Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Frederick Louis MacNeice's poem "National Gallery, October 1945" reflects on the return of art to London's National Gallery after the Second World War. The poem is a celebration of the power of art to transcend time, offering both a connection to the past and a source of renewal in the present. Through vivid imagery and thoughtful reflection, MacNeice captures the transformative impact of the Old Masters and the timeless beauty of their work.

The poem begins with a powerful image: "The kings who slept in the caves are awake and out," referring to the return of the masterpieces that had been hidden away for protection during the war. These "kings" symbolize the great works of art, now back in the Gallery, ready to reassert their presence. The paintings "twirl their cadenzas, whisper and shout," suggesting that they are once again vibrant and full of life, each piece contributing its unique voice to the collective chorus of the Gallery. The reopening of the Gallery's "windows" represents a reawakening, a return to a "vital but changeless world" where art provides a "day-dream free from doubt."

MacNeice then turns to the content of these masterpieces, describing the religious and mythological scenes that dominate much of Western art. He reflects on the "angels playing their lutes at the Birth," where "Clay become porcelain" symbolizes the transformation of the mundane into the divine through art. These images "make sense of the earth," offering a vision of the world that is ordered, meaningful, and suffused with light and ecstasy.

The poem also addresses the darker, more somber aspects of these religious narratives, such as "Gethsemane scooped like a glacier" and "Calvary calmly assured of its own worth." These scenes, though filled with suffering, are depicted with a sense of inevitability and purpose, as if the trials they represent are part of a larger, divinely ordained plan. The "gold haloes, opaque as coins" and "the pink temple of icing-sugar" capture the intricate, sometimes overly sentimentalized depictions of heaven and earth, where the spiritual and the material worlds are intertwined.

MacNeice then delves into the sensuous pleasures offered by the art: "Here only too have the senses unending joy." He describes the "great Venetian buttocks, the great Dutch bosoms," emphasizing the physicality and sensuality of the figures portrayed in these works. These images, preserved in their "prime," offer a glimpse into a world where beauty and desire are eternal, untouched by the ravages of time.

The poem touches on the personal and the tragic, as in the image of "the Painter’s little daughter, far-off-eyed," who, despite her eventual madness, remains forever innocent and poised within the confines of the painting. This detachment from the harsh realities of life underscores the idea that art, in its timelessness, can offer a respite from the world’s inevitable decay.

MacNeice then returns to the idea of the Old Masters as "kings," refreshed and "armed with colour, sleight-of-hand and imponderables." These works of art, with their "lances," "beer-mugs," "dragons’ tongues," and other fantastical elements, embody both the mystique of the commonplace and the extraordinary. They capture the "lusts of the eye, the gullet, the loins," as well as the "memory – grace after living," offering a complex, multifaceted reflection on human experience.

The poem concludes with a call to "fling wide the windows," inviting the fresh air of the past and the broader world into the present. This air, "Blowing from times unconfined to Then," serves as a purifying force, capable of "rekindling a pentecost in Trafalgar Square." The use of "pentecost" suggests a spiritual renewal, a reawakening of the collective spirit through the power of art.

In "National Gallery, October 1945," MacNeice captures the enduring power of art to connect us with the past, enrich our present, and offer a vision of the eternal. The poem reflects on the ways in which art can both preserve and transcend human experience, providing solace, beauty, and meaning in a world that is often chaotic and uncertain. Through his vivid imagery and thoughtful reflections, MacNeice invites us to reengage with the masterpieces of the past, finding in them a source of renewal and inspiration for the future.

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