When, moreover, the mood is a
common one, there occurs that identification of self with the passion
expressed characteristic of music: the utterance becomes ours as well
as the poet's; the "I" of the poem is the "I" who read. This is
especially true when the setting and causes of the emotion are without
name or place or date; the poem then shares the timelessness and
universality of music. In such a lyric there is complete symmetry in
the relation between speaker and hearer; the poet unburdens his heart
to us, and we in receiving his message tell it back to him. When, on
the other hand, in explaining his feelings, the poet relates them to
events and persons which have been no part of our experience, this
symmetry is lost; we no longer utter the poem ourselves, but merely
hear the poet speak. Such poetry is already approaching the dramatic;
for although still the expression of the poet's life, it is no longer
an expression of the reader's life, and the poet also, as he lives
past his experience, must come at length to view it as if it were
another's.
And yet, paradoxical as it may sound, dramatic poetry is dramatic in
proportion as it is lyrical--that is, according to the degree to which
the poet has made the life of others his own. Dramatic poetry, when
truly poetic, is a series of lyrics of the less universal type. In
another respect, however, dramatic poetry is essentially different
from the lyrical. For, in dramatic poetry, each utterance is a response
or invitation to another utterance, while in lyric poetry, utterance
is complete in itself.
Pages:
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235
236
237
238
239
240
241
242
243
244