The Collar by George Herbert: Summary and Analysis by Dr. Vipul V. Kapoor, Cavalier Poets and poetry

1. The Collar
by
George herbert

2. Introduction
George Herbert (1593-1633) was a religious and
metaphysical poet. He is known for his pure and subtle use
of language. His all poems including ‘The Collar’ were
published in ‘The Temple’ in 1633.
‘The Collar’ by George Herbert expresses the poet’s desire to
escape from his religious bondages and restrictions. He
wants to start living a life full of freedom.

3. ‘The Collar’ by George Herbert expresses the poet’s desire to
escape from his religious bondages and restrictions.
He wants to start living a life full of freedom.

4. The Collar
A Symbol of Bondages, Restrictions, Control

5. I struck the board, and cried, “No more;
I will abroad!
What? shall I ever sigh and pine?
My lines and life are free, free as the road,
Loose as the wind, as large as store.
Shall I be still in suit?
Have I no harvest but a thorn
To let me blood, and not restore
What I have lost with cordial fruit?
The poet strikes the table and shouts out of anger, "That's it!
I'm leaving! Am I meant to sit around feeling bad
forever? My life is as free as roads and as free as the winds.
So why should I behave like a servant? I have no good fruits
and have got only thorns in my life. I have lost my pleasures.

6. Sure there was wine
Before my sighs did dry it; there was corn
Before my tears did drown it.
Is the year only lost to me?
Have I no bays to crown it,
No flowers, no garlands gay? All blasted?
All wasted?
Not so, my heart; but there is fruit,
And thou hast hands.
I used to relish wine before I dried it all up with my heavy
sighs, that I ate fresh bread before I soaked it in my
tears. And from this year onwards I have lost this fun.
I have no celebrations, bouquets or crowns to honor my
brilliance. All pleasures are faded and withered away.
But pleasure still exists, and you can go out and grab it.

7. Recover all thy sigh-blown age
On double pleasures: leave thy cold dispute
Of what is fit and not. Forsake thy cage,
Thy rope of sands,
Which petty thoughts have made, and made to thee
Good cable, to enforce and draw,
And be thy law,
While thou didst wink and wouldst not see.
Away! take heed;
I will abroad.
Recover your long lost pleasures.
Don’t think of what is good and what is bad.
Come out of the cage and this bondage of morality.
Your own thoughts have made this fake rope.
Theses ropes have worked well so far for forcing people to obey all laws of religion
I'm getting out of here.

8. Call in thy death’s-head there; tie up thy fears;
He that forbears
To suit and serve his need
Deserves his load.”
But as I raved and grew more fierce and wild
At every word,
Me thought I heard one calling, Child!
And I replied My Lord.
Call off that alarming skull that's meant to remind me of death;
lock your fears away.
Those who don't do exactly what they want are given burdens of
responsibilities and duty.
But the longer I raved and complained, I thought I could hear a voice
calling to me. It said “Child!”, and I replied, “Yes, my Lord!”

9. Theme of Responsibilities / Duties
• The poet feels collared both literally and
metaphorically: he’s a priest wearing the traditional
white “dog collar,” and he can’t escape the demands
of his Christian faith. Feeling weighed down by his
duties, he complains and wants to get freedom of
life. But the last line comes with a conclusion that
God can never be ignored.

10. Form of the Poem
• The Collar’ by George Herbert is a thirty-six line poem
written in four stanzas of nine lines each.
• There is no regular rhyming pattern found in all stanzas.
However, final four lines of the poem have rhyming pattern
ABAB.
• Herbert chose this pattern, or lack of pattern, to express
the disorder of his own thoughts.

11. Poetic Devices
• Conceit: “The Collar” inescapable clutches of sincere
religious faith.
• Simile: “My lines and life are free, free as the road /Loose
as the wind” Here, the poet compares his life with a free
road and free wind.
• Metaphor: “Have I no harvest but a thorn” The word
“harvest” stands for “happiness” and “thorn” stands for
“sorrow”.
• Alliteration: In line number 11 and 12 the words “did dry”
“did drown”, the consonant “d” is repeated.