Autobiographical Poetry
At the time that Lawrence first turned his attention toward seriously writing verse, the most popular structural convention in England was the Georgian short form which relied on rhyme to convey an abiding preoccupation with nature. For Lawrence, the conveyance of the natural world actually meant his own response to it. Always heavily indebted to introspective qualities regardless of writing fiction or poetry, short pieces or long, the lyrical and confessional nature of poetry was a natural conduit through which Lawrence could address the world as it affected him. Intensely aware of being an inheritor of Keats’ proclamation that any good young poem is basically committing himself to a vain struggle to say something that only experience can give adequate voice to, Lawrence was introspective enough to realize that his early poetry was likely not going to be the verse for which he might be remembered. As a result, this autobiographical thematic period did not last very long and represents more of a learning process than a true artistic “period.”
Animal Kingdom
Fauna rather than flora begin to feature more prominently as Lawrence gains the confidence to leave behind the strictures of Georgian nature poems. Rhyme is not abandoned entirely, but unrhymed verse becomes the standard. The turn toward creatures great and small also moves from the poems from the autobiographical. The animals are engaged for the purpose of finding humorous juxtaposition between instinct and rational processing. The turn toward animal instinct as an escape the obstruction that conscious thought places in the way of unconscious action is, however, all part of a greater autobiographical sum as Lawrence’s prose will continually try to penetrate unconscious drives. Animal life as small as a mosquito and as exotic as a kangaroo become subjects worth study as pervasive theme pitting doing of animals versus the thinking of humans.
The Decline of Western Civilization
From the unpleasant comparison to animals, humans begin to sink lower in the estimation of Lawrence’s poetry. His more mature work turns its attention outward form the self with furious anger and righteous conviction. His appreciation of the natural world and its reliance on savage instinct has taken firm hold and the result is often an appreciation of the natural state of man that reads like Rousseau mixed with an increasing satirical misanthropy that veers toward the Swiftian. Quite notably apparent within this theme is Lawrence’s disregard for the love of money rising across Britain as the result of expanding middle class. Money becomes the dominant metaphor of the decline of western civilization, if not necessarily the root of discontent.
Death
As wise master Yoda points out, anger leads to hate and hate leads to suffering. Where does one turn one’s poet attentions when looking to escape suffering? The overarching themes of the poems in the final stage of his career reveal Lawrence’s obsession with death, scripture, spirituality and the hope with death arrives a ship to carry the soul on what will hopefully be a long and fascinating journey. The religious quality is not contained with mere Christian prescriptions for the conveyance of the soul. Lawrence alludes to ancient pagan civilization and mythology as much as to the Bible. The effect is to return religion back into the state of primitive ritual from which it was born and in the process lend it as mystical and mysterious nature not corrupted by the influence of logic and reason, but resurrected in a purer natural state.
