Hopkins, Gerard Manley (1844-1889), ranks as a major poet of Victorian England, though his work remained almost unknown until 1918, when it was first published. Hopkins wrote most of his poetry in sprung rhythm, which emphasizes the natural rhythms of speech. He filled his verse with alliteration and unusual word combinations. His poems, which are especially effective when read aloud, include the long and complex “The Wreck of the Deutschland.”
Loading the player...Pied Beauty by Gerard Manley Hopkins
Hopkins was born on July 28, 1844, in Essex. In 1863, he entered Oxford University. There, he experienced a spiritual crisis that led him to join the Roman Catholic Church in 1866. Hopkins entered the Jesuit order in 1868 (see Jesuits). He then stopped writing and burned the manuscripts of his poems. Hopkins returned to writing in 1875 after being encouraged by a Jesuit superior. He was ordained a priest in 1877. He died on June 8, 1889.
See also Poetry (Sounds); “Windhover, The.
