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In an effort to get the different sections of my Blog up and running, I was digging up some old work I did at university in my B.A. English Literature degree. I recall I did quite well in this assessment piece. Given that it was the first time I had ever really formulated an essay, having left school 21 years earlier with no properly developed skills on this front, I am still pleased with it. Well… I am, at least, not embarrassed by it.

It is hard to believe this was written 12 years ago.

Rebekah Martin

ENGL1101- Approaches to Literature.

Date: 19/03/12

Short Assignment – The Quest Narrative in Poetry

O Where Are You Going? by W.H. Auden (1931)

    “O where are you going?” said reader to rider,
    “That valley is fatal where furnaces burn,
    Yonder’s the midden whose odours will madden,
    That gap is the grave where the tall return.” (4)

    “O do you imagine,” said fearer to farer,
    “That dusk will delay on your path to the pass,
    Your diligent looking discover the lacking,
    Your footsteps feel from granite to grass?” (8)

    “O what was that bird,” said horror to hearer,
    “Did you see that shape in the twisted trees?
    Behind you swiftly the figure comes softly,
    The spot on your skin is a shocking disease.” (12)

    “Out of this house”—said rider to reader,
    “Yours never will”—said farer to fearer
    “They’re looking for you”—said hearer to horror,
    As he left them there, as he left them there. (16)

~~~

When reading the poem ‘O Where are You Going’ by W H Auden, it is possible to see elements of the quest narrative, as outlined by Christopher Booker (2004, p. 83). Although the nature of the protagonist’s quest is not overtly stated in the poem, his journey and trials are predicted by three voices: the reader, the fearer and the horror. These voices could be the hero’s thoughts, or warnings from the society he functions within. The voices ponder the ordeals of the journey ahead and question the hero’s capacity to overcome them. Conversely, the rider, farer and hearer can be seen as key traits of the central character. These three aspects feel the call to action and will not be deterred from the quest by naysayers or inner doubts.

In the opening stanza the rider has heard a call to action and is about to set forth on his quest. ‘Yonder’s the midden whose odours will madden’ (line 3) proclaims the reader, describing hostile terrain ahead. A place filled with filthy, fiery hills of rubbish; the burning remains of the battlefield’s fallen (lines 2-4). Seeds of doubt and foreboding enter the mind of the rider.

The fearer in the second verse casts further doubts about the farer’s capacity to complete the quest. The voice suggests that the farer will ‘discover the lacking his (your) footsteps feel from granite to grass’ (lines 7-8). The path to sunnier climes will prove rockier than expected. The hero may not feel sure-footed on his journey. At this threshold the hero will be frustrated before he can reach his goal.

The last question posed to the hearer is a frantic and fearful warning. ‘O what was that bird,’ said horror to hearer, ‘Did you see that shape in the twisted trees?’ (lines 9-10). The horror refers to three final, life threatening ordeals. He speaks of circling carrion birds, pestilence and certain doom inflicted unexpectedly from a dark figure (lines 11-12). The voice is making a final effort to dissuade the traveller from setting forth.

The hero, however, is not daunted. In the final stanza he answers the voices’ lyrical questioning of his purpose and capacity with short, clipped statements. He turns each of the questions back upon the one who asks it. In commanding voice, the reader is ordered ‘Out of this house’ (line13). The rider will not turn back or keep grim thoughts in his head. To the fearer: ‘Yours never will’ (line 14). It is fear that fails to walk the sweet fields of glory. ‘They’re looking for you’ (line 15) the horror is told- these ordeals can only touch those who remain afraid of them. Thus, the harbingers of doom are put firmly in their place and left behind (line 16). The lone hero has already faced three tests of his character. Now the external quest can begin without dread.

Auden’s poem presents the testing and trials of the hero as he prepares to answer the call of the quest. It mirrors the quest narrative by describing the dangers of the impending journey, the doubts and frustrations he must face and the three final, life threatening ordeals that stand between him and his prize. By then end of the poem, the hero’s resolve is set. The success of the quest is assured.

Word Count: 551

References

Auden, W. H. (Wystan H. (1966). Collected shorter poems, 1927-1957. Faber.

Booker, C 2004, The Seven Basic Plots, Continuum, London.

By Rebekah Martin