Between Charlotte Smith’s “Thirty-Eight, Addressed to Mrs.
H-----Y” and Byron’s “On this day I complete my thirty sixth year,” aging
certainly surfaces as a romantic theme. Both these works begin with speakers in
despair—Smith’s poem begins with descriptions of age as “mournful,”
“saddening,” “sickening,” and viewed with “scorn and hate.” Similarly, Byron
begins his poem by claiming that in age he “cannot be beloved,” describing his
plight with images of the “worm, the canker and the grief.” Both poems take a
surprising turn, however, as each speaker gradually realizes there is more to
age than just loss. Smith’s speaker is able to find new value in wisdom, while
Byron’s poem illuminates dying a proud death as something to which one should
look forward.
Do these tonal shifts represent changing attitudes toward
age, or do they simply stem from a common fear of both poets? Age is also
assessed in Mrs. Robinson’s memoirs, as she is criticized for being so young a
wife. The line, “no woman under thirty years of age was worth admiring” supports
the idea that romantic writers were inspired—either positively or negatively—by
a changing culture in which youth was more a marker of immaturity than of
promise.
I also found the shift in tone, especially in Charlotte Smith's "Thirty Eight", an intriguing aspect of the poem. When I first began reading, my mind automatically went to Persuasion and the constant references to Anne’s increasing age and the “oldness” of her 29 years, seen as an inescapable burden by the women of the time. I was comforted to see that Smith seemed to have a more positive view of what age can bring for a woman. Although her “auburn locks are mix’d with grey” (22), she gains reason, the ability to converse intelligently without mention of gossip or scandal, a sense of calm with who she is and a confidence in her own ideas. To answer the question you posed, I think that there is a changing progression in the poem which represents what is lost (the beauty and the youth) and what is gained (reason, confidence) through age. To me this progression most likely reflects Smith’s own experience with the aging process and her own changing ideals: from the bloom of youth, to regret, then finally to acceptance and rejoicing in age.
ReplyDeleteI too was interested in Smith's poem, but I think the answer to your questions lie in the fact that the poets were aging themselves, so the answer is something subjective that we can't completely understand. As I mentioned in my post, I think we're too young to completely understand the meaning of Smith's poem.
ReplyDeleteThe notion of aging, and aging gracefully really brings to light the appeal romantic figures must have found in classical art. Shelley talks about immortalization in poetry, and this echoes the immortalization of classical figures in marble. On the other hand, like you say, Smith seems to positively view what age can benefit a woman. I think this is an incredibly interesting gender dynamic, with women operating from a position of relative strength.
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