe has a way of throwing curveballs, and we must learn to adapt and survive.
Service's use of rhyme and rhythm is also noteworthy. The poem flows effortlessly, with each line building upon the last. The rhyme scheme adds to the poem's musicality and makes it easy to remember.
One of the most powerful lines in the poem is "But still I say, as I said before: Do not despair, my wayward son, Your fate has just begun." This line is a reminder that even in the darkest of times, there is still hope. We must not give up, but instead continue to fight for a better future.
In conclusion, "Gods In The Gutter" is a masterpiece of poetry that captures the human experience in a way that is both relatable and profound. Service's use of metaphor and personification, his exploration of themes such as equality and fate, and his impeccable rhyme and rhythm make this poem a true classic. It is a reminder that no matter how low we may fall, we still have the power to rise again.
Editor 2 Analysis and Explanation
Gods In The Gutter: A Poem of the Human Condition
Robert Service's "Gods In The Gutter" is a powerful and evocative poem that speaks to the human condition in all its complexity and contradiction. Written in Service's signature style of simple, direct language and vivid imagery, the poem explores the ways in which we are all both divine and fallen, both gods and gutter-dwellers.
At its heart, "Gods In The Gutter" is a meditation on the nature of human identity and the struggle to reconcile our lofty aspirations with our base desires. The poem opens with a striking image of "gods in the gutter," a paradoxical phrase that immediately sets up the tension between the divine and the profane that runs throughout the poem. The gods, we are told, are "fallen" and "drunken," stumbling through the streets in a state of debauchery and degradation. Yet even in their fallen state, they retain a glimmer of their divine nature, a "spark of the spirit" that sets them apart from the mere mortals who share their gutter.
This tension between the divine and the profane is further explored in the second stanza, where we are introduced to the "gutter-dwellers" who share the gods' squalid abode. These are the "poor, the wretched, and the weak," the forgotten and the marginalized who eke out a living in the shadows of the great city. Yet even in their poverty and despair, they too possess a spark of divinity, a "gleam of the soul" that sets them apart from the beasts of the field.
The third stanza of the poem is perhaps the most powerful, as it brings the two worlds together in a moment of transcendent beauty. Here we see the gods and the gutter-dwellers mingling together in a moment of shared humanity, as they dance and sing and revel in their shared existence. In this moment, the barriers between the divine and the profane, the rich and the poor, the powerful and the powerless, are dissolved, and all are united in a common experience of joy and celebration.
Yet even as the poem celebrates this moment of unity, it acknowledges the fragility of human existence and the inevitability of our fall from grace. The final stanza of the poem is a haunting reminder of the transience of all things, as the revelers disperse and the gods return to their heavenly abode, leaving the gutter-dwellers to their fate. The poem ends on a note of melancholy and resignation, as we are reminded that even the gods themselves are subject to the inexorable march of time and the inevitability of death.
In many ways, "Gods In The Gutter" can be seen as a commentary on the human condition in general, and the struggle to reconcile our lofty aspirations with our base desires in particular. We are all, in some sense, gods in the gutter, possessed of a spark of divinity that sets us apart from the beasts of the field, yet subject to the same base instincts and desires that drive us to acts of cruelty and depravity. The poem reminds us that we are all part of a larger whole, and that our fate is inextricably bound up with the fate of those around us, whether they be gods or gutter-dwellers.
At the same time, "Gods In The Gutter" is also a celebration of the human spirit and the resilience of the human soul. Despite our fallen nature, we are capable of great acts of beauty and transcendence, and even in the darkest moments of our existence, we retain a glimmer of hope and a sense of our own worth. The poem is a testament to the power of the human spirit to rise above adversity and to find meaning and purpose in even the most difficult of circumstances.
In conclusion, "Gods In The Gutter" is a powerful and evocative poem that speaks to the human condition in all its complexity and contradiction. Through its vivid imagery and simple, direct language, the poem explores the tension between the divine and the profane, the rich and the poor, the powerful and the powerless, and reminds us of our shared humanity and our common fate. It is a poem that speaks to the heart of what it means to be human, and that reminds us of the power of the human spirit to transcend even the most difficult of circumstances.
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