I wake and feel the fell of dark, not day GM Hopkins

Questions and Answers

It distracts the reader from the poem's meaning

It creates a foreboding rhythm (correct)

It creates a sense of calmness

It is a grammatical error

The poet is using a figure of speech

The poet's mind, body, and spirit have suffered through the night (correct)

The poet is addressing someone else

The poet is referring to a specific event

Anguished and distressed (correct)

Calm and reflective

Hopeful and optimistic

Indifferent and detached

<p>The drawn-out day ahead of the poet</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The poet feels as though God's commandment has led to his suffering</p> Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

The poem explores Hopkins' feelings of depression, using phrases like "fell of dark" to convey a sense of malevolence and foreboding rhythm.
The use of collective pronoun "we" in "What hours, O what black hours we have spent" suggests that every part of Hopkins' being (mind, body, and spirit) has suffered through the night.

"Black hours" represent the depression Hopkins has endured throughout the night.
The "heart" is addressed as the core of Hopkins' being, suggesting it has suffered the most.
The "longer light's delay" may symbolize the drawn-out day ahead of him.
The simile "cries like dead letters sent" conveys the feeling of futile efforts to ask for help.

Hopkins feels like "gall" or corroding, and "heartburn" conveys his inner suffering.
The metaphor "God's most deep decree" implies that Hopkins feels commanded to taste bitter.
The image of "bones built in me, flesh filled, blood brimmed the curse" suggests that even his blood overflows with affliction.

The compound word "selfyeast" suggests that Hopkins' spirit is almost turning, but cannot rise out of despair.
The recognition that the "lost" souls are like him, with their own "scourge" or affliction, adds to the sense of hopelessness.
The image of their "sweating selves" is visceral and uncomfortable, conveying the torture they endure.