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    he Collar’ is one of the finest poems written by George Herbert in the history of metaphysical lyrics. It can be said that all the leading metaphysical characteristics like dramatic opening, argumentative approach, colloquial tone or concrete imagery -epitomize in this single poem. The title word of the poem "Collar" refers to the white band worn by the clergy, and it is the role of a priest that the poem alludes to. The word ‘collar’ in the title, therefore, symbolizes the priest's role as servant. Ironically written, ‘The Collar’ is, in fact, about the struggle to maintain faith in God, although the thirty-two of its thirty-six lines describe what the poem itself calls the ravings of a person who is rebellious against the restrictive pressures that surround him as a priest. The poem shows that the poet is involved in a deep-rooted and desperate struggle with his own soul. He almost seems to doubt whether God exists at all and gives rebellious expression against the disciplines of his vocation of priesthood. In the opening line Herbert writes, “I struck the board, and cry'd, No more.” Thus the opening goes abrupt and dramatic, evoking violent action, and is delivered in a personal and colloquial manner. Technically written in iambic meter with varied line lengths, the poem takes the form of arguments, using logic to make the reasoning convincing and persuasive. Herbert writes: What? Shall I ever sigh and pine? My lines and life are free; free as the rode, Loose as the winde, as large as store. Shall I be still in suit? The opening stanza, thus, is a complaint voiced by a person embittered against the constraints that bind him. Impatient with his condition, he therefore, resolves to break free. The second stanza takes on more personal notes and the poet questions whether he being a priest does not deserve any reward. Using the image of ‘harvest’, the poet laments that as a clergy, his only harvest has been a thorn that has made him bleed. His "sighs" and "tears" have made him ruin the fruits of his labors. The lamentation continues in the third stanza as well. This time, the poet compares his won restrained life to the free life of other people who enjoy worldly pleasures. He argues that he also has the right to crown him with the beauty of life and enjoy flowers and garlands. Growing a little more furious, the poet hints at the future and expresses the hope that all is not lost: ‘Not so, my heart : but there is fruit, And thou hast hands.’ In the fourth stanza, the poet becomes almost aggressive and wishes to recover all that has been lost indulging himself in double pleasures. In fact, this is the most paradoxical stanza which offers the core meaning of the poem. Herbert cries- “leave thy cold dispute Of what is fit, and not forsake thy cage, Thy rope of sands, Which pettie thoughts have made, and made to thee Good cable, to enforce and draw,” In the above lines, the metaphors like ‘cage’ or ‘rope of sands’ through which Herbert explains his restrictions have double meanings. On the surface, as Herbert says that it is his ‘pettie thoughts’ which make the ‘cage’ or ‘rope of sands’ feel like a ‘good cable’ which draws him towards God. But looking from a deeper point of view, it can be said that what Herbert shouts boastfully from the beginning is itself the results of ‘pettie thoughts’. Thus, the phrase ‘pettie thoughts’ has a double edged function. If Herbert all out denies the existence of God, then the chain of restrictions he is challenging is a non-existent. But so far he admits that God exists, all his bombastic words signify nothing but ‘pettie thoughts’. In stanza fifth, the poet crucially loses hold on his own arguments. Herbert now declares to quit his profession and thus overcome his fears altogether. Ironically he discloses his shortcomings by showing his own inability to shoulder the responsibility of his vocation: “ He that forbears To suit and serve his need,

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    he Collar’ is one of the finest poems written by George Herbert in the history of metaphysical lyrics. It can be said that all the leading metaphysical characteristics like dramatic opening, argumentative approach, colloquial tone or concrete imagery -epitomize in this single poem. The title word of the poem "Collar" refers to the white band worn by the clergy, and it is the role of a priest that the poem alludes to. The word ‘collar’ in the title, therefore, symbolizes the priest's role as servant. Ironically written, ‘The Collar’ is, in fact, about the struggle to maintain faith in God, although the thirty-two of its thirty-six lines describe what the poem itself calls the ravings of a person who is rebellious against the restrictive pressures that surround him as a priest. The poem shows that the poet is involved in a deep-rooted and desperate struggle with his own soul. He almost seems to doubt whether God exists at all and gives rebellious expression against the disciplines of his vocation of priesthood. In the opening line Herbert writes, “I struck the board, and cry'd, No more.” Thus the opening goes abrupt and dramatic, evoking violent action, and is delivered in a personal and colloquial manner. Technically written in iambic meter with varied line lengths, the poem takes the form of arguments, using logic to make the reasoning convincing and persuasive. Herbert writes: What? Shall I ever sigh and pine? My lines and life are free; free as the rode, Loose as the winde, as large as store. Shall I be still in suit? The opening stanza, thus, is a complaint voiced by a person embittered against the constraints that bind him. Impatient with his condition, he therefore, resolves to break free. The second stanza takes on more personal notes and the poet questions whether he being a priest does not deserve any reward. Using the image of ‘harvest’, the poet laments that as a clergy, his only harvest has been a thorn that has made him bleed. His "sighs" and "tears" have made him ruin the fruits of his labors. The lamentation continues in the third stanza as well. This time, the poet compares his won restrained life to the free life of other people who enjoy worldly pleasures. He argues that he also has the right to crown him with the beauty of life and enjoy flowers and garlands. Growing a little more furious, the poet hints at the future and expresses the hope that all is not lost: ‘Not so, my heart : but there is fruit, And thou hast hands.’ In the fourth stanza, the poet becomes almost aggressive and wishes to recover all that has been lost indulging himself in double pleasures. In fact, this is the most paradoxical stanza which offers the core meaning of the poem. Herbert cries- “leave thy cold dispute Of what is fit, and not forsake thy cage, Thy rope of sands, Which pettie thoughts have made, and made to thee Good cable, to enforce and draw,” In the above lines, the metaphors like ‘cage’ or ‘rope of sands’ through which Herbert explains his restrictions have double meanings. On the surface, as Herbert says that it is his ‘pettie thoughts’ which make the ‘cage’ or ‘rope of sands’ feel like a ‘good cable’ which draws him towards God. But looking from a deeper point of view, it can be said that what Herbert shouts boastfully from the beginning is itself the results of ‘pettie thoughts’. Thus, the phrase ‘pettie thoughts’ has a double edged function. If Herbert all out denies the existence of God, then the chain of restrictions he is challenging is a non-existent. But so far he admits that God exists, all his bombastic words signify nothing but ‘pettie thoughts’. In stanza fifth, the poet crucially loses hold on his own arguments. Herbert now declares to quit his profession and thus overcome his fears altogether. Ironically he discloses his shortcomings by showing his own inability to shoulder the responsibility of his vocation: “ He that forbears To suit and serve his need,

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    Brief Synopsis of Collar

    Uploaded by

    Sajad
    he Collar’ is one of the finest poems written by George Herbert in the history of metaphysical lyrics. It can be said that all the leading metaphysical characteristics like dramatic opening, argumentative approach, colloquial tone or concrete imagery -epitomize in this single poem. The title word of the poem "Collar" refers to the white band worn by the clergy, and it is the role of a priest that the poem alludes to. The word ‘collar’ in the title, therefore, symbolizes the priest's role as servant. Ironically written, ‘The Collar’ is, in fact, about the struggle to maintain faith in God, although the thirty-two of its thirty-six lines describe what the poem itself calls the ravings of a person who is rebellious against the restrictive pressures that surround him as a priest. The poem shows that the poet is involved in a deep-rooted and desperate struggle with his own soul. He almost seems to doubt whether God exists at all and gives rebellious expression against the disciplines of his vocation of priesthood. In the opening line Herbert writes, “I struck the board, and cry'd, No more.” Thus the opening goes abrupt and dramatic, evoking violent action, and is delivered in a personal and colloquial manner. Technically written in iambic meter with varied line lengths, the poem takes the form of arguments, using logic to make the reasoning convincing and persuasive. Herbert writes: What? Shall I ever sigh and pine? My lines and life are free; free as the rode, Loose as the winde, as large as store. Shall I be still in suit? The opening stanza, thus, is a complaint voiced by a person embittered against the constraints that bind him. Impatient with his condition, he therefore, resolves to break free. The second stanza takes on more personal notes and the poet questions whether he being a priest does not deserve any reward. Using the image of ‘harvest’, the poet laments that as a clergy, his only harvest has been a thorn that has made him bleed. His "sighs" and "tears" have made him ruin the fruits of his labors. The lamentation continues in the third stanza as well. This time, the poet compares his won restrained life to the free life of other people who enjoy worldly pleasures. He argues that he also has the right to crown him with the beauty of life and enjoy flowers and garlands. Growing a little more furious, the poet hints at the future and expresses the hope that all is not lost: ‘Not so, my heart : but there is fruit, And thou hast hands.’ In the fourth stanza, the poet becomes almost aggressive and wishes to recover all that has been lost indulging himself in double pleasures. In fact, this is the most paradoxical stanza which offers the core meaning of the poem. Herbert cries- “leave thy cold dispute Of what is fit, and not forsake thy cage, Thy rope of sands, Which pettie thoughts have made, and made to thee Good cable, to enforce and draw,” In the above lines, the metaphors like ‘cage’ or ‘rope of sands’ through which Herbert explains his restrictions have double meanings. On the surface, as Herbert says that it is his ‘pettie thoughts’ which make the ‘cage’ or ‘rope of sands’ feel like a ‘good cable’ which draws him towards God. But looking from a deeper point of view, it can be said that what Herbert shouts boastfully from the beginning is itself the results of ‘pettie thoughts’. Thus, the phrase ‘pettie thoughts’ has a double edged function. If Herbert all out denies the existence of God, then the chain of restrictions he is challenging is a non-existent. But so far he admits that God exists, all his bombastic words signify nothing but ‘pettie thoughts’. In stanza fifth, the poet crucially loses hold on his own arguments. Herbert now declares to quit his profession and thus overcome his fears altogether. Ironically he discloses his shortcomings by showing his own inability to shoulder the responsibility of his vocation: “ He that forbears To suit and serve his need,

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    of 4

    Brief Synopsis of 'The Collar' by George

    Herbert
    The Collar is a poem that was written by George Herbert in 1633. If you've read this
    poem, you may have found the beginning of the poem a bit off-putting. It begins abruptly,
    with a display of seemingly unfounded aggression. For no reason the reader's aware of,
    the poetic narrator starts by throwing a bit of a tantrum, flailing limbs as he 'struck the
    board' and yelling, 'No more; / I will abroad!' He asks whether he'll always be in the
    apparently miserable state he's in, but he finally concludes that 'my lines and life are free'
    for him to do as he pleases.

    George Herbert (1593-1633), English poet, priest, and Anglican saint

    With that conclusion drawn, the narrator asks if he should stay in his current situation
    then and deal with all his resources, 'wine' and 'corn', being spent. The narrative voice
    also doesn't seem to have anything to show for all those misspent resources.
    Accordingly, he comes to his next question - if he still possibly has time to recover what
    he's already lost. The poetic narrator decides that there is indeed enough time; that is,
    provided he fills what time he has remaining with double pleasures to make up for those
    he missed out on while he still worried about right and wrong.
    The narrator comes to the realization that he's been trapped in his present situation,
    allowing his own petty thoughts of goodness and duty to distract him from reality. To
    make things worse, he also realizes that he's simply refused to acknowledge the issue for
    a long time. At this point, the narrative voice decides it's time for action, and comments
    on how people who refuse to change their fortunes deserve them. However, as the poem
    draws to a close and it seems the narrator would just keep ranting and raving, there's a
    surprising twist: the agitated and plaintive narrative voice is instantly calmed by faithfully
    responding to that of God.

    Analyzing Herbert's 'The Collar'


    Many of us can most likely remember a time (probably somewhere around our teen
    years) when we were rebellious and full of angst. If we can recall, we probably also made
    what we thought were reasonably passionate speeches defending our foul moods and
    unruly behavior. What might've sounded reasonable to us, though, most likely came off
    as extremely disorganized and not very well thought-out.
    George Herbert reflected this lack of organization with The Collar because this poem is
    very much like a teenage rant. The poetic narrator's angry and sulking because he's
    discovering that life's not fair, so the poem itself is disorganized; though he uses iambic
    meter, Herbert has various numbers of iambs per line with no discernible pattern.
    In this way, The Collar is quite unlike Herbert's other works, which are typically well-
    structured in all aspects, such as diction and meter. However, it still shows his handiwork
    as a piece of metaphysical poetry, a genre of verse works from the 17th century
    marked by their use of complex imagery to explore primarily concepts of love or religion.
    Herbert is considered one of the masters of this genre, and The Collar is largely
    responsible for that reputation.

    he Collar’ is one of the finest poems written by George Herbert in the history of
    metaphysical lyrics. It can be said that all the leading metaphysical characteristics like
    dramatic opening, argumentative approach, colloquial tone or concrete imagery -
    epitomize in this single poem.

    The title word of the poem "Collar" refers to the white band worn by the clergy, and
    it is the role of a priest that the poem alludes to. The word ‘collar’ in the title,
    therefore, symbolizes the priest's role as servant. Ironically written, ‘The Collar’ is, in
    fact, about the struggle to maintain faith in God, although the thirty-two of its thirty-
    six lines describe what the poem itself calls the ravings of a person who is rebellious
    against the restrictive pressures that surround him as a priest.

    The poem shows that the poet is involved in a deep-rooted and desperate struggle
    with his own soul. He almost seems to doubt whether God exists at all and gives
    rebellious expression against the disciplines of his vocation of priesthood.

    In the opening line Herbert writes,

    “I struck the board, and cry'd, No more.”

    Thus the opening goes abrupt and dramatic, evoking violent action, and is delivered
    in a personal and colloquial manner. Technically written in iambic meter with varied
    line lengths, the poem takes the form of arguments, using logic to make the
    reasoning convincing and persuasive. Herbert writes:

    What? Shall I ever sigh and pine?


    My lines and life are free; free as the rode,
    Loose as the winde, as large as store.
    Shall I be still in suit?

    The opening stanza, thus, is a complaint voiced by a person embittered against the
    constraints that bind him. Impatient with his condition, he therefore, resolves to
    break free.

    The second stanza takes on more personal notes and the poet questions whether he
    being a priest does not deserve any reward. Using the image of ‘harvest’, the poet
    laments that as a clergy, his only harvest has been a thorn that has made him bleed.
    His "sighs" and "tears" have made him ruin the fruits of his labors.

    The lamentation continues in the third stanza as well. This time, the poet compares
    his won restrained life to the free life of other people who enjoy worldly pleasures.
    He argues that he also has the right to crown him with the beauty of life and enjoy
    flowers and garlands. Growing a little more furious, the poet hints at the future and
    expresses the hope that all is not lost:

    ‘Not so, my heart : but there is fruit,


    And thou hast hands.’

    In the fourth stanza, the poet becomes almost aggressive and wishes to recover all
    that has been lost indulging himself in double pleasures. In fact, this is the most
    paradoxical stanza which offers the core meaning of the poem. Herbert cries-

    “leave thy cold dispute


    Of what is fit, and not forsake thy cage,
    Thy rope of sands,
    Which pettie thoughts have made, and made to thee
    Good cable, to enforce and draw,”

    In the above lines, the metaphors like ‘cage’ or ‘rope of sands’ through which Herbert
    explains his restrictions have double meanings. On the surface, as Herbert says that it
    is his ‘pettie thoughts’ which make the ‘cage’ or ‘rope of sands’ feel like a ‘good
    cable’ which draws him towards God. But looking from a deeper point of view, it can
    be said that what Herbert shouts boastfully from the beginning is itself the results of
    ‘pettie thoughts’. Thus, the phrase ‘pettie thoughts’ has a double edged function. If
    Herbert all out denies the existence of God, then the chain of restrictions he is
    challenging is a non-existent. But so far he admits that God exists, all his bombastic
    words signify nothing but ‘pettie thoughts’.

    In stanza fifth, the poet crucially loses hold on his own arguments. Herbert now
    declares to quit his profession and thus overcome his fears altogether. Ironically he
    discloses his shortcomings by showing his own inability to shoulder the responsibility
    of his vocation:

    “ He that forbears
    To suit and serve his need,
    Deserves his load.”

    Declaring so, Herbert loses all grounds and proves that the problem is not with the
    profession of a priest, rather with the personality he is carrying inside.

    Finally, the last stanza is a resultant anticlimax. This time, the poet is able to come out
    all of his ‘pettie thoughts’ and hears the voice of God calling- ‘Childe’ and to which
    he responds-‘My Lord’. Instantly, the distressed note in the poet is silenced and the
    discontent is passed. God does not need to answer the arguments raised by the poet.
    His mere presence exposes their hollowness. Therefore, hearing the voice of God, the
    poet recognizes his place and position and immediately surrenders himself to the
    authority of God. Thus, the final stanza very beautifully leads to a graceful conclusion
    making the readers realize the affectionate relationship between the Creator and the
    Creation.

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