Alfred Lord Tennyson's the Palace Essay

Total Length: 1860 words ( 6 double-spaced pages)

Total Sources: 3

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43). To that comment, Tennyson is believed to have replied that the poem is "The embodiment of my own belief that the Godlike life is with man and for man" (Brunner, p. 43).

In critiquing the Palace of Art Brunner offers common-sense substance that some previous critics had avoided. He claims that the poem demonstrates "to live in art…is to live for selfish delight" and living in selfish delight is not "Godlike" but instead it is like living in hellish mode. The truth about Tennyson is that he is rarely satisfied with "mere accurate observations of states of mind," Brunner continues (p. 43). Brunner should know, and certainly does, that Tennyson's refusal to be satisfied with mere observations is not unique to him, or to poets. Creative artists in all mediums are rarely satisfied with the status quo or with doing what is expected.


Result of the Problem / Discussion

In the Palace of Art, Tennyson is showing his "moral worldview," according to Brunner. But any close review of the poem -- even for a layperson -- brings to mind the possibility that the intense love of beauty and leisure can bring about a self-love. And too much self-love means that the poet is leaving God out of the mix. Perhaps Tennyson is saying that in the end, God will stand in judgment of art and artist, but that is what purveyors of religious beliefs have been saying for centuries, so Tennyson surely had something deeper in mind. Or just as easily it could be assumed that Tennyson was just putting forth a challenge to the reader that basically said: here it is, I did it, you digest it any way you want to or are able.....

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https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/alfred-lord-tennyson-palace-14941