Mary In The Flowering Of The Rod

Many people recognize the religion of christianity as a faith that has transcended through a multitude of cultures. One of the most significant premises of this faith is the representation of the father, son, and the holy spirit that makes up the doctrine of the holy trinity. Though these figures of spirituality encompasses what it means to be a believer of the christian faith, H.D extracts the significance of Mary as the bearing mother of Jesus Christ and focuses on her matriarchal status that is attributed in Tributes to the Angels. H.D also conflates multiple characters of the bible within The Flowering of the Rod, and by identifying all of those who encompass significant figures, Mary, mother of God is foreshadowed within these exemplifying

H.D allows for readers to understand Mary as the embodiment of an angel, instead of identifying her as the hierarchical figure who only personifies significance through the bearing of Jesus Christ, son of God. What H.D achieves in both The Flowering of the Rod and and Tributes to the Angels is establishing that the codependency of men and women is a relationship that often personifies the strength within male masculinity, and minimizes the significance of womanhood as a source of strength much like it does in the era of war through the London Blitz. Though this is not depicted in terms of Mary’s hierarchical status, Tributes to the Angels portrays a strength in Mary that is often overshadowed by her true contribution as the giver of life to the son of God and ultimately this portrayal of masculine significance plays a major role in the detailing of men who endured World War I, while the traumas of women were viewed as if they came second to that of

With H.D extracting the normative representation of Mary, she ultimately proclaims her as a spiritual angelic figure due to her ability to conform to as an array of supernatural figures, while still representing a wholeness of normalcy. As H.D slowly reveals her true interpretation of the Virgin Mary, her clever ability to present the Christian notion of Mary as the bearer of the son of God, then contrast this with the idea that she is comprised as the mother above all while still displaying normal feminine instinct is what makes Mary seem angelic. Through both of these works H.D keeps readers engaged in identifying the social function of Mary as a normative figure being as though much of H.D’s life foreshadows a normative figure who was overlooked by the trying times of war and the age of literature that catered to