Please help me with ANALYSING this POEM?

Question

I need help with some of the lines like 'with all their griefs in their arms' and 'singing light'. His attitute? Intended/unintended audience? The reward he mentioned (what he wants/does not want)? The irony and theme?

In My Craft or Sullen Art

In my craft or sullen art
Exercised in the still night
When only the moon rages
And the lovers lie abed
With all their griefs in their arms,
I labor by singing light
Not for ambition or bread
Or the strut and trade of charms
On the ivory stages
But for the common wages
Of their most secret heart.

Not for the proud man apart
From the raging moon I write
On these spindrift pages
Nor for the towering dead
With their nightingales and psalms
But for the lovers, their arms
Round the griefs of the ages,
Who pay no praise or wages
Nor heed my craft or art.

The poem is by Dylan Thomas.

Answer 1

this is from dylan thomas' 'collected poems' - and is one of several poems in that book which tell us why thomas wrote poetry.

in the first strophe thomas tells us that he does not write poetry in order to make money or to gain a reputation for himself. he writes poetry because he feels it puts him in touch with people who truly know what love is.

the lovers have 'all their griefs in their arms' as they lie in bed because they have their lover in their arms. if your love is wholly sincere you lover is all your happiness and all your sorrow too - she is everything to you.

(there is an irony here, in that thomas speaks of how lonely it is writing poetry, but says that he does it because it puts him in contact with people who are in love).

in the second strophe thomas goes on to say that he isn't writing poetry to impress any important person who is alive, or even out of respect for the dead. (poems of praise for local dignitaries or for famous dead heroes are not especially common in english - but they are many such poems in welsh. dylan did not himself speak welsh, but many of his relatives did, and he grew up knowing a great deal about welsh culture).

he reminds us that he writes only to do honour to those who truly love. then he reminds us that those who truly love have no real interest in his poetry (they are concerned only with their lovers). (this is a further irony in the poem).

....

'the singing light' is the candle (or possibly an electric light) in the room where thomas is working. dylan is working at night, but he needs a light to work by. the light enables him to sing, so it is a singing light ('a light for singing by').

the lovers have 'all their griefs in their arms' as they lie in bed because they have their lover in their arms. if you love with all your heart your lover is all your happiness and all your misery as well: she is everything to you.

Answer 2

'with all their griefs in their arms' and 'singing light' Have you ever tossed-turned in bed anticipating Christmas morning or taking an exam or going to traffic court? People think of their troubles in the quit of the night.

His attitute? He's trying to help, sees himself as a muse or succubus

Intended/unintended audience? Worry warts.

The reward he mentioned (what he wants/does not want)? He's writing the poem not for teh applause or accolades, but for the joy of doing so

The irony and theme? Though the poet is attempting to assuage and assist others, perhpas he's thus helping himslef, or maybe he needs help, like when a surgeon gets an operation.
Themes include: insomnia, altruism and light without light.

Answer 3

This is quite a profound poem. The speaker is drawn to "my craft or sullen art" at night when only the moon shines and lovers are in bed grumbling or musing about their griefs in each other's arms.

That is the temporal aspect of the speaker's artistry, laboring throughout the night dediated to this craftthat could easily pass for borring, "sullen art" working by uncertain light.
The speaker is neither drawn to this craft by blind ambition, nor does he/she expectto live by this art, nor art for arts' sake"Not for ambition or bread/Or the strut and trade of charms." That would be akin to conducting a thrifty business for commonplace survival, for ' for the common wages' and simple heartfelt satisfaction (Of their most secret heart)!

The speaker is not even a whimsical neurotic ennobled by the moon's temporary folly (dogs normally become mad, enraged and fooled by the moon). No. No. The speaker is not that easily fooled as he/she concentrates on the craft. He/she is not even driven by the overwhelming spirits of the dead singing hypnotic tunes.

So what exactly is the reason for this nightlong craft? W hat is the drive? W hat makes this artist labor all night long?
The answer is profoundly ironic.
The speaker endures all this,
"for the lovers, their arms
Round the griefs of the ages,"

Yes,. . . . the lovers locked in each others embrace, sleeping over their woeful griefs in everlasting dreams. The inspiration for the speaker emanates from the fact that these lovers are special, they are the ones "Who pay no praise or wages." They do not pay the speaker to lament their fates nor do they flatter the artist for such prowess. Infact, they dont even hearken to the artist's mournfully sweet lamentation nor even notice the bewitching craft, "Nor heed my craft or art."

If you unpack it thus, it soon becomes certain that the poet is commenting on some very relevant and serious concerns of Humanism - that life-blood of literature!!




Good luck

Answer 4

Who is the poet?

"all their griefs in their arms" captures the essense of the poem. It reflects the individual lover's grief and universal grief in "but for the lovers, their arms round the friefs of the ages". This piece talks about the universality of art.

Who wrote the poem? It is lovely. Anne R, www.SoupKitchenWriting.com