John Clare was a Romantic poet who died in 1864. His work is well-regarded for his depictions of the English countryside, childhood, and his own suffering. Clare lived during a period of change in England, specifically the Agricultural revolution. His work is also known for its depth and thoughtfulness.
‘Emmonsail’s Heath in Winter’ by John Clare is a beautiful nature poem that describes a specific area in Northamptonshire in winter. The poem focuses on plants and birds.
I love to see the old heath's withered brake
Mingle its crimpled leaves with furze and ling,
While the old heron from the lonely lake
Starts slow and flaps his melancholy wing,
‘I Am!’ by John Clare is a powerful poem about a speaker’s struggle with depression, loneliness, and a desire to find peace in Heaven.
I long for scenes where man has never trod;
A place where woman never smil’d or wept;
There to abide with my creator, God,
And sleep as I in childhood sweetly slept:
‘First Love’ by John Clare describes the sudden, overwhelming love a speaker feels for a woman he is seeing for the first time.
I ne’er was struck before that hour
With love so sudden and so sweet,
Her face it bloomed like a sweet flower
And stole my heart away complete.
Clare’s ‘Sunday Dip’ is a joyful portrayal of boys enjoying a carefree day swimming and playing in a pond, surrounded by nature’s beauty.
The morning road is thronged with merry boys
Who seek the water for their Sunday joys;
They run to seek the shallow pit, and wade
And dance about the water in the shade.
‘The Badger’ by John Clare is a narrative poem that portrays the cruelty and danger that animals face in the natural world.
When midnight comes a host of dogs and men
Go out and track the badger to his den,
And put a sack within the hole, and lie
Till the old grunting badger passes by.
‘The Dying Child’ describes a child who is unable to die during springtime but unfortunately, whose circumstances change when winter comes.
He could not die when trees were green,
For he loved the time too well.
His little hands, when flowers were seen,
Were held for the bluebell,
‘The Secret’, a poem by the English poet John Clare speaks on a speaker’s secrecy of feelings concerning a lady. This piece glorifies the beauty of the lady and the speaker’s dedication to her.
I loved thee, though I told thee not,
Right earlily and long,
Thou wert my joy in every spot,
My theme in every song.
‘The Yellowhammer’s Nest’ by John Clare describes the beautiful and brutal world in which a yellowhammer makes its nest and lays its eggs.
Just by the wooden brig a bird flew up,
Frit by the cowboy as he scrambled down
To reach the misty dewberry—let us stoop
And seek its nest—the brook we need not dread,
Clare’s ‘Winter Rainbow’ personifies winter, blending its harshness with moments of beauty, evoking appreciation for its dual nature.
Thou Winter, thou art keen, intensely keen;
Thy cutting frowns experience bids me know,
For in thy weather days and days I've been,
As grinning north-winds horribly did blow,
John Clare’s ‘Young Lambs’ is a sonnet celebrating spring’s arrival, focusing on renewal and innocence through vivid natural imagery.
The spring is coming by a many signs;
The trays are up, the hedges broken down,
That fenced the haystack, and the remnant shines
Like some old antique fragment weathered brown.
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