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JacobLutz
Mrs.Stanford
ENG124
30March2016
DarknessislikePain
Manypeoplehaveenjoyedpoemsofloveandhappinessforthousandsofyears,butthere
stillremainsotherswholovepoemsthattelltheothersideofthespectrum,thedarkside.Poems
havemanydifferenttones,styles,anddifferenthiddenorclearlystatedthemesandmessages.
PoemsbyLordByronandSamuelColeridgewerelovedbymanyduringtheRomanticPeriod
andarestilllovedtoday.LordByronandSamuelColeridgehavesimilaritiesanddifferences
whenitcomestowhotheyareandhowtheywereaspoetsduringtheRomanticPeriod.
DarknessbyLordByronandThePainsofSleepbySamuelColeridgealsocontainpieces
andpartsthatcanshowsimilaritiesanddifferencesnotonlyinwritingstylebutwhothesetwo
mentrulyare.
LordByroncameintotheworldrightbeforetheFrenchRevolution.Hewasonlyone
yearoldwhentherevolutionbegan.Hewasagainstallsortsoftyrannyandoppressionanddid
notbelieveinprivileges.Heoftenidolizedthecommonmaninhispoetryandwork.Throughout
thenineteenthcentury,LordByroncontinuedtoberatedasoneofthegreatestEnglishpoets
(Lynch612).Hisinfluencewasfeltamongthegreatpoets,novelist,painters,andcomposersat
thetimesuchas,FyodorDostoyevsky,EugneDelacroix,andLudwigvanBeethoven.Readers
werewarnedbyVictoriancritics,whowerethementhatlabeledtheRomanticPeriodasa
literaryperiod,oftheimmoralityofLordByronspoetrysuchashisvoluptuousimaginationand

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andaristocraticdisdainforthecommonplace(Lynch612).LordByronmemorializedmany
poetsfromtheRomanticperiodinhiswritingsuchasWilliamWordsworthandJohnKeats.One
ofByronsgreatworkswasDarknesspublishedinJuneof1814.
LordByronspoemDarknessusesmanydifferentliterarypiecesandhiddenmeanings
andmessagesthroughoutthepoem.Inlines14ofDarknessittalksabouttheskychanging
fromdaytonight:
Ihadadream,whichwasnotalladream.
Thebrightsunwasextinguishd,andthestars
Didwanderdarklingineternalspace,
Rayless,andpathless,andtheicyearth(quotedinTheNortonAnthologyofEnglishLiterature:
TheRomanticPeriod,page618).
Inthisstanzaitisexplainingthatthesunwasnotreallyextinguishedbuthasonlydippedbelow
theearthandthenighthascomefullofstarsthattakeuptheskylikeeternalspacewithno
path.Itfeelslikeadreambutitisnotreallyadreambecausepossiblyhehadneverseen
anythingthatbeautifulorextravagantexceptonlyindream.Personificationisusedbecausethe
starscannotwander.Wanderingistraitgiventohumans.
Inthenextfewlines,lines59,inDarknessLordByronsays:
Swungblindandblackeninginthemoonlessair
Morncameandwentandcame,andbroughtnoday,
Andmenforgottheirpassionsinthedread
Ofthistheirdesolationandallhearts

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Werechill'dintoaselfishprayerforlight:(quotedinTheNortonAnthologyofEnglish
Literature:TheRomanticPeriod,page618).
Intheselinesitistalkingaboutthenightcameandbroughtcoldweatherandthenleftandturned
backintoday,buttherewasnofeelingofthedaybecausethesundidnotshineenoughtowarm
theearthandgetridofthecoldweather.Themenstandformorethanjustmenbutforall
peopleandinline7thepeoplecannotseepastthecoldandthedreadoftheday.LordByron
says,Werechilldintoaselfishprayerforlight(Lynch618).Thislineissayingthatthecold
wasaffectingthemensomuchthattheyprayedforjusttheslightestbitoflighttofeelwarmor
seelightagain.JustinthesefewlinesfromDarknessthereareoccuringliterarythemessuchas
personification,metaphors,andallusions.SamuelTaylorColeridgewasanotherveryinfluential
manduringtheRomanticperiod.
LikeLordByron,SamuelTaylorColeridgewasprofoundlyinfluencedduringthe
revolutionandFrance.Hebelievedandstatedlibertythesouloflife,shallreign,shallthrobin
everypulse,shallflowthrougheveryvein.Healsobelievedalmostallworldisconsumedwith
revolution(Lynch483).Hewasconsideredoneofthegreatestpoetsduringtheromanticperiod.
ThePainsofSleepisoneofthebestpoemsbySamuelColeridge.Italsocontains
manydifferenttypesofliterarypiecesandsymbols.Inlines14ofthepoem:
EreonmybedmylimbsIlay,
Ithathnotbeenmyusetopray
Withmovinglipsorbendedknees
Butsilently,byslowdegrees(quotedinTheNortonAnthologyofEnglishLiterature:The
RomanticPeriod,page483).

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Theselinesofthepoemaretalkingaboutsomeonerestinginabed.Itgivesoffaveryeresense
andfeeling.Itseemsasifthismysteriousfigureiseithersickorareintheirdyingmoment
becausetheyareunabletousetheirmouthorbody.SamuelColeridgesaysInlines59ofThe
PainsofSleep:
MyspiritItoLovecompose,
Inhumbletrustmineeyelidsclose,
Withreverentialresignation
Nowishconceived,nothoughtexprest,
Onlyasenseofsupplication(quotedinTheNortonAnthologyofEnglishLiterature:The
RomanticPeriod,page483).
ThisstanzaofThePainsofSleepseemstobetalkingabouthisdyingmomentwhereheis
trustinghimself.Bytrustinghimselfheislettinggoandfreeinghimself.Hehasnoregretsor
wishesexceptheisaskingorpleadingtomoveonanddie.ThePainsofSleepisoneof
SamuelTaylorColeridgebestworks.
LordByronandSamuelTaylorColeridgehavemanythingsincommonwhenitcomesto
poetry.Theirtwopiecesofpoetry,DarknessandThePAinsofSleep,containmany
similarities.Bothpoemsportraysignsofevilanddarkness.InDarknessitistalkingabouthow
coldanddarkoutsideitisandinThePainsofSleepitistalkingaboutdeathwhichisdarkand
deathisoftencoincidedwithcoldbodieswhichdirectlylinksthetwopoems.Bothpoemsalso
talkaboutthesufferingofmanduetonature.DarknessisthecoldandnolightbutThePains
ofSleepisnaturaldeath.Thetwoauthorsalsousemanyliterarytoolssuchaspersonification
andallusionsintheirpoems.Thesepoemsarealsodifferentinthesensethatoneistalkingabout

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theskyandthestarswhiletheotheristalkingaboutadyingman.Thesenseofeacharedifferent
asistheirtoneaswell.Thesetwomenaresurelydifferentbutthesame.
Manypeoplelovedandhatedthesetwoamazingpoets.LordByronandSamuelTaylor
ColeridgewerebiginfluencestotheRomanticperiodwiththeirwritingskill,beliefs,and
influenceonotherRomanticPoets.Thesemenwillcontinuetobereadandtaughtfor
generationstocome.

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WorkCited
Lynch,DeidreShauna,andJackStillinger.
TheNortonAnthologyofEnglishLiterature:The
RomanticPeriod
.Ed.StephenGreenblatt.9thed.Vol.D.NewYork:W.W.Norton,
2012.

43739.Print.
Lynch,DeidreShauna,andJackStillinger.
TheNortonAnthologyofEnglishLiterature:The
RomanticPeriod
.Ed.StephenGreenblatt.9thed.Vol.D.NewYork:W.W.Norton,
2012.

48384.Print.
Lynch,DeidreShauna,andJackStillinger.
TheNortonAnthologyofEnglishLiterature:The
RomanticPeriod
.Ed.StephenGreenblatt.9thed.Vol.D.NewYork:W.W.Norton,
2012.

61220.Print.