Flower in the Crannied Wall

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Tennyson memorial statue beside Lincoln Cathedral

"Flower in the Crannied Wall" is a poem composed by Alfred Tennyson in 1863 beside the wishing well at Waggoners Wells. he poem uses flowers to represent philosophical ideologies [1] and is one of multiple poems where Tennyson touches upon the topic of the relationships between God, nature, and human life.[2]

The Tennyson memorial statue was completed in 1903 by George Frederic Watts and unveiled in 1905[3] at Lincoln Cathedral, shows Tennyson holding a flower in his hand standing alongside a dog. Underneath, on the pedestal of the statue, lies a plaque of the poem. Since the statue was unveiled in 1905, there has been concerns over discoloration and disintegration. A commissioned firm specializing in bronze restoration then expressed that the statue appears similar to when it was first unveiled.[3]

Text[]

Flower in the crannied wall,
I pluck you out of the crannies,
I hold you here, root and all, in my hand,
Little flower—but if I could understand
What you are, root and all, and all in all,
I should know what God and man is.

Structure[]

In terms of stresses, the poem follows an accentual meter where the organization of the poem relied on the "count of stresses, not by count of syllables".[4] The pattern for the number of stresses in this poem is 3-3-4-4-4-3.

Plaque found on Waggoners Wells of the poem "Flowers in the Crannied Wall" commemorating the site of the poem's composition

Flow-er in the cran-nied wall,

I pluck you out of the cran-nies,

I hold you here, root and all, in my hand,

Little flow-er—but if I could un-der-stand

What you are, root and all, and all in all,

I should know what God and man is.

The poem also follows an ABCCAB rhyme scheme. There are also 2 instances of a feminine ending found in the second and last line.

Plaque of "Flower in the Crannied Wall" found on the pedestal of Tennyson's memorial statue.

Reception[]

In Literature[]

The phrase flower in the crannied wall is sometimes used in a metaphorical sense for the idea of seeking holistic and grander principles from constituent parts and their connections.[5] The poem can be interpreted as Tennyson’s perspective on the connection between God and Nature.[6] English critic Theodore Watts characterized Tennyson as a "nature poet."[7] Fredric Myers described Tennyson as incorporating the “interpenetration of the spiritual and material worlds" into his literary works.[8]

In Science[]

Scientists have also mentioned and drawn their own interpretations of the poem. In his book Through Nature to God, evolutionist John Fiske describes the flower as an “elementary principle” that is both “simple and broad.” According to Fiske, all living things "represents the continuous adjustment of inner to outer relations". The flower mentioned by Tennyson is a plant consisting of complex systems that regulates its "relations within" itself and its "relations existing outside" itself. Further understanding these complex systems scientifically can reveal the "mysteries of Nature."[9] Others including Theodore Soares, the then department head from the University of Chicago, also viewed Tennyson as "one of the earliest of the spiritual interpreters of life" who saw the impacts of science with macroscopic lenses.[10]

References[]

  1. ^ Campbell, William R. (1976). "A Note on the Flowers in "Pippa Passes"". Victorian Poetry. 14 (1): 59–63. ISSN 0042-5206.
  2. ^ Tucker, Herbert F. (1983). "Tennyson and the Measure of Doom". PMLA. 98 (1): 8–20. doi:10.2307/462069. ISSN 0030-8129.
  3. ^ a b "THE TENNYSON STATUE, LINCOLN". Tennyson Research Bulletin. 1 (4): 111–111. 1970. ISSN 0082-2841.
  4. ^ Brogan, T. V. F. BroganT V. F.; Hartman, C. O. HartmanC O. (2017-08-24), "Accentual Verse", The Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics, Princeton University Press, doi:10.1093/acref/9780190681173.001.0001/acref-9780190681173-e-0005, ISBN 978-0-691-15491-6, retrieved 2021-12-19
  5. ^ Brandom, Robert (1981). "Leibniz and Degrees of Perception". Journal of the History of Philosophy. 19 (4): 447–479. doi:10.1353/hph.2008.0100. ISSN 1538-4586.
  6. ^ Sait, J. E. (1984-11-01). "Tennyson's Flower in the Crannied Wall". The Explicator. 43 (1): 27–30. doi:10.1080/00144940.1984.11483829. ISSN 0014-4940.
  7. ^ "ASPECTS OF TENNYSON - ProQuest". www.proquest.com. Retrieved 2021-11-12.
  8. ^ Verfasser, Myers, Frederic William Henry. Science and a future life With other essays. ISBN 978-3-337-60220-8. OCLC 1189547861. {{cite book}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  9. ^ Fiske, John (1899). Through Nature to God. Houghton, Mifflin.
  10. ^ Soares, Theodore Gerald (1916). "A Professional Reading Course on the Preaching Task of the Modern Minister". The Biblical World. 47 (5): 344–350. ISSN 0190-3578.


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