This week’s poem is “To Althea, from Prison” by Richard Lovelace and it is an exposition of freedom in the face of imprisonment and oppression.
Stone Walls do not a Prison make,
Richard Lovelace (1617—1657)
Nor Iron bars a Cage;
Poem 342. To Althea, from Prison
When Love with unconfinèd wings
Hovers within my Gates,
And my divine Althea brings
To whisper at the Grates;
When I lie tangled in her hair,
And fettered to her eye,
The Gods that wanton in the Air,
Know no such Liberty.
When flowing Cups run swiftly round
With no allaying Thames,
Our careless heads with Roses bound,
Our hearts with Loyal Flames;
When thirsty grief in Wine we steep,
When Healths and draughts go free,
Fishes that tipple in the Deep
Know no such Liberty.
When (like committed linnets) I
With shriller throat shall sing
The sweetness, Mercy, Majesty,
And glories of my King;
When I shall voice aloud how good
He is, how Great should be,
Enlargèd Winds, that curl the Flood,
Know no such Liberty.
Stone Walls do not a Prison make,
Nor Iron bars a Cage;
Minds innocent and quiet take
That for an Hermitage.
If I have freedom in my Love,
And in my soul am free,
Angels alone that soar above,
Enjoy such Liberty.
Richard Lovelace was a Cavalier poet who fought on the Royalist side in the English Civil War. This poem, however, dates from an earlier period of imprisonment (in 1642) for his political activities which effectively disqualified him from participating in the early stages of the Civil War. He nonetheless continued to do what he could to remain in favour with King Charles I and this poem is one way in which he sought to do so, although it is also a powerful statement of freedom.
Each stanza shows us another facet: although he may be languishing in jail, his spirit remains free. Maya Angelou’s “Still I Rise” expresses the same idea: regardless of the oppression suffered, the spirit is unfettered.
The poem is addressed to “Althea”, the fictional subject of Lovelace’s emotions. She is widely thought to be a woman named Lucy Sacheverell but I can find no further information and since that’s so, it seems that Lovelace’s affections were not returned.
The first stanza shows us that when he is visited in jail and embraced by Althea—summoned by the mysterious promptings of Love—he feels Liberty greater than that of the Gods when they enjoy such sport. Lovelace uses tangled and fettered (words associated with imprisonment) in the sense of being the prisoner of his love but not in a physical sense: his passion transcends the petty gates of his jail.
The second stanza speaks of freedom of speech: when we are free to express our beliefs and views without fear of reprisals and publicly toast those we deem worthy, then the draughts we drink surpass anything the “Fishes that tipple in the Deep” because they are enjoyed freely. This is an espousal of the Royalist cause and a critical comment on the Puritans, pillars of self-denial and sobriety who scorned the hedonism of Lovelace and his friends.
In the third stanza he compares himself to caged birds “like committed linnets” who sing sweetly despite their captivity. Likewise, he seeks the favour of the King and when recalled from prison and he praises Charles’s many good points (as he sees them), even the great winds that drive floods and devastation have no such freedom.
The last stanza opens with the most well-known lines from the poem: “Stone Walls do not a Prison make,/Nor Iron bars a Cage;” Lovelace elegantly expresses the core idea of freedom: physical walls and bars have no power over a free spirit. Although smaller minds may believe that his physical immurement will sap his will, he knows that the freedom to love and to be free within the core of his being, only the angels of Heaven above can know how he feels.
I like the poem because of its expression of freedom. It reminds me of “The Shawshank Redemption” where Andy Dufresne remains free in his soul, just as Lovelace does, because he has hope.
Andy Dufresne: That’s the beauty of music. They can’t get that from you… Haven’t you ever felt that way about music?
The Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King, adapted and directed by Frank Darabont.
Red: I played a mean harmonica as a younger man. Lost interest in it though. Didn’t make much sense in here.
Andy Dufresne: Here’s where it makes the most sense. You need it so you don’t forget.
Red: Forget?
Andy Dufresne: Forget that… there are places in this world that aren’t made out of stone. That there’s something inside… that they can’t get to, that they can’t touch. That’s yours.
Red: What’re you talking about?
Andy Dufresne: Hope.
Although Red is sceptical at first, he comes to believe in the power of hope through Andy’s example and finds his own Shawshank redemption in time.
The poem was set to music by the British folk group Fairport Convention and has inspired many writers: Charlotte and Emily Brontë, Charlotte Smith, Margaret Atwood and Natalie Babbitt.