Cultural Engineering of the Poetic Parental Instinct
It seems that biological genetic engineering is not a contained threat; in the last decade it seems to have spilled significantly into cultural and literary studies. In Renaissance studies, this trend becomes evident in Richard A. Goldthwaithe's Wealth and the Demand for Art in Italy: 1300-1600 (1993) and especially in Lisa Jardine's Worldly Goods: A New History of the Renaissance (1996). These "new histories" of "worldly and wealthy" Renaissance attempt to present consumerism and Thatcherism as the moving spirit of Renaissance society and art. Considering the mere fact that less than 5% of the population could have afforded art, this search for Thatcherite "motions" in Renaissance society and culture seems to correlate, in its result, to what T. S. Eliot defines as artists' search for new emotions in art. Unfortunately, this trend of engineering the cultural history can be observed, albeit in a slightly different form, also in the studies of individual authors and their works, and John Milton and his Areopagitica are no exception.
One of the reasons for this trend in Milton studies and this particular pamphlet can be sought in the over-saturation of Areopagitica criticism dealing, to a great extent, with various aspects of authorial intention and textual authority. This particular strain seems to have been brought to the point of absurdity in Paul M. Dowling's Polite Wisdom: Heathen Rhetoric in Milton's "Areopagitica" (1995), a book from which one can conclude, in contrast to earlier criticism (Barker, Kendrick, Belsey), that Milton's main intention for his pamphlet was to be understood at two levels—as suggested in Dowling's title— and to defend simply the freedom of philosophic speech.
As D. F. McKenzie has noted, recently there has been a shift of scholarly interest in Milton's Areopagitica from "questions of authorial intention and textual authority to those of textual dissemination and readership" (Miller 26). While this distancing from the authorial intention has resulted in some illuminating works about the world of printing, Renaissance economy, censorship and public sphere (Miller, Sherman, Norbrook), it has also produced some curious side-effects because the critics cannot avoid, in their final analysis, touching upon the authorial intention in the light of their newly made discoveries. Thus, Stephen B. Dobranski suggests that, since Areopagitica is about books, "the reading of the text should begin (but not, of course, end) by placing the pamphlet within the world of printing"
As the social worker, I would apply social work ethical principles to guide my professional practice by making sure that am knowledgeable of the liability and standard/duty of care issues as stated in the NASW Code of Ethics, be able to articulate and demonstrate social values, ethics, and principles, open to being challenged on the values and beliefs; have the ability to manage conflict regarding ethical issues, being able to reflect understanding of how to integrate ethics into practice, and recognize my personal values in a way that would allow my professional values to guide my practice (NASW, 2015).
Ruskin, John. “Grotesque Renaissance.” The Stones of Venice: The Fall. 1853. New York: Garland Publishing, 1979. 112-65. Rpt. in Classical and Medieval Literature Criticism. Ed. Jelena O. Krstovic. Vol. 2. Detroit: Gale Research Company, 1989. 21-2.
The Humanist movement and the Scientific Revolution find their own haven in Utopia and New Atlantis. Written approximately one hundred years apart, these works clearly identify the attitudes of both the writers and of European society at that time. While Francis Bacon embodies the spirit of ingenuity and experimentation, Thomas More clearly illustrates the benefit of a communal society in the heart of a productive and virtue driven community. All the while, however, each author clearly shows the flaws of European society at that time. These aspects are what deliver the historical significance of the ideological movements of the 16th and 17th centuries, and will continue to do so for centuries to come.
In the essay I hope to explain why I picked each poem and to suggest
Johnson, Geraldine A. Renaissance Art, A Very Short Introduction. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.
Smith, R. “Eternal objects of desire. Art Review- Art and love in Renaissance Italy” in New York Times Art and Design, November 20, (2008)
Exploring Parent-Child Relationships in Poetry In 'Before you were mine' by Carol Ann Duffy, '*Mother…' by Simon Armitage, 'On my First Sonne' by Ben Jonson and 'The Song of the Old Mother' by WB Yeats the theme of parent-child relationships is explored. However, each poem makes a different comment about this relationship and the tensions it can create. Parent-child relationships can bring joy and security but also pain and restrictions. The title of the poem 'Before you were mine' instantly tells the reader that the relationship here may be unbalanced. The speaker of the poem is somewhat possessive, the word 'mine' suggesting ownership.
“Philosophers, writers, and artists expressed disillusionment with the rational-humanist tradition of the Enlightenment. They no longer shared the Enlightenment's confidence in either reason's capabilities or human goodness.” (Perry, pg. 457) It is interesting to follow art through history and see how the general mood of society changed with various aspects of history, and how events have a strong connection to the art of the corresponding time.
This kind of peaceful bonding between a people and its history, during these stormy centuries of fight and rebellion (the XVIIIth and the XIXth centuries), which singles out the British people from the other European nations, creates an equilibrium which is incompatible with such artistic manifestations as painting. The practical Puritan spirit refuse painting and, when it finally emerges this mentality makes it lose her way. The English soul subordinates the highest aspirations to material necessities. It extends over the Universe the power of reason; Bacon gives an immediate and practical purpose to knowledge; the merchants organize their own materialistic Republic; “the Round Heads impose on the Republic their own strict rules. In this world there is no place for painting; the imaginary world of Shakespeare is enough to satisfy and relax its entire soul.
The shift between the Middle Ages and Renaissance was documented in art for future generations. It is because of the changes in art during this time that art historians today understand the historical placement and the socio-economic, political, and religious changes of the time. Art is a visual interpretation of one’s beliefs and way of life; it is through the art from these periods that we today understand exactly what was taking place and why it was happening. These shifts did not happen overnight, but instead changed gradually though years and years of art, and it is through them that we have record of some of the most important changes of historic times.
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Williamson, George. ed. Milton: Formal Essays and Critical Asides. Cleveland: Case Western Reserve Univ. Press, 1970.
Milton: Modern Essays in Criticism. Ed. Arthur E. Barker, b. 1875. New York: Oxford University Press, 1965. 205-217.
MacCaffrey, Isabel. "Satan’s Voyage". Modern Critical Views: John Milton . Bloom, Harold, ed. Chelsea House Publishers: New York, 1986.
Parry, Graham. "Literary Baroque and Literary Neoclassicism." A Companion to Milton. Thomas N. Corns, ed. Blackwell Publishing, 2003.