Wednesday, September 26, 2012

What does this line in the poem mean: "How charged with punishments the scroll"? See "anything else" box below. It matters not how strait the...

In "Invictus," William Ernest Henley creates a speaker who refuses to give in to the dictates of any other body, whether it be another man or an ideal created by society or religion. The "scroll" in the line that you mentioned is the rules and laws that men must follow. The speaker, in this case, refuses to live by the laws, no matter how much punishment would come at the hands of the law.


The tone of the poem is not one of anarchy or unlawfulness however. This person wants to live the life of a human being and enjoy his own humanity. He "thank[s] whatever gods may be/
For [his] unconquerable soul." We can assume then, that his life or his society or his religion is one that he sees as oppressive. He refuses to be oppressed and this specific line illustrates that he is not scared of the punishments that may come as a result of his refusal.

No comments:

Post a Comment

What is the main function of the fool in "King Lear"? What is the secondly function?

The fool as a character is confusing, but part of this is the difference between the 1600s and today, as well as the difference in place. If...