Projection of Images in the poem `Noble Nature by Ben Jonson : A linguistic Analysis

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1 Projection of Images in the poem `Noble Nature by Ben Jonson : A linguistic Analysis - Dr. J.B. Patil Head, Dept. of English Kamala College, Kolhapur Maharashtra (I) Abstract : Poets use figures of speech to serve various purposes intended by them. Image formation is one of them. Poets use them to present a certain type of `sense experience to the reader s imagination. With the help of images poetry can create the impression of things more powerfully than the visual arts. Poets convey their ideas by using images which are `picture language. [Key words: image, ideas, equivalence, oak, lily, visual, linguistic analysis] (II) Theoretical Background : According to P.N. Furbank 1, we speak of similies and metaphors as images but both of them are forms of comparison and it is hard to see how a comparison can be a picture. Poetic language makes things vividly present to us. F. R. Leavis 2 writes, `Verse has such life and body that we hardly seem to be reading arrangements of words. The total effect is as if words as words withdrew themselves from the focus of our attention and we were directly aware of a tissue of feelings and perceptions. Words in poetry behave as images. They are representations of things. Poetic imagination combines, transforms and synthesizes all elements, we utilize our 90

2 knowledge of reality ; pre-existed background knowledge to interpret these images and there we involve our imagination. Hence such kind of imagery is cognitive. There are various types of images. 1) visual that appeals to eye 2) aural - that appeals to ear 3) tactile (sense of touch) etc. In this article what I want to propose is to present linguistic analysis: The way the poet chooses to build words in such an order that they become picture : image. For this purpose I have selected the most famous poem `The Noble Nature by Ben Jonson who was a great poet and dramatist after Shakespeare. (III) The text of the poem The Noble Nature Ben Jonson It is not growing like a tree In bulk, doth make man better be; Or standing long an oak three hundred year, To fall a log at last, dry, bald and sere : A lily of a day Is fairer far in May Although it fall and die that night; It was the plant and flower of light. In small proportions we just beauties see; And in short measures life may perfect be. (IV) Analysis of the poem : The poem is a fine lyric which was written in the ``immortal Memory and friendship of that Noble Pair Sir Lucius Cary and Sir H. Morrison. Morrison died but as the poet says that Man lives not in years but in deeds. 91

3 The poem expresses the idea that `one hour of crowded glory is worthier than an age without a name. To elucidate this idea Ben Jonson used two vital images, which are prominently visual. Katie Wales 3 defines image as, originally image had a visual meaning, still common in semiotics. Literary images, whether in prose or poetry are not simply decorative but serve, for example, to defamiliarise : to reveal aspects of experience in a new light; or to reinforce theme, setting or characterization. As we read the poem we are likely to picture two natural objects before our eyes. We visualize `an oak and ` a lily : visual images in the poem. In the first five lines of the poem, the NP : `an oak appears to be `front of the ground and we therefore perceive it as being more prominent. It is associated with the meaning and contains aesthetic values. The meaning contained in the first two lines of the first part of the poem is exemplified by the poet by projecting the image of an oak. The article `an is an indefinite article and it serves a special purpose. The poet is not talking about a particular oak tree, but what he says in the poem about an oak, is applicable to all oak trees. The adverb ; `long and the NP: `year preceded by the enumerator `Three hundred indicate the long, tedious standing of the oak mentioned in the poem. Its `fall is also described. The NP: a log and the adjectives, `dry `bald and `sere point out how the long standing oak meets to an end. Even though it lives long, at the end it is merely a log which is `dry `bald and `sere. The NP: `Three hundred year points out the growing of the oak `in bulk but the adjectives used to describe it have negative connotations : The adjectives : 1) `dry means uninteresting, dull, bare 2) bald means `not covered with leaves and 3) sere means `withered and 92

4 dried up. It is clear that even if the oak lives long it is uninteresting, dull and dry hence it has no use beyond `the log. Another image pictured in the next part of the poem is `a lily. Like the use of an indefinite article `an with `oak the poet used an indefinite article `a with `lily. That means that he is not talking about any particular `lily. His views about `lily are applicable to all lily flowers. The prepositional phrase (pp) `of a day indicates `transitoriness of life of the flower. The adjective `fairer describes its beautiful, delicate and attractive appearance. The transitoriness of its life is further enhanced by the verbs i.e. `fall and `die along with the NP `that night. That means the flower `falls and `dies that very night : a very little span of time! The adverb `far describes the enchanting beauty of the flower in the month of May. The NP `flower of light indicates that the flower lily is not merely a plant or a flower but it is a beautiful thing of knowledge that helps us to understand the aphorism put forth by the poet that, `we see beauty in small things like flowers and life may be perfect within short span of time, as is exemplified by a lily. The semantic equivalence is noteworthy. The first two lines and the last two lines of the poem comprise the aphorism. Again there is phonetic equivalence. The rhyme is adeptly brought out. The last word of the first line i.e. `tree rhymes with the last word of the second line i.e. `be. Same is the case of the last two lines of the poem i.e. the word `see rhymes with `be. Roman Jakobson 3 has said, ``Any form of parallelism is an apportionment of invariants and variables. It can be observed that in any parallelistic pattern there must be an element of identify and an element of contrast. 93

5 There is an element of contrast carried out through the parallelism by the poet. The prepositional phrase `in bulk in the second line of the poem is in sharp contrast with the PPs `in small proportions and in short measures in the last two lines of the poem. The PP `in bulk refers to`oak and the last two pps refer to `lily. This striking parallelism brings `rhetorical emphasis and memorability in the poem. In this connection the views of Leech, are remarkable. G. N. Leech 5 says, ``Interpreting the parallelism involves appreciating some external connection between these elements. The connection is either of similarity or of contrast. At graphological level the poem begins with the aphorism stated through the image of oak and the poem ends with the aphorism stated through the image of Lily. Thus it has circular movement. It can be observed that such a small poem, seemingly simple, but is semantically rich and melodious. There may be many interpretations of this poem because it is charged with deeper meaning. Hence my approach is an open ended one. References : 1. Furbank P.N. (1970) `Reflections on the word `Image London. 2. Leavis F.R.(1945), Imagery and Movement. 3. Wales Katie )1989), A Dictionary of Stylistics, London, Longman. 4. Jakobson `Romanin in `Leech G.N. (1969) - A Linguistic Guide to English poetry, London, Longman. 5. Leech G. N. op. Cit. 94

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