The Caged Skylark

        The Caged Skylark

As a dare-gale skylark scanted in a dull cage,
    Man's mounting spirit in his bone-house, mean house, dwells —
    That bird beyond the remembering his free fells;
This in drudgery, day-labouring-out life's age.
Though aloft on turf or perch or poor low stage
    Both sing sometímes the sweetest, sweetest spells,
    Yet both droop deadly sómetimes in their cells
Or wring their barriers in bursts of fear or rage.

Not that the sweet-fowl, song-fowl, needs no rest —
Why, hear him, hear him babble & drop down to his nest,
    But his own nest, wild nest, no prison.

Man's spirit will be flesh-bound, when found at best,
But uncumberèd: meadow-down is not distressed
    For a rainbow footing it nor he for his bónes rísen.


                Gerard Manley Hopkins


Analysis:

-sonnet [octave (abbaabba rhyme) and sestet (ccdccd rhyme)

Birds are meant to be free and so are humans. Hopkins described the hopelessness of a caged skylark, but the meaning of the poem describes a situation that everyone would face in a certain point of their life. There are times in our lives when reality forces us to comprise and go against our own will, but we can't stop fighting for ourselves. Who knows which day the cage is forgotten to be locked; if you never try, you'll never know. 

"But his own nest, wild nest, no prison." (second stanza)

 A skylark's nest in the wild may not be as luxury as a cage, but at least it is free, and that is more valuable than anything else.

The rhyming in this poem also created a suitable tempo and feel for this poem.


"Not that the sweet-fowl, song-fowl, needs no rest —

Why, hear him, hear him babble & drop down to his nest,
    But his own nest, wild nest, no prison."

In the beginning of this poem, Hopkins described how a skylark desire freedom. However, from the lines above, Hopkins also mentioned that it need a home. Having freedom doesn't mean you'll have a home and having a home doesn't mean you'll have freedom. What is the definition of home and freedom? I'm sure everyone's answer would be different. Hopkins's The Caged Skylark allow readers to think about life, happiness, and freedom from a deep and personal perspective.