He learn’d the arts of riding, fencing, gunnery,
And how to scale a fortress – or a nunnery.—Lord Byron
We think of the old poets, writers, and other artists as stodgy and serious, something to be studied only with the greatest solemnity. This is an unfortunate by-product of how our educational system works, but Mozart was notorious for sprinkling musical jokes in his works, and Shakespeare himself wasn’t nearly as serious as you’d think. You’ve probably read Romeo and Juliet and never noticed the dirty jokes about having escapades with the maids that are near the beginning. They’re not even subtle jokes, but the way we read the classics makes one miss most of the textures and layers that are hidden right out in the open.
Byron was no exception. This week’s TBS comes from Stephen Fry’s The Ode Less Travelled: Unlocking the Poet Within as an example of a rare triple rhyme that works.
Last week: Gerard Manley Hopkins gets poetic with anatomy.
Next week: Italo Calvino gets led by the ear.
See the index for what’s been posted and what’s to come.
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