Lecture to focus on Victorian writer’s ‘terrible sonnets’

A Victoria University professor of English will focus on some “unfinished” poems by a Victorian poet and priest in his upcoming inaugural lecture.  

Professor Peter Whiteford will examine some late works of Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844–1889), a writer largely unknown during his lifetime, whose poetry only began to receive critical acclaim more than five decades after his death.

These poems, known as the ‘terrible sonnets’ because of their bleak and comfortless themes, unlike Hopkins’ earlier exuberant poems, had never been shown to anyone and were only discovered after his death. The manuscripts of the poems include erasures, corrections and alternative readings.

“There are a few places where you can’t say with any absolute certainty that he’s made a final decision, so editors have had to make their own judgement on which lines work best and how to arrange them,” says Professor Whiteford.

There are disputes about how the poems should be ordered, with some editors insisting on a sequence that shows a change in mood.

“Some say his poems move from a state of near despair to one of acceptance and reconciliation, while others believe that his sense of alienation and desolation persists throughout,” says Professor Whiteford.

The sonnets were written at a challenging time in Hopkins’ life when he was posted to Ireland as a Professor of Classics and, as an Englishman, Hopkins felt isolated and unable to produce anything of worth—famously describing himself as “time’s eunuch”.

“He converted to Catholicism, estranging himself for a time from his family, and then became a Jesuit priest, renouncing poetry for seven years, so many critics see a tension running through his life between wanting to be a poet and a priest,” Professor Whiteford says.

Professor Whiteford is himself a scholarly editor, having worked on subjects as diverse as Middle English narrative, the poetry of Eileen Duggan, John Mulgan’s war memoir, and the letters of Ursula Bethell. He has also written numerous journal articles, chapters and introductions in books.

As well as his research on Gerard Manley Hopkins, Professor Whiteford is currently working on a new edition of John Mulgan’s Man Alone, originally published in 1939.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Pat Walsh says Victoria University’s inaugural lecture series is an opportunity for recently appointed professors to share insights into their specialist areas of study with family, friends, colleagues and the wider community.

“Inaugural lectures are also an excellent way for the University to celebrate and acknowledge our valued professors,” says Professor Walsh.

What: Hopkins, the editors, and the critics

When: 6pm, Tuesday 26 November

Where: Hunter Council Chamber, Level 2, Hunter Building, Gate 1 or 2, Kelburn Parade, Wellington

RSVP by Friday 22 November. Phone 04-463 6390 or email rsvp@vuw.ac.nz with ‘Whiteford’ in the subject line.