제라드 맨리 홉킨스가 로버트 세이모어 브리지스의 시적 실험에 미친 영향

The Influence of Gerard Manley Hopkins on the Formal Experiments of Robert Saymour Bridges

This essay analyzes the influence of Hopkins’ poetics on his fellow poet, Bridges, in late 19th century England. Bridges was inspired by Hopkins’ new rhythms and formal experiments since their university days. Despite being known to dislike Hopkins’ poetry, Bridges tried to apply Hopkins’ poetic experiments to his own. First, the Sprung Rhythm, invented by Hopkins to challenge the rules of regular rhythms by freely adding weak syllables in a foot and not clinging to iambic or trochaic meters, greatly inspired Bridges. This resulted in poems like “A Passer-by,” his first recognized poem with the Sprung Rhythm. Secondly, Hopkins’ Alexandrine rhythm, in hexameter with a mid-line pause, had a tremendous effect on Bridges’ poetics, as shown in his verse drama The Feast of Bacchus, and his concept of ‘loose Alexandrines.’ Moreover, the inspiration for the “Neo-Miltonic syllabic” form that is representative of Bridges’ later poetics also came from Hopkins. Bridges’ poetic experiments illustrate the widespread of Hopkins’ rhythmic experimentation during his time.