The first time I encountered "The Windhover" was when I heard the actor Richard Thomas (as John-Boy on "The Waltons") read it out loud. He gave a "sensitive poet" reading, though not too overdone. He read it to his (i.e. John-Boy's) mother -- I seem to recall that they were outdoors, sitting under a tree.
When he finished reading it, his mother commented that the poem was just lovely, then asked, "What's it mean?"
Odd, the world fictional T.V. characters live in.
I haven't read much Hopkins, though when I occasionally get an urge to read English poems from before the 20th century, his poem "The Windhover" is one of the poems I often seek out.
Quick and Easy Salad
-
Cucumber peeled and sliced into coins or lengthwise wedges chopped into
bite sized wedges, apple chopped into small bites, raisins, yogurt, cottage
chees...
Outside Meaning
-
… The presence of noise makes sense, makes meaning. This is from Sonic
Flux: Sound, Art, and Metaphysics by Christopher Cox (2018): … Noise is
nonsense: th...
-
It's cold this morning--28 degrees--and everything damp from yesterday's
rain-spatters has frozen up tight. I was glad to have a wood fire last
night, and ...
Towards a Working Class Bible
-
Nature promised man little. Many working poor rage against God for their
place. The water is too deep, so we drift through life. A little more wind
for the...
Human Rights Day Today
-
The Nobel Peace Prize this year went to Narges Mohammadi, 51, of Iran. She
was arrested 13 times, convicted for five and sentenced to a total of 31
years ...
Stay away from the pool
-
My mother & I were visiting a friend of hers who was living in an apartment
complex that I regarded at the time as positively palatial, what for the
commun...
In Memory of Ed Ochester, Poet & Editor, RIP
-
We have asked Ed Ochester (above) to edit our Sunday poetry pages for the
next few months. Here is one of Ed's poems: March of the Penguins The
editor of N...
“In spite of all the learned have said ...”
-
Philip Freneau
Philip Freneau (1752-1852) was a journalist and poet in the early years our
country was forming. And, oh, by the way, I once wrote an under...
Jason Tandon
-
Born in Hartford, CT in 1975, Jason Tandon is the author of four books of
poetry, including *The Actual World*, *Quality of Life*, and *Give Over the
Hec...
Balance is important in design
-
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aenean commodo
ligula eget dolor. Aenean massa. Cum sociis Theme natoque penatibus et
magnis dis ...
Feeding therapy FINALLY!!
-
There is so much to catch up on and yet so little. I have noticed that the
last year has felt like an inward journey and so telling a story hasn’t
fe...
One year gone ...
-
*Meeting Mark Mothersbaugh*
Today marks one year as editor of *Fresh Water *for me. Man-o-man, what a
ride it has been. Despite the intensity of the job, o...
I'm still here
-
Just posting here to let anyone know (whoever is still dropping by from
time to time) that I still haven't disappeared, I've just been spending
time away f...
2015 Mini Gift Guide
-
A mini last-minute gift guide...it's been quite some time since I've
posted. But I love the holidays so much and sharing gifts that I think
would be great ...
In a Landscape - The Playlist
-
John Cage, “In a Landscape”
Bob Dylan, “My Back Pages”
Neil Young, “Ambulance Blues”
The Twilight Zone Theme
Babylon 5 Theme
Simon & Garfunkel, “Richard Co...
4 comments:
Nin, some views of the windhover in flight.
Those birds are a piece of work. Big, extremely fast, and... they don't kid around.
(GMH mixing them up with God like that always made me feel... a little funny.)
Yes, it is a little funny.
But seeing them fly . . . seeing birds is somehow so uplifting.
I once watched a young hawk trying to catch a squirrel. It failed, over and over again, swooping down -- as the squirrel dodged easily.
The first time I encountered "The Windhover" was when I heard the actor Richard Thomas (as John-Boy on "The Waltons") read it out loud. He gave a "sensitive poet" reading, though not too overdone. He read it to his (i.e. John-Boy's) mother -- I seem to recall that they were outdoors, sitting under a tree.
When he finished reading it, his mother commented that the poem was just lovely, then asked, "What's it mean?"
Odd, the world fictional T.V. characters live in.
I haven't read much Hopkins, though when I occasionally get an urge to read English poems from before the 20th century, his poem "The Windhover" is one of the poems I often seek out.
Good blog. I have a real soft spot for this Manley Hopkins poem http://caroleschatter.blogspot.co.nz/2011/12/great-poem-by-manley-hopkins.html
Post a Comment