Essay \"John clare\'s description of a thunder-storm\" - grade 2:1 PDF

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John Clare's Description of a Thunder-storm...

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139009994 In John Clare’s ‘Description of a Thunder-storm’, the power of nature is emphasised through vivid sensory images. Clare has chosen to describe a thunder-storm in order to present nature at its very height of power. Clare’s poem is a work of romanticism; it plays on our senses and allows us to be immersed in the natural world that is being described. There is a particular emphasis on audio imagery: words such as ‘hissing’ and ‘sighs’ are representative of wind and the sound of air. This use of sibilance creates an idea of the natural world that Clare aims to describe. The imagery in the early stages of the poem are largely audial. This alludes to the religious element of Clare’s poem: we cannot see the approaching thunderstorm just as we cannot see God, but there is evidence of it within nature. There is a prominently religious aspect to Clare’s poem. It could be read that the greatness of a thunder-storm is symbolic of God at the height of his power. However, Clare is not merely describing a thunder-storm – he has pre-acquired sentiments about his admiration for nature; he refers to it as ‘that almighty Power’ and this is represented in the rhyme scheme and metre. The poem is written in continual poetic verse, there are no individual stanzas and the use of iambic pentameter maintains simplicity, but also certainty throughout. The continual verse could symbolise God’s omnipresence; the constant reminder of an almighty presence within the marvels of the natural world. Another effect of this structure is the idea of progression. The poem begins: ‘Slow boiling up,’ perhaps to the point when ‘God’s majesty’ with be revealed as well as the literal approaching of the thunder-storm itself. The calmness of the opening allows Clare to gradually reach the moment of awe, once again demonstrating his appreciation of nature. Clare also considers the placement of humans within nature. An analogy of humanity is found within the line ‘the idle top and ball can please no more.’ The use of ‘idle’ is a

139009994 comment on the inferiority of material objects; it is juxtaposed with the ‘rumbling armies’ of thunder. A turning point can be identified in the poem – the moment that the ‘wrath’ of God is revealed. The line breaks and exclamation marks imitate ‘the splinter’ that is caused by the thunder. The sun is said to ‘tremble’ and the cotter’s family ‘cringe around the hearth.’ Whilst these images are potentially negative, nature simultaneously comes across as an allencompassing force. He includes a human experience of the storm, and also that of the sun and also ‘the poplar leaf’ therefore suggesting the idea of nature as a unifying experience; it is something all life forms must bear witness to. As the poem draws to a close, the line ‘monument of hope and fear’ once again draws upon the idea of the Sublime. Despite its capability to instil fear, we cannot help but be in awe of nature, representative of ‘God’s great power.’...