Attitude and Appreciation of the Natural World in Gerard...

Attitude and Appreciation of the Natural World in Gerard Manley Hopkins and Henry Wadsworth Longfellows Poetry The simple beauty of nature is an aspect many of us take for granted in our everyday lives - the endearing sounds of birds welcoming another day and the powerful gush of a waterfall being some examples of these. But there are those individuals who have endeavoured to fully comprehend the marvellous complexity of the world around us. Such findings are present in the work of many poets - namely Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844 - 1889)and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1808 - 1882). Hopkins and Longfellow were two contemporary poets from the nineteenth century from different cultures, English and†¦show more content†¦The poem Snowflakesby Longfellow is also an expression of the poets attitude to and appreciation of the natural world. In it Longfellow describes in minute detail the subtle beauty of a single snowflake and makes us more aware not only of snow, but of the other small things surrounding us, making us realise their importance. Both poems acknowledge existence and power of a creator. In Pied Beauty a song of praise is presented in the first line of the poems triumphant, alliterative opening stanza, as Glory be to Godà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ immediately places Hopkins appreciation of the beauty of the natural world in a religious context. Also as the poem concludes with the exhortation Praise him it is clear that the piece is deliberately framed as a Christian hymn of thanksgiving for the infinite variety in nature. The opening line also introduces the poems theme: dappled things and this is the first of many adjectives describing parti-coloured natural elements. Snowflakes on the other hand opens with an altogether more maternal aspect of nature although the acknowledgement of a powerful creator is still present: Out of the bosomof the Air Out of the cloud-folds of her garments shaken This personification of the female form creates a Mother Earth type figure that I feel Longfellow used to successfully communicate his love and understanding of all things