ScholarWorks@동국대학교

초록

It is well known that Tennyson’s In Memoriam, written in memory of his close friend Arthur Hallam, helped Queen Victoria cope with her grief after the loss of her husband. However, there is controversy over whether the poem demonstrates the author’s journey from doubt to faith, or whether it is filled with religious skepticism. This paper aims to show that Tennyson never fully recovered from his doubts and remained skeptical throughout his life, as evidenced by the portrayal of madness in the characters of his poems. The paper argues that Tennyson uses madness as a tool to express his personal views on Christianity with a freedom that might not have been afforded to him as Poet Laureate otherwise. In “Lucretius,” the ancient philosopher, driven mad by a potion given by his wife, claims that the gods are indifferent to human beings—similar to the mariners in “The Lotos-Eaters,” who share this belief. In “Saint Simeon Stylites,” Tennyson depicts the saint as a madman who boasts of the sufferings he endured for 30 years atop a pillar and the miracles he performed, demanding sainthood, which he believes he deserves. This portrayal clearly reflects Tennyson’s skepticism about miracles and martyrdom. In “Despair,” the speaker, who is saved from drowning by a priest after a suicide attempt, blames the priest for saving him and makes blasphemous comments in his madness. In “Maud,” the mad speaker, believing himself unworthy of life, joins the navy to engage in battle—a form of suicide. In “The Ancient Sage,” the Chinese philosopher is not mad, nor does he need to be, as he is as free as any madman. Being Chinese and living before the time of Christ, he does not speak of Christianity and instead advises the cynic to follow traditional wisdom. Some may interpret certain phrases in In Memoriam as promoting Christianity, but Tennyson never fully regained his faith in Christianity during his lifetime.

키워드