Monday, November 30, 2015

In what ways do the poems "Delight in Disorder" and "Upon Julia's Clothes" state aesthetic ideals?

I would argue that both of these poems state aesthetic
ideas in their focus on the way in which the beauty of the subject of the poem impacts
the speaker. In summary, "Delight in Disorder" is a poem that is about the way in which
the unkempt nature of the subject of the poem is more mesmerising than absolute
perfection. Consider the following example:


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A careless shoe-string, in whose tie
I
see a wild civility :
Do more bewitch me than when art 
Is too
precise in every part.



The
speaker finds more beauty in "wild civility" than he does in "precise... art" where
there are no errors. Clearly this poem focuses on, as the title suggests, the way that
there can be great beauty in "disorder."


We can see the
same emphasis on beauty and appearance in "Upon Julia's Clothes," as the simple sight of
watching Julia walk produces a singular effect on the speaker as he is overwhelmed by
her beauty and grace:


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Next, when I cast mine eyes and
see
That brave vibration each way free ;
O how that glittering
taketh me !



Having extolled
the "liquefaction of her clothes" as Julia walks, now the speaker is literally entranced
by the "glittering" as she moves. Both poems, therefore, focus on beauty and its
presentation in the form of women and how this beauty impacts the
speaker.

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