“Good literature is thought-provoking, deeply moving and ultimately a celebratory exploration of
the human spirit.”
The definition of “good literature” is an ever moveable feast. Whilst there are undoubtedly certain
texts or writers who are considered to be part of a literary canon, would these texts be considered
“good” by the general public of today, tomorrow or even yesterday. Like everything else, literature
can often be a product of its times and it is those which endure which I would consider to be “good
literature”. But what inspires the longevity of these texts? It is perhaps their ability to delve beneath
the surface of our humanity and make us question ourselves and our society, that provoke an
emotional response within us and raise our “consciousness of glory and of grief, of woe and of
wonder” (Norton Anthology of Poetry). However, is it always a “celebratory exploration of the
human spirit”? The human spirit is not always worthy of such veneration and literature should “hold
up a mirror to our world” (S.L. Gilbow) to reveal its flaws as well as to admire its beauty.
One of such texts is the satirical poem by Jonathan Swift, ‘A Beautiful Young Nymph Going To Bed”.
The poem explores the grimier side of humanity, the obsession with beauty and artifice which leads
to “Corinna” wearing “artificial hair”, fake “eye-brows”, teeth, hips, and a “crystal eye” amongst
other things. Whilst it is clearly a criticism of women who employ such artificial aids to their beauty –
and has as much relevance in the social media driven world of today as it did in the 18th century – it
is also criticising a society which demands women who look a certain way. If beauty were not a
preconceived idea, then Corinna would not be trying to attain it. Furthermore, it makes us question
such a society where there is no place for women like Corinna except through prostitution. If there
were not the call for prostitutes, then she would not be one and Swift makes us think about the role
of men in society and how they contribute to Corrina’s degradation. There is the “drunken rake” and
“strolling toast” who happily use her after imbibing alcohol; there are the religious men who make
use of her “she pays ‘em all in kind” and finally the law enforcers, “watchmen, constables and duns”
of whom she lives in fear of a multitude of punishments, ranging from imprisonment, corporal
punishment or deportation. Whilst this poem certainly makes us think, may move us as to Corinna’s
plight it is rather a condemnation of the human spirit which allows the wretched lives of Corinna to
continue without any possibility of alleviation. We might be impressed by her fortitude to endure
despite such depressing circumstances but I would suggest that Swift’s intentions are to criticise his
society in the same way that William Blake did nearly sixty years later in his poem ‘London’.
This challenging aspect of poetry is certainly one which I believe is essential if it is to be “good
literature”. Blake’s poem, from his ‘Songs of Experience’ collection is one which stands out, not least
because there is no partner poem in the ‘Songs of Innocence’. The London Blake writes about is an
urban nightmare of suffocating proportions. Everything is owned by the rich, “each charter’d street’
– even the river – typically a symbol of nature and freedom is “the charter’d Thames’. Like Swift’s
Corinna, Blake focuses on the poor and marginalised, who are trapped by their poverty, “the mind
forg’d manacles”, with no hope of ever escaping from their virtual prison of woe. Like Swift, Blake
also writes about the “youthful harlots” and how prostitution damages the family, “Blasts the newborn Infants tear/And blights with plagues the marriage hearse.” This refers to both the literal
spread of sexually transmitted diseases, and high infant mortality among the poor, while the
surprising juxtaposition of “marriage hearse” suggests also that married men using prostitutes “kills”
marriages through its breaking of the matrimonial promises of monogamy. Whilst this poem is
definitely thought-provoking and moving, its focus on the worst side of humanity is hardly
celebratory in tone, unlike William Wordsworth’s famous sonnet which praises the beauty of the
city, “This City now doth, like a garment, wear the beauty of the morning.” The contrast between
Wordsworth’s simile about London in the morning and Blake’s “midnight streets” is hard to
reconcile, especially as the two poets were contemporaries. Do we need to look harder at the world
to see its beauty, like Wordsworth, or harder to see its reality like Blake? That is a question which I
believe “good literature” should provoke us to consider.
Cynical 20th century English poet Philip Larkin would have agreed with Blake’s take on London; many
of his poems focus on dispelling our romantic notions and replacing them with a hard dose of reality.
For example, in ‘An Arundel Tomb’, Larkin gently mocks our romantic view of the past and how
modern visitors to Chichester Cathedral and viewing a tomb of an earl and his countess see “with
sharp tender shock, his hand withdrawn, holding her hand.” Larkin reveals how this was supposed to
be “just a detail friends would see” and in actual fact denoted their marital status, not their
perpetual love for one another. He points out how “Time has transfigured them into untruth”; how
we have lost our understanding of the reality of the past so that we can “prove our almost-instinct
almost true: what will survive of us is love.” Maybe if the poem was written from another more
romantic point of view, it would be deeply moving. As it is, it is certainly thought-provoking in its
revelation of our innate folly, which is probably something none of us would like to celebrate about
ourselves.
The more realistic treatment of love is perhaps one which proliferates in more modern poetry,
although not one which is only seen there. Following on from Shakespeare’s realistic treatment of
his mistress in Sonnet 130, Scottish poet Carol Ann Duffy criticises our romanticism of love with all
its clichés, “Not a red rose or satin heart”; ‘Not a cute card or kissogram”. Instead, she plays with the
conceit of their love being like an onion: many layered, causing pain, possessive, cruel and
potentially deadly. Like many of the other poems considered, the poem is not a celebratory
exploration of the human spirit but a more realistic and frankly, damning one. The relationship does
not sound like a positive one and perhaps reflects the many abusive relationships and marriages that
exist in our world.
Ultimately, the designation of a text as “good literature” is a purely personal one. In the words of
Jean Cocteau, “the poet is a liar who always speaks the truth.” This truth isn’t always one the world
wants to hear – for example William Wordsworth wrote about William Blake, “There was no doubt
that this poor man was mad”. Whilst I would agree that “Good literature is thought-provoking” and
“deeply moving”, I would suggest that only sometimes it is “a celebratory exploration of the human
spirit”; at other times, it gives us a long hard look at the folly or ugliness of humanity, a view we
might not want to see, but certainly need to.