Sonnet to Liberty [1881]
Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)
Not that I love thy children, whose dull eyes
See nothing save their own unlovely woe,
Whose minds know nothing, nothing care to know,--
But that the roar of thy Democracies,
Thy reigns of Terror, thy great Anarchies,
Mirror my wildest passions like the sea
And give my rage a brother--! Liberty!
For this sake only do thy dissonant cries
Delight my discreet soul, else might all kings
By bloody knout or treacherous cannonades
Rob nations of their rights inviolate
And I remain unmoved--and yet, and yet,
These Christs that die upon the barricades,
God knows it I am with them, in some things.
Questions for Discussion
1. What is the poet’s likely intent in writing the sonnet?
The poet is mainly concerned with expressing his
A) rage at democracies that wage senseless wars
B) kinship with the spirit of liberty
C) sense of loss over his dead child
D) right as a citizen to speak out
E) sorrow over lives lost due to war
2. What word best captures the dominant feeling expressed in lines 1–7?
A) enthusiasm
B) despair
C) optimism
D) uncertainty
E) outrage
3. Who or what is the poet speaking to in line 5 (“Thy reigns of Terror, thy great Anarchies”)?
A) himself
B) God
C) the reader
D) liberty
E) his country
4. To whom or what does “These Christs” (line 13) refer?
A) the poet’s children
B) the poet’s brother
C) democracies of the world
D) soldiers who died for liberty
E) mighty kings
5. What is the poet’s likely intent in writing the sonnet? The poet is mainly concerned with expressing his
A) rage at democracies that wage senseless wars
B) kinship with the spirit of liberty
C) sense of loss over his dead child
D) right as a citizen to speak out
E) sorrow over lives lost due to war
Answering this question requires that you synthesize the sonnet’s ideas. In the first three lines, the poet admits that he does not love Liberty’s children. But then, in lines 4–7, the poet continues by expressing his empathy, or kinship, with Liberty (he says
that Liberty mirrors his own passions and rage). In lines 8–10, the poet expresses his appreciation for liberty in view of the alternative (monarchy). Finally, in lines 12–14, the poet qualifies his identification with Liberty by acknowledging his sorrow over soldiers who die defending Liberty. In sum, lines 1–7 express the poet’s overall intent,
while lines 8–11 provide some additional reflections about his emotional identification, or kinship, with the idea of Liberty. The correct answer is (2).20.
From the language used, the reader should sense the poet’s excitement and spiritedness. The strong, declarative exclamations in line 7 provide perhaps the strongest clue as to what the poet is feeling. The correct answer is (1).
Notice also that line 1 refers to “thy children.” So the correct answer should name something or someone that make sense as having children, reigns of terror, and great anarchies—perhaps in the figurative rather than literal sense. The title provides an additional clue: the poet is addressing the concept of Liberty (notice that this concept is capitalized in line 7). The correct answer is (4).
The context makes clear that “These Christs” are the soldiers who “die upon the barricades” in order to save liberty. The correct answer is (4).
Answering this question requires that you synthesize the sonnet’s ideas. In the first three lines, the poet admits that he does not love Liberty’s children. But then, in lines 4–7, the poet continues by expressing his empathy, or kinship, with Liberty (he says that Liberty mirrors his own passions and rage). In lines 8–10, the poet expresses his appreciation for liberty in view of the alternative (monarchy). Finally, in lines 12–14, the poet qualifies his identification with Liberty by acknowledging his sorrow over soldiers who die defending Liberty. In sum, lines 1–7 express the poet’s overall intent, while lines 8–11 provide some additional reflections about his emotional identification,
or kinship, with the idea of Liberty. The correct answer is (2).