EDWARD TAYLOR (1642 – 1729)
Renaissance humanist (values dignity of man., but E.T. does not set man above God as measure of all things) -- poet, preacher, medical doctor, theologian.
Oliver Cromwell’s Commonwealth State / Restoration (1640 - 1660)
The Great Escape: approximately 2500 clergy of Dissenter theology left England around 1662.
Taylor is a learned man ~ Harvard degree / huge library ~ science, medicine, theology, Bible commentaries
Westfield pastorate (1671)
King Philip’s War
Discussion questions for Edward Taylor
Poems for Discussion Med. 6, Med. 8, 2nd series, and “Huswifery”
How does Taylor make use of the language and imagery of coins and coinage in Med. 6? Why might this be an apt set of images given the focus of his poem?
How does Taylor revivify and reawaken his feelings in Med. 8? What is "the Living bread"? How does Taylor manipulate this image in his poem? What relationship does he present between God and humans?
“Huswifery” uses images from spinning, weaving and clothing. How does Taylor use the ordinary as a means of commenting on the spiritual in this poem? What does it mean to be “clothed in holy robes for glory”?
Are Taylor’s poems peculiar? If so, why?
Some Notes:
Taylor wrote three types of verse:
Apocalyptic, e.g. "God's Determinations"
Miscellaneous ~ curious events, '''providential occurrences," allegorical interpretations of natural events
Meditations - private prayers in preparation of sermons and communion; private dialogues with God (perhaps too private for publication)
Taylor wrote in an ornate style - strong, vigorous lines, often choppy
Had a talent for obscurity
Emphasis upon psychological states
Parallel of conceits / extensions of metaphors / symbols
Rejects allusions to mythology and contemporary poetry
For the “Prologue” and many of the Meditations, Taylor uses a three part structure:
Expresses a desire to write
Laments inability to write
Affirms the process and
He is seeking the perfect preparation for offering the Lord’s Supper, not a perfect poem.
For the Meditations:
All of the poems use a six line stanza
The opening stanza sets up the subject of the meditation
The final stanza contains a prayer of praise and petition
The stanzas in between often draw upon a narrative familiar from the Bible or from the emblem books
Taylor loved puns and word play; he also liked to use irony and paradox.
He is often described as a folk-poet because of his use of homely images and archaic poetic forms.