Literary Significance
- This page shows the literary significance of the Rock of Cashel
- You will not only learn the significance but also a few similar literary devices that have been applied in the past as well in their literary work, a deeper idea of these devices will be shown
- This page not only enchants you by the beautiful writing by Sir Aubrey de Vere, but also lets you learn the ideology of life and important themes related to the success and decline of the Rock of Cashel
The Rock of Cashel was once one of the most important locations in Ireland. It has served as the capital of many groups and organizations, mostly for the Kings of Munster. It was also one of the conquests that led to Brian Boru’s rise to power, a path that would eventually end with him crowned the High King of Ireland. Even after the Kings of Munster, the location found continued importance as a Catholic cathedral. Today, the cathedral is easily the most prominent and most intact building on the site. The Rock of Cashel did not just affect the culture or the history of Ireland but in literary terms as well it has been significant.
The Poem The Rock of Cashel by Sir Aubrey de Vere is, as one would expect, quite relevant to this historic location. As is obvious, the author chose a rather literal title for his poem. It brings to mind things such as Ireland, the Kings of Munster, and Brian Boru, all of which are easily connected to the subject. Even though the title is literal, it doesn’t tell us too much about what the poem will talk about. All we know is that it is related to the Rock of Cashel, but we don’t know if he will mention any important figures or not. To figure that out, we have to read the poem (which is provided below)
The Rock of Cashel
Sir Aubrey de Vere (1788 – 1846)
ROYAL and saintly Cashel! I would gaze
Upon the wreck of thy departed powers,
Not in the dewy light of matin hours,
Nor the meridian pomp of summer’s blaze,
But at the close of dim autumnal days,
When the sun’s parting glance, through slanting showers,
Sheds o’er thy rock-throned battlements and towers
Such awful gleams as brighten o’er Decay’s
Prophetic cheek. At such a time, methinks,
There breathes from thy lone courts and voiceless aisles
A melancholy moral; such as sinks
On the lone traveller’s heart, amid the piles
Of vast Persepolis on her mountain stand,
Or Thebes half buried in the desert sand.
The poem itself, as we can see, is quite literal as well. However, just because it is literal does not mean its meaning is obvious to us. To make things a bit easier to understand, no matter your age or vocabulary, we have prepared a paraphrased version of this poem (again provided below).
I would look at the great Rock of Cashel
At the ruins of my ancestors
Not in the dim light of early morning
Nor the splendor of noon in the summer’s heat
But on autumn evenings
When the sun’s last light of the day
Shines over the battlements and towers
As they slowly decay
At such a time, I think.
I breathe from the lonely courts and the voiceless aisles.
A sad lesson; such as sinks
On the lone traveler's heart. In the middle of the ruins.
Like Persepolis on its mountain stand
Or Thebes half buried in the desert
In this paraphrased version, we can see that the author is saying that they would not like to look at the great historical site, Rock of Cashel during the early morning or during the summer’s heat, but they would like to look at it during the sunset time where they see the sun shine over the tower and parapets. As that person walks through the court, they see how lonely it is.Their heart sinks as they find themselves in the middle of the ruins, and they compare the ruins of the Rock of Cashel to Persepolis and Thebes, other historical sites that have since lost their importance.
Diction
As in any poem, literary devices are important. The most prominent in this particular poem is diction (the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing). The author’s word choice is massively important to the feel of the poem, and in this particular one he used it to make the work feel Shakespearean in nature. This can be seen in The second line, “Upon the wreck of thy departed powers,” the seventh line, “Sheds o’er thy rock-throned battlements and towers,” and the tenth line, “There breathes from thy lone courts and voiceless aisles.” All of these lines use the word “thy”, which assists in creating a Shakespearean style. Styling poems after Shakespeare is not a rare thing, but Sir Aubrey de Vere likely didn’t use this style simply because it was popular. Shakespeare had been dead for quite some time by the time the poem was written, and using his style communicates a sense of antiquity, conveying the old age of the Rock of Cashel. The author has used this device to create a style of writing which is suitable to the topic; Rock of Cashel. The Rock of Cashel has been said to be found during the 12th and 13th centuries which means it was many years back. So, for the author to create that olden time he used the Shakespearean style because back then writing wasn’t as clear as it is now. To communicate to the readers of how old the Rock of Cashel is and how important it used to be he made the dialect a bit Shakespearean. By creating this style and using certain words, he was able to emphasize on how old the Rock of Cashel is, but still is very important. Diction is normally used to create a different tone of the author’s writings. More than the choice of words, it is the mood and the dialect and style of writing of the author. Usually when diction is used, there are certain words or phrases that the author might specifically choose to put into the poem making the writing peculiar. The small words that you choose to change in different ways in the poem creates that different style which is diction. When your mad at someone you might say it in a different way so you don't completely let the person know that your mad. This feature is also important in theater to create a certain theme.
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Personification & Apostrophe
Another important literary device found in the poem is apostrophe (the addressing of an absent person or a personified thing rhetorically), Apostrophe appears in the second line, “Upon the wreck of thy departed towers,” where the author directly addresses the Rock of Cashel. In the seventh line, “Sheds o’er thy rock-throned battlements and towers,” the author once again addresses the Rock of Cashel as if it were a person he was speaking to, utilizing apostrophe once more. Through utilizing apostrophe and personification, the author shows how important he views the Rock of Cashel by talking about it as if it is a person. They emphasize the beauty and importance of the Rock in this way. Going hand-in hand with apostrophe is personification (the practice of representing a thing or idea as a person in art, literature, etc). Personification is seen in the sixth line, “When the sun’s parting glance, through slanting showers,” which gives the sun a human feature by mentioning its glance. Also displaying personification are the first and second lines (“ROYAL and saintly Cashel!” and “Upon the wreck of thy departed towers,” respectively). Both of these give the Rock of Cashel human characteristics, the first describes it as “Royal and saintly," and the second describes it as once having power, as a human lord or king would. The author uses this device to help the reader understand the certain descriptions he has given in the poem. Also, apostrophe helps to exaggerate how the author feels that the Rock of Cashel is a great historical site and wants to explain that he feels that this site must be only seen when the sun is shining on the towers. So the author uses this device to express his admiration of the site as if he were speaking to it and it was a person. The author uses personification to just emphasize that the tower looks best as the sun just glances like a person rather than the sun entirely concentrated on the tower. Using apostrophe, emphasizes that this historical site is so great that it should be expressed to the tower itself rather than a feeling of it being great inside the human mind. Apostrophe was used so that the reader could understand that this site is so magnificent that its beauty should be told to itself. Apostrophe is almost something that we would do if we were frustrated or stressed out. Like, if our laptop stops working and we have a big test tomorrow we would be like, "Oh laptop why do you make me suffer?" Apostrophe sometimes can also add a sense of humor and personification gives a more clear image.
Irony
What is irony; is it when you iron, or is it the metal? Irony is nothing related to any kind of object it is a literary device that is used in many books, drama, poems, etc. It is almost like a tragedy but a bit more complicated. This device is where words are used in certain ways where the implied meaning is different from the actual meaning. Aside from words, it can also be a certain situation that may end up different than expected or predicted. It is like a contrast between reality and the predicted aspect. In line 13, “Of vast Persepolis on her mountain stand,” and line 14, “Or Thebes half buried in the desert sand,” irony is used. Irony occurs in many different ways. Sometimes, it can occur in a conversation when a person implies a different meaning than the words that he/she might have actually said. In drama, when the reader knows something of what is going to happen next that the character doesn’t know it occurs. Situation irony is another example when the exact opposite of what is predicted to happen, happens. This device is only developed when the author conveys an intended message than the actual words. Also, if the situation changes than what might have been predicted, than irony is developed. Irony develops in different areas in different ways. In drama, when the audience knows something that the character might not know then it is developed. Although, in poem, it is only developed by having a different reality than the predicted one. Irony is an important literary technique used majorly to engage the reader and also for the reader to unravel the deeper meaning of the text. Irony is also used for the reader to emphasize on what the author is trying to imply and come up with a certain idea for the story, poem, etc. It makes the reader more interested into that poem or story and helps them to understand the real meaning and they get more involved in it. This engages the audience/reader more. The author has used this device in those specific lines because both Persepolis and Thebes had been great cities that were very essential during their time periods, but they also had experienced a decline during later years. Again, this is something that wouldn’t have been predicted. The author uses this device so that the reader can understand why is Thebes and Persepolis being used in the Rock of Cashel and in what way are these 3 places connected. The author is trying to emphasize on the idea that the Rock of Cashel had once been a place full of pride rising in glory but just like great cities it had faced a decline as well. The author stresses on the idea that all great place back in the olden times have been at their greatest heights but there was a time when it got lost as well and one of them being the Rock of Cashel.
Theme and Message
The overall tone of the poem is somewhat negative, but obviously far more than just that. It seems as though the author is solemnly reminiscing about a past time involving the Rock, specifically about the power it previously represented. This creates a more or less melancholic tone. Even so, it has a mixed attitude. In the beginning of the poem, the author states that he would want to see the Rock of Cashel during sunset so that the sun shines over the towers and battlements kind of making it glow. This implies that the author feels that this great historical site should be seen while shining than during gloomy atmospheres. Towards the end of the poem, he explains how he feels lonely in the halls of the Rock of Cashel because everything is now empty. So the attitude changes from a feeling of pride to a feeling of loneliness and sorrow.
This also happens to show the shift of the poem. Just about halfway through, the author switches focus from the Rock of Cashel’s past glory to its current ruin. Through this shift, he captures his intended theme perfectly. The poem is about the decay of the Rock of Cashel from its once proud origins to where it is today, and the shift in tone from somewhat positive to completely negative reflects this transformation. After reading the poem, we now have an idea of why the author used such a literal title. The focus of the entire poem was on the Rock of Cashel, and nothing else. This is a rare example of a poem with an entirely literal title, and an ever rarer example of a poem where a literal title works quite well. The author chose it not because it has some symbolic meaning, but because it was exactly what he was writing about. But, if you observe the title and read the poem, you might think that the title is, "Something beyond imagination." Because the Rock of Cashel, Thebes, Persepolis, and all other historical cities have been something people would have never imagined but they reached a state where they fell down, but they are still that same place standing high with their heads up.
If you take a closer look at the poem, you may find that the author is saying that the Rock of Cashel is old but it still hasn’t lost its important significance to the world. No matter how empty and ruined the halls may be, it still is a place full of pride (as we see in the first half of the poem). If you connect this theme to life, it kind of implies that there is a time when everyone and everything will reach their “date of expiration." It shows that the impact a person or thing has on the world lasts long after they/it dies or fades away. It is as if the author is saying that everything in the world has a spark and a glow, and that the glow remains after the spark has faded away. By observing the glow, everyone can see the importance of the spark. This poem gives the reader an impression this had been a great standing site with pride and although it has declined, it is still considered a glorious tower in the eyes of many.
This also happens to show the shift of the poem. Just about halfway through, the author switches focus from the Rock of Cashel’s past glory to its current ruin. Through this shift, he captures his intended theme perfectly. The poem is about the decay of the Rock of Cashel from its once proud origins to where it is today, and the shift in tone from somewhat positive to completely negative reflects this transformation. After reading the poem, we now have an idea of why the author used such a literal title. The focus of the entire poem was on the Rock of Cashel, and nothing else. This is a rare example of a poem with an entirely literal title, and an ever rarer example of a poem where a literal title works quite well. The author chose it not because it has some symbolic meaning, but because it was exactly what he was writing about. But, if you observe the title and read the poem, you might think that the title is, "Something beyond imagination." Because the Rock of Cashel, Thebes, Persepolis, and all other historical cities have been something people would have never imagined but they reached a state where they fell down, but they are still that same place standing high with their heads up.
If you take a closer look at the poem, you may find that the author is saying that the Rock of Cashel is old but it still hasn’t lost its important significance to the world. No matter how empty and ruined the halls may be, it still is a place full of pride (as we see in the first half of the poem). If you connect this theme to life, it kind of implies that there is a time when everyone and everything will reach their “date of expiration." It shows that the impact a person or thing has on the world lasts long after they/it dies or fades away. It is as if the author is saying that everything in the world has a spark and a glow, and that the glow remains after the spark has faded away. By observing the glow, everyone can see the importance of the spark. This poem gives the reader an impression this had been a great standing site with pride and although it has declined, it is still considered a glorious tower in the eyes of many.