#Pessimism in Phillip Larkin's Poetry.

#Pessimism in Phillip Larkin's

Poetry. İİİİİİİııııı By Rana Nadeem ul Hassan (M.A English) ŀŀŀŀŀŀŀŀŀŀŀŀ
ĬĬIntroduction The age of Larkin was an age of catastrophe and chaos on
a social and moral level all over the world caused by the Second World
War which also resulted in a decline in values and ethics. The
deterioration and damage witnessed by people after the two world wars
in 20th century produced uncertainties about the existence of God, and
people started losing faith in religion. In general, the postwar generation
suffered from several sides and some of them reflected their fears,
doubts, pessimism and bitter realities in their work of arts, especially
literature. Like many other poets, Larkin's attempts were to show and
express those feelings and state of mind through his poems. In almost all
of Larkin's poems there are portrayals of death, isolation, age, religion
and sex; his view for all facets of his world is highly pessimistic, and we
can seldom find a sense of hope in his poetry. Therefore, this paper will
explore, interpret and analyze the theme of pessimism in five of Larkin's
typical poems from different collections, "Church Going" in The Less
Deceived (1955) collection, "Days" and "Dockery and Son" in The
Whitsun Weddings (1964) collection, "This Be The Verse" and "High
Windows" in High Windows (1974) collection. Though pessimism is
notable in all his poems, but due to the limit of our essay we attempt to
choose five poems which serve us the best. İİİLarkin's Biography Philip
Larkin was an English poet, novelist, and librarian born on August 9,
1922, in Coventry, England. His father, Sydney, who became Treasurer
for Coventry City Council was a distinctly authoritarian figure in the
household with Larkin's modest mother, Eva (John Gilroy, 2009).
Sydney's influence on Larkin was prevailing and he introduced his son
to the works of Ezra Pound, T. S. Eliot, James Joyce and D. H.
Lawrence. Young Larkin was educated at the home until the age of eight
by his mother and sister. He attended St. John’s College, Oxford. His
first book of poetry, The North Ship, was published in 1945 and, though
not particularly strong on its own, is remarkable insofar as certain
passages foreshadow the unique sensibility and maturity that
characterizes his later work. Larkin published his first novel, Jill in 1946.
After finishing Jill, Larkin worked on the novel A Girl in Winter, which
was published in 1947. In the year 1951, he compiled a poem collection
with name, XX Poems, which was printed privately in just 100 copies
(The Famous People Website). Then in 1955 was the publication of his
second collection of poems, The Less Deceived, followed by The
Whitsun Weddings (1964) and High Windows (1974). He contributed to
The Daily Telegraph as its jazz critic from 1961 to 1971, articles
gathered in All What Jazz: A Record Diary 1961–71 (1985), and he
edited The Oxford Book of Twentieth Century English Verse (1973)
(Wikipedia Contributors). Deeply anti-social and a great lover and
published critic of American jazz, Larkin never married and worked as a
librarian in the provincial city of Hull, where he died of cancer on
December 2, 1985. İİİİLarkin's Style, Criticism and the Movement
Philip Larkin represents a growth in British poetry of 1950s, namely the
rise of anti-heroic, 'all illusions gone' school of thought. Reality is
emphasized at all costs, and a thoughtful effort made to eliminate all
glamour from situations and people (Martin Stephen, 2000: 297).He was
the central figure in what arose to be known as "the Movement" a group
of poets that included Kingsley Amis, Donald Davie, Tom Gonne,
Elizabeth Jennings, and others. The Movement was a consciously and
definitely anti-

romantic trend: it protested not only against 19th-century romanticism,

but against any kind of poetry that Movement poets judge to follow in
the sense of romanticism. In the view of Movement group, modernism
attained, rather than abolished, romanticism (István D. Rácz, 1995). As
Stephen (2000) indicates that "Larkin refuses to be romantic about life
or put down views that are more attractive and comforting than true".
Similar to Hardy, much has been written of Larkin's pessimism, his
depiction of loneliness, age, and death; though, the many negatives in
his poems indicate positives, out of reach of the ironic and selfcritical
speaker, but available perhaps to others more fortunate, elsewhere
(Abrams, 1999 2565). During his poetic career, his miserable outlook on
human life has been a spirit of his poetic stance. Human life and its
predicament, the distress and cynicism have been the frequent motifs of
his poetry (Shabnum Iftikhar, 2013). The Less Deceived (1955) is
Larkin's second book of poems, on which "his reputation is based, and
its rejection of literary stereotypes, its rejection of history and its
rejection of self were all timely" (Rogers Pat, 1987: 464). Larkin stood
against the modernist ideas that poetry had to be difficult and that poets,
by nature, are outcasts, granted with some greater vision than the public.
Larkin insisted on the transparency of the language of poetry to be
understandable by all kinds of people (Neil Convey, 1993). However,
one of the prominent things about Larkin's poetry is its surface
simplicity, while its deeper meanings gradually become more apparent
afterward; the reader realizes he is being offered something more than
what is merely seen (Martin Scofield, 1976). In addition, Larkin's
experience of anguish, human cognition, God, death, religion and even
his political views can be understood in his duality. The difference of the
two sides of experience has fascinating consequences, as Rácz (1995)
claims that "the typical genres of the poems are the dramatic monologue
and the mask lyric, while the tone is often ironic, sarcastic or parodic".
The opposing selves of the poet are equally captured by time, but they
form different concepts of it. "Church Going" This poem displays the
picture of church and its likely future in the speaker's opinion. The poem
describes "man's defacement of Nature in a way which reminds us that
we are getting to the point of no return with what we do and how we
live" (Walford Davies, 1976). On a surface level, this poem satirizes
church going tradition, but on a deeper level, Larkin refers to the
collapse of a church, as people’s religious faith also was a victim of
collapse. As churches were no longer able to attract all people towards
religion, it indicated the decline of church at that time (Iftikhar, 2013).
Also, all of Larkin's suspicions, fears, and frustrations are discovered in
a single visit to an empty church. Each line of the poem expands the
tension in the speaker's response to the building (kateryna Schray, 2002).
Once I am sure there’s nothing going on I step inside, letting the door
thud shut. Another church: matting, seats, and stone, And little books;
sprawlings of flowers, cut For Sunday, brownish now; some brass and
stuff Up at the holy end; the small neat organ; And a tense, musty,
unignorable silence, Brewed God knows how long. Hatless, I take off
My cycle-clips in awkward reverence. The opening line already poses a
challenge to faith: the speaker only goes inside when he is "sure there's
nothing going on", actually there is always something going on in a
house of God, but the speaker has a pessimistic view towards the church
going (ibid.). The speaker's visit seems to be an accident or unexpected
experience. These stanzas suggest indecision and uncertainty in every
line:

the gate turns out to be too noisy; the phrase "another church" hints to
the meaning as though the speaker is tired of visiting. The comic
character states God's name in the church unconsciously, and he is just
as unconscious when he takes off his cycle-clips to show his respect,
since he does not wear a hat (Rácz, 1995). Yet stop I did: in fact I often
do, And always end much at a loss like this, Wondering what to look
for; wondering, too, When churches will fall completely out of use What
we shall turn them into, if we shall keep A few cathedrals chronically on
show, Their parchment, plate and pyx in locked cases, And let the rest
rent-free to rain and sheep. Shall we avoid them as unlucky places? The
persona thinks that the place is not worth stopping to inspect. But he also
confesses that he did stop, and has frequently done so. The speaker is "at
a loss", certainty is thus replaced by wondering, wondering what to
search for; wondering, what churches will be turned into; wondering
who will be the last to look for the church and its purposes (Gilroy,
2009: 60). Whether it will be "completely out of use" or they will be
abandoned buildings for "rain and sheep". These all outlooks seem to be
from someone who looks at the future of church negatively and full of
pessimistic predictions. This is also a reflection of Larkin's attitude
toward church in his time. "This Be The Verse" This is one of his most
popular poems which is written in a straightforward language with the
use of slang words. His angry tone suits his subject matter. The speaker
discourages the reader to beget children in an extremely pessimistic
manner, using strong language. The title, nevertheless, places the poem
within quotation marks thus changing it into a creed. It suggests that
man can leave only his misery to descendants; consequently both
lovemaking and begetting children are immoral (Rácz, 1995). Man
hands on misery to man. It deepens like a coastal shelf. Get out as early
as you can, And don’t have any kids yourself. This is a gloomy view of
things. Human beings cause suffering which starts with parenting;
mistakes are repeated in each generation. The speaker finds no hope in it
all. This is at the same time pessimistic and fun. He is clearly making a
joke. But at the same time it is a joke based on cynicism. (Tony
Northover, 2012). This stanza also develops the argument to suggest that
man is the reason of misery in his fellow man and the imagery of a
‘coastal shelf’ points out the depths of depression to which humankind
may be dragged if the cycle is sustained (Alison Macbezn, 2012). Thus,
Larkin is calling us to accept that since begot us and gave us all their
faults and added some more, we should out of kindness not have
children whose lives would inescapably be even worse than our own
(Craik Roger, 1995). This is a clear pessimistic view towards the cycle
of life and human race and nature of existence, because Larkin assumes
that the same things are repeated and even worse, thus, there is no worth
in continuing this process. "High Windows" In this poem, the speaker
compares the new generation and their liberty of having sex to his old
time when he was a young man who was prohibited and unable to have
the same freedom. His frank voice seems embarrassing when he
describes how the youths today have got rid of sexual taboos, a deeper
layer of the poem suggests the philosophy of old age and the recognition
of human limits. This does not mean asceticism in Larkin; he simply saw
that erotic love was dominated by a civilization strange

to us. The indirect question of the poem is that if neither getting rid of
religion nor sexual liberation bring freedom, what can we hope for?
(Rácz, 1995). Rather than words comes the thought of high windows:  
The sun-comprehending glass, And beyond it, the deep blue air, that
shows Nothing, and is nowhere, and is endless. The speaker feels
desperate as he contemplates his own aging. In ‘High Windows’ he
contrives to escape from his sordid envy of the young since the young
are envied in their false ‘paradise’ of plentiful sex; and "the thought of a
daytime windowscape offers the poet an absolving ‘nowhere’ in which
he can evade the desolate attic of his envy" (James Booth, 2005: 166-
67). The poem concludes with the shocking image of “high windows”
and what exists beyond them “the deep blue air, that shows nothing, and
is nowhere, and is endless”, designating the nonexistence of a heavenly
paradise as well. The main message of the pome could be that there is no
paradise, real or ideal, neither here nor in hereafter life (Jens Kirk,
2012). As a result, hope has no place in the world of the poet because of
his disappointment caused by old age and his doubt about the existence
of paradise. "Days" This poem is one of the short ones but carries a lot
of meanings and interpretations. The concept of death removes the
various divisions of time: there is no difference between moment and
eternity in this world. The problem of time and the human tragedy of
death are closely linked in the consciousness of the doubtful persona
(Rácz, 1995). The persona starts with a philosophical question: What are
days for? Days are where we live.   They come, they wake us   Time and
time over. They are to be happy in:   Where can we live but days? Ah,
solving that question Brings the priest and the doctor   In their long coats
Running over the fields. The phrasing line "Time and time over",
reminds us not just of routine of days, but equally of how one day it will
be for each of us individually "time over" (Gilroy, 2009) As in many of
his poems, Larkin examines with fierce honesty and the inevitable reality
that all life must end in death. The single image in the poem is of "the
priest and the doctor" coming "running over the fields". This distressing
image suggests that once a person has run out of days, the only solution
is death, and while this is the case, then what is the purpose of filling
endless days with living? Here Larkin is no sentimentalist, but in sharing
his fears and doubts, at least there is a harmony of despair and a
community of hopelessness (Harriet Simpson, 2010). While there is no
hope and purpose in living, the poet reaches to the peak of pessimism
that as much as we live and enjoy, there is an end waiting for us. Though
the poet is realistic, but he only depicts the pessimistic facet and ignores
the rest. Dockery and Son

This poem also is written in the context of the same idea, where Larkin
compares his bachelor life with his friend’s married life, his friend is
married and has a son, but eventually both will face the same end, death.
Hence, it does not matter whether a person is a bachelor or married,
since both are destined to die in the long run (Iftikhar, 2013). This view
is presented in the first stanzas. The poet believes whatever we achieve,
any good changes we make, it makes no sense since we are predestined.
He defines life in a very despairing manner: Life is first boredom, then
fear. Whether or not we use it, it goes, And leaves what something
hidden from us chose,   And age, and then the only end of age. Freedom
of choice is a delusion. Humans are led by "something hidden from us",
this helplessness of choosing one's destiny traps man in a life that may
not please him, heading him to wish for and dream about a more
promising one while life ends with "age, and then the only end of age",
death (Susan Ahmad, n.d.). The definition of the poet for life is clearly
presented in the last four lines of this poem. It is "boredom then fear" as
well as explaining how human beings are defeated by their fate and have
no choice themselves. Larkin frequently refers to age in his poetry, and
here he describes in a desperate voice and melancholic tone, as much as
we live and enjoy, at the end there is death and will terminate
everything, and that comes at the "end of age", he does not mention the
word death directly, but relates it to being aged. Pessimism calls us in
each of these lines with several brooding words. Conclusion Twentieth
century is described to be the age of losing faith in religion, skepticism
about the existence of God, disorder and lack of communication among
people, absence of moral and social values and beliefs. In this period of
misery and depression, Larkin came to witness his world, and that was
effective enough to inspire his realistic poems with the taste of
hopelessness in life. In this paper, efforts were made to present Philip
Larkin's biography, style, criticism and his "Movement". The main focus
was to analyze, interpret and argue five typical poems written by him
which reflect pessimism of the poet. In "Church Going", it was explored
how the speaker views the state of church and religion in his corrupted
world; he also predicts the pathetic future of church and wonder what
will happen to it. Likewise, "This Be The Verse" the speaker has a
pessimistic vision towards the cycle of life and human race and nature of
existence, because of the repetitions of the same mistakes, thus there is
no worth in continuing the process of begetting children. Also, in "High
Windows" the speaker feels frantic as he contemplates his own aging
when he compares the new generation with liberty to his old restricted
one. He also suspects the existence of paradise and believes that there
beyond "high windows" there is nothing called paradise. In "Days", the
speaker asserts the inevitable reality of death and the end of the "days",
he shares his pessimism with us by expressing that as much as we live
and enjoy this life, there is an end ahead of us, that is death. In the final
poem "Dockery and Son", the speaker defines life as "boredom then
fear" in addition to explaining how we are defeated by our fate and have
no other choice. Larkin frequently refers to age in his poetry and shows
as long as we live, at the end there is death that comes at the "end of
age". Finally, in the poetry of Larkin there is a common sense of
pessimism concerning different aspects, religion, death, sex, age,
isolation