Meaning: Ruins of the Great House mainly are about the history,
colonialism, literature and corruption through power. its a poem by Derek Walcott which was roughtly written between the years 1953-1954. The description of the ruined colonial
mansion. He describe the great house using metaphors which show the ruins and
death of the place that once used to be that lively place. There was growth of
trees and plants that now have become lifeless. The house was used as a plantation
for business of slavery in 19th century.
The poet uses imagery so we can have a clear view of how the
society may have been like from his perspective “grown in the silt that clogs
the river’s skirt’ this can be the image of decay ad loss of energy.
Tone of the poem: expresses the poet’s feeling and attitudes.
Figures of speech: Derek uses
a metaphor, “I climbed a wall with a grill ironwork of exiled craftsmen,
protecting that great house from guilt”
Structure: Ruins of the great house is a free verse poem, no set
of rhyme scheme. The first ten lines are observation, image upon image as the
speaker moves through the ruins.
There were many lines from the poem: Ruins of the great house
1. ‘Farewell green field,
Farewell ye happy groves.’
- Farewell, green fields and happy groves.
William Blake,
Night (from songs of innocence) 1789
2. Fallen from evil days, from evil times.
More safe I sing
with mortal voice, uchang’d
To hoarse or
mute, though fall’n o evil days,
O evil days
though fall’n, and evil tongues. In
Darkness, and
with dangers compassed round
And solitude....
-
John Milton, paradise Lost, VII 23 1667
Why does the poet make use of the word girls in the phrase, 'moth-like girls'?
ReplyDeleteWhy does the poet make a references to Hawkins, Raleigh, and Drake?
What is the significance of Albion?
The Great house was once inhabited by girls who maybe moved around the lights at night like moths.
DeleteThe poet was thinking all the time about the situation he finds himself in, he knowns about the cruelties of the past and gives three examples of english explores and naval men- Hawkins and Drake were definitely involved in the slave trade. The speaker sees them as murderers and poets- Raleigh was certainly a poet but not the other two.
Albion is an ancient name for Freat Britain, invaded many times over the centuries, and itself a colony of the Romans for around four hundred and fifty years.