Creative Title

“The Windhover”

Amidst my anxious studying for my final, 9 a.m. English 289 exam tomorrow, I reread this poem by Gerard Manley Hopkins, and I felt the need to share its beauty with you Tumblrers (Tumblrites? Tumblridians? Tumbloids?). His word choice creates some of the most beautiful sounds I have ever heard, and I can’t even begin to imagine how he did it or how long it took him. Simply reading it aloud gives me an amazing feeling, and I can hear in his words how the falcon is flying through the air. It’s simply astounding. I would kill for that ability — to use words to describe something like that in nature. Instead, I can only describe such a beautiful work of art with something like, “Holy shit.”

Oh, and his middle name is Manley. He is greater than any of us will ever be. Just my thoughts.

“The Windhover: to Christ our Lord”
by George Manley Hopkins

I caught this morning morning’s minion, king-
dom of daylight’s dauphin, dapple-dawn-drawn Falcon, in his riding
Of the rolling level underneath him steady air, and striding
High there, how he rung upon the rein of a wimpling wing
In his ecstasy! then off, off forth on swing,
As a skate’s heel sweeps smooth on a bow-bend: the hurl and gliding
Rebuffed the big wind. My heart in hiding
Stirred for a bird,—the achieve of, the mastery of the thing!

Brute beauty and valour and act, oh, air, pride, plume, here
Buckle! AND the fire that breaks from thee then, a billion
Times told lovelier, more dangerous, O my chevalier!

No wonder of it: sheer plod makes plough down sillion
Shine, and blue-bleak embers, ah my dear,
Fall, gall themselves, and gash gold-vermillion.
—1918 (written 1877)