[Ttha-potm] 'He's just a man'

[carolyn mcgrath]

I think I can see the added dimension Bill Needham's reading gives the poem. If I imagine the persona to be the historical figure of Jesus of Nazareth, stripped of any overlaid notions of divinity, I am deeply aware of the goodness of the person compared to the world he is about to depart. His presence, unlike that of much of humanity, does not fill Nature with dread; there is solitariness rather than self-pity as it is, indeed, a world that cares nothing for him, betrayal and crucifixion are imminent; and those who are suffering know him to be one who empathises with their pain. When this man raises his eyes to the heavens to hear, not the voice of God, but the stars, there is even greater pathos that such a man should find the skies empty, that it is just a world of matter. Yet he discovers, in this moment, an insight that may overcome his, and our own, despair; there is a sense of belonging to which we can all lay claim, in fact, which
 we cannot deny. There is no need for, or possibility of, 'Salvation' or even salvation: the end will come -  but there is an unbroken connection, 'Beginning and end', between all humanity and this starlit world of matter. No passport is required. 
 
When Bill referred to 'A Wish for Unconsciousness', at first it didn't help as I had read that poem thinking it was 'any-man' or a Hardy-like persona until the final line when it hits you in the face that it is Jesus speaking. While reflecting on the impact that that had had on my reading of that poem, it suddenly made me see how it might work with this one. 
 
Am I anywhere near what you were thinking, Bill? 
 
I don't think the clues are as strong in this poem, so knowing Hardy's use of such a persona must have alerted you to the possibility. I don't actually think it detracts from the poem but adds value. It gets rid of the accusation of the 'note of self-pitying' and it certainly does not allow the dogma of 'Salvation' and redemption to creep in, but gives a secular version of the man's anguish in the garden on the eve of his martyrdom, and the potential for solace in the words given to the stars.
 
Looking forward to hearing all responses
 
Carolyn McGrath

Send instant messages to your online friends http://uk.messenger.yahoo.com 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://coyote.csusm.edu/pipermail/ttha-potm/attachments/20080812/c7ad415a/attachment.html