Implications Of Order Of The Rural Images In Ben Jonson’s Odes

Ben Jonson(1572-1637)is a famous English poet and playwright of the early17 th century.His work shines with rational light,and the concern with principle and order in his work is one of the direct reasons for Jonson’s reputation as the “father of neoclassicism”.He writes throughout his life,and his odes make up a substantial part of three collections of poems,Epigrams,The Forest and The Underwood.Studies of his poems at home and abroad mainly focus on rhyme,image,genre,moral outlook and outlook on life,etc.No one has yet systematically studied implications of order of the rural image in his odes.Therefore,this thesis will explore the implications of order and Jonson’s construction of an ideal society by interpreting the rural images in Jonson’s odes.Image is an indispensable component and the soul of the poem.The rural images in Jonson’s odes are coherent with each other,forming a complete sequence.The implications of order are fully embedded in images.The rural image in Jonson’s odes can be divided into three main categories: rural inhabitants,country houses and rural natural landscapes,each embodying three types of orderly meaning: virtue at the individual level,order at the social level,and harmony at the cosmic level.Together,they form Jonson’s perception and construction of an ideal orderly society.This thesis analyzes the three dimensions of “the virtue of individual self-discipline”,“orderly social life” and “aesthetics of natural order” in the countryside through images,and probes into Jonson’s social concern and humanistic care.The first chapter analyzes the implication of moral self-discipline in the image of the rural inhabitants.The image of the Sidney family and the image of star are key images in this chapter.The Sidney family is the paragon of moral self-discipline.Their good cultivation and noble spiritual pursuits are the best embodiment of virtue.The star image is the image of a social group composed of virtuous people.Jonson compares good people to stars and argues that they can converge to form an orderly cluster of stars that awakens the virtue and illuminates the night sky of the time.The second chapter focuses on the implication of orderly social life in the images of the country house.The image of Penshurst and the image of feast are key images for this chapter.Penshurst is the epitome of a harmonious and orderly rural community and the big family for people.The image of feast represents a kind of free,equal,harmonious and orderly interpersonal relationship.The third chapter analyzes the implication of orderly cosmos in the images of the rural landscape.The image of “the Chain of Being” and the image of “the Golden Age” are the key images in this chapter.“The chain of Being” connects all things in the world and is a symbol of the orderly functioning of the cosmos.“The Golden Age” is Jonson’s ideal world with order and embodies his call for respecting and loving nature.Jonson’s odes reflect his keen observation of a society of his time in which transformation has brought about the disintegration of reason and morality,the social unrest and the destruction of the natural environment.Therefore,he firmly believes that the only way to cure everything and build a better world is to reshape the order of morality,society and nature.