Robinson Jeffers Essay -- essays research papers

The Nature of Man by Robinson Jeffers Robinson Jeffers is one of the twentieth centuries most important and controversial poets. He, like others in history, has tried to give his opinion about life. Many poets in the twentieth century focused on issues affecting mankind, Jeffers is no exception. Most of his work was inspired by his surroundings. One’s environment is great source for poetic inspiration. Poets come and go, but their ideas are kept alive through their poems. Whether they are a hundred or ten years old, these poems hold ideas in them which are still interesting now as they were back then. It seems that poets are always passionate about their work. They should be, since it expresses who they are and what they believe in through writing. One tends to write about what one knows or feels one might know. Feelings control our mind and our mind controls our actions. How we feel can be determined by external forces. Sometimes, one lets emotions run wild which can cause our work to be accepted or rejected by o thers.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One must not worry about writing something which might cause a brush off by society. However, writings such as these can create a cold shoulder for one’s future work. Then again, poetry is used to express oneself. Society will only encourage radical behavior to continue and who knows, one’s ideas might generate a fan base. A poet cannot please everyone. There are some emotions which will be seen as pleasant ideas and some which will seem disrespectful. Poetry, that is controversial, seems to captivate an audience and it accomplishes one’s lofty goals. One’s courageous work commands respect, whether the reader agrees with the ideas or not. Poems are intended to force the audience to see one’s views. Though the reader’s views often contradict your own, the most important part is to make them consider new ideas and better understand the issues. Although, many of issues will never be understood.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Poets often tend to write openly about this. Man is involved with everything in this world. Mankind as a whole has progressed in knowledge and technology. In other areas, on the other hand, it has stayed the same or has gotten worst. Poets for centuries have written about man. Few, have written using facts. Yet more have written using their opinions. Thousands of books have been written about... ...rica’s intervention. â€Å"The squid, frightened and angry, shoots darkness out of her ink sac; the fighting destroyer throws out a smoke screen, and fighting governments produce lies.† Jeffers kept pushing his views of man stating that our race began to think as an adult does, rather than an egocentric baby. He also believed that man controlled the keys of unearthly violence. Claiming that Earth is too small to feed us and we must have room. Also, Jeffers was once quoted saying, â€Å"We use to be individuals, not populations. Breeding like rabbits, we hasten to meet the day.†(Birth and Death) In later poems, he began to wonder what was the best life for a man. Jeffers came to the conclusion that man should have never been born and the next best was to die young. (The Silent Shepherd) As his reputation fell, Jeffers began less on man. Jeffers expressed his contempt for human society, which he regarded as doomed by its own violence and depravity. With his unc ompromising reverence for nonhuman values and his World War II isolationism, Jeffers fell out of favor with the public. Even though still outspoken after the war, newly created patriotism in America did nothing but anger many Americans.