Mice

As we wind down the semester, it becomes more interesting to examine patterns that have persisted throughout the readings we have done. It is far more interesting to consider these new poems as being part of this anthology and part of a time period, than as an isolated entity. That being said, in Robert Burns' To a Mouse I saw a connection, not just back to Barbauld's mouse poem, but many of the poems we have read this semester.
In the first footnote of the poem, the line reads "Burns's brother claimed that this poem was composed while the poet was actually holding the plow." I'm not even sure this necessarily adds meaning to the poem, but what it does do is present the poem with a myth to go along with it. It creates a mystical aura around the poem. This same technique has been used extensively throughout the semester.
Samuel Coleridge attached a description of his inspiration for Kubla Khan. His supposed was a drug induced dream that he supposedly has transcribed perfectly for us. We also see this attempt at myth in much of Byron's work. His poems bring up questions about countless stories from his own life. Barbauld's mouse poem from last class, brought with it the myth that the mouse (I am assuming the one responsible for "writing" the petition) was set free.
All of these poems are seemingly rich with meaning, yet there is an anxiety to further validate these works with (what I mostly believe to be false) stories about where/when/how the poems were created. It seems that much of the poetry in this time period was afraid to stand alone, so it came prepackaged meaning to ensure that people would consider it. It is almost as if these poets hoped there would be tabloid rumors about their poetry the way celebrities experience rumors now.