Essay on Thoughts and Feelings About the Poem: A Little Learning

The poem is an excellent work of logic and passion that Alexander placed on it. As an admirer of poetry, the poem has haunted and amazed me. It gets better and better with each read. The poem is a crash course of critical judgment, which brings together its meaning in the way it is said or read. In the poem, the Pope says a little knowledge only mislead and befuddle people into the thought that they know more than they do. The main message is to continue learning as the more people think they know, the more they do not know. Some knowledge mislead people to believe that they are more experts than they really are. The primary questions that come out clearly are; is having too much knowledge dangerous? Is having little knowledge dangerous?

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The Aspect of Work that is of Interest

The main aspect that interested me in the poem is the passion and logic that Alexander placed on it. The language is clear and designed to evoke emotions like in line 2 ("shallow droughts intoxicate the brain") grant great inspiration and knowledge. A shallow drought can intoxicate your mind to believe you know much than you really know. The more you drink the more you realize how little you know.

The historical context of the period

Introduction

The poem A little Learning by Alexander Pope was written in 1709 and became popular in 1911(Poetry Foundation, 2016). The poem was written using rhyming verses in a Horatian mode and involved the manner in which critics and writers behaved in Alexanders contemporary age. Pope exemplified the traditions and forms of neoclassical adherence based on classical texts of Rome and ancient Greece (Waugh, 2012). The poem has a broad range of critics that represents Alexanders literary ideals in his age and offers a lot of his culture and beliefs in which he was writing.

Timeline

Alexander lived between 1688 and 1744 as the most influential and popular writer of his time (Pope, 1711). This time was the enlightenment era that lasted from 1660 to 1800 (Pope, 1711). More emphasis during this period was on assumptions governing the contemporary system and science. The excitement and context surrounding the changes brought by enlightenment in culture were necessary leading to critics in literature that delineates communal faults of poets.

Themes

The Age of Satire

Alexander Pope during the Enlightenment period attacked the upper classes for bad taste and immorality. In the entire period, people focused on the middle-class concerns because they were unlearned, but Alexander attacked them with satire while exposing their sordid and meanness in human behavior. Through his satire, he becomes one of the most respected poets

Criticism

Alexander was commonly criticized on the judgment of all walks of life because he maintained that true judgment and genius are Gods innate gifts. He also argued that many people have these gifts and with proper training, they can develop. He, therefore, received critics and mockery in his literary writings, a time when writing was not viable as a sustaining job. Alexander also suffered from being a member of the Catholic among Anglicans adding to his critics in the 18th century (Waugh, 2012).

Context

The context during the Enlightenment period was that a little learning exposes a society to people lies. Critics were part of the people judgment and this period there was an ongoing debate whether poetry should be written based on artistic rules or naturally. Knowledge misleads people to think they were more experts than they were. Alexander, therefore, wrote the poem in literary criticism because of the moral virtues and qualities in the society during the enlightenment period.

Alexanders is biography

Alexander Pope a satirist, landscape gardener, wit, poet and a translator was born in 1688 in London (Pope, 1711). Pope was raised in Banafield where he learned to appreciate the natural world. From childhood, Alexander suffered some health problems like tuberculosis and Potts disease. As a Catholic, he was ineligible for public office, patronage or a position in the University. He later became the most important poet in England producing literary writings in philosophical, aesthetics and satire reflections. Alexander was mainly self-taught. At 12 years old, he started taking private language lessons and later met William Trumbull who gave him moral support and introduced him to other political figures and writers (Pope, 1711). He became an autodidact writer. In 1709, he became Alexander became a poet and understood his role as a poet in refining, enriching and preserving the literal legacy of his era (Pope, 1711). His work was got through the works of other classic authors like Horace, Homer, and Virgil. As he progressed in his career, he realized how people were hostile to the literal culture and legacy he inherited. Thus most of his work was engrossed in the struggle of the Enlightenment. As he struggled to write epics, he ended up writing mock-epics, which satirized his life and age. He established himself as a poet with some memorable lines still used today, for instance, A little learning is a dangerous thing (Pope, 1711), Alexander laid out the role and principles of the criticism in the society and civilization. His poem, Little Learning is a dangerous thing was to identify himself and refine his position as a critic and poet. The primary insights I learned from the authors life is that the critics served an essential function in helping his work as a poet. He died in 1977 due to health conditions (Pope, 1711).

Criticism as a Theme in the Poem

The main theme that is clear in the poem is criticism. In the context of criticism, the poem is perceptive. Part one of the poem begins with the heavy indictment of Alexanders false critics. He states that critics are judgment driving. The phrase A little learning is a dangerous thing. Alexander means that a little knowledge or learning can only mislead a person into thinking that he or she know more than what other people know. The primary remedy is just to continue learning drinking largely at the Pierian spring (Eiche &News, 2014), this is a sacred spring that is the source of knowledge. Thus, the more one thinks he know, the more he might not know because of his ignorance.

The relevance of the work today

The poem is relevant today because it maintains that that learning little does some harm to the individual and the society. Knowledge has no end and individuals having shallow knowledge may mislead them by overestimating their abilities. For example, it is common to see a person with little learning trying to prove that he know more that he has, thereby putting him in danger.

How the deeper knowledge has altered my thoughts and feelings about the work.

The poem was written in logic and passion, and it has made me believe that I should continue learning as little learning may not only harm me but also the society. Getting rid of pride is the most important thing. By assessing the value of your knowledge in the right way, the harm of little learning will be prevented by self-criticism and humility.

References

BIBLIOGRAPHY Eiche, S., & News, R. (2014, August 27). Column: A little learning is a dangerous thing; more is better. Retrieved from http://www.richmond-news.com: http://www.richmond-news.com/opinion/columnists/column-a-little-learning-is-a-dangerous-thing-more-is-better-1.1331349#sthash.x2UGDn45.dpuf

Poetry Foundation. (2016). An Essay on Criticism. Retrieved from https://www.poetryfoundation.org: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems-and-poets/poets/detail/alexander-pope

Pope, A. (1711). A Little Learning. Phoenix: W. Lewis ... and sold.

Waugh, E. (2012). A Little Learning: The First Volume of an Autobiography. London: Penguin Books Limited.