However, I would still very much like you each to go back over your sonnets and redraft them again - according to the checklist and tips I included in today's podcast. Iambic pentameters are PERFECTLY within your grasp - ALL of you. It is just going to take more practice for lots of you.
Right now, you could:
a) give up and decide that you just CAN'T do it; OR
b) persevere and keep trying until you CAN do it.
I strongly advise you to choose Option B - as this is what the workshop should be all about. STRETCHING and pushing yourself as hard as you can, and never settling for second best.
* * * * *
Right - on to Task 6, which, you will be relieved to hear, may be written in FREE VERSE (although you are welcome to attempt it in sonnets if you are particularly ambitious!).
Look at this painting:
It is called St George and the Dragon by Paolo Ucello, and was painted in 1455.
Over 500 years later, the poet Ursula Fanthorpe wrote a poem called 'Not My Best Side', inspired by Ucello's painting.
In her poem, Fanthorpe provides three separate dramatic monologues - one for each of the protagonists from the painting: the dragon, the maiden and St George.
She uses these monologues to subvert the traditions surrounding the painting (and the myth it portrays), showing each of the characters in a refreshing new light. In doing so, she challenges the whole nature of stereotypes; heroism; sexuality; and good and evil. And it's all really fun(ny) to read too!
Here is the poem:
Your task is to choose one of them, and then write a dramatic monologue for each of the main protagonists.
Your set of monologues should:
Good luck, and have fun!
Mr Savage
Look at this painting:
It is called St George and the Dragon by Paolo Ucello, and was painted in 1455.
Over 500 years later, the poet Ursula Fanthorpe wrote a poem called 'Not My Best Side', inspired by Ucello's painting.
In her poem, Fanthorpe provides three separate dramatic monologues - one for each of the protagonists from the painting: the dragon, the maiden and St George.
She uses these monologues to subvert the traditions surrounding the painting (and the myth it portrays), showing each of the characters in a refreshing new light. In doing so, she challenges the whole nature of stereotypes; heroism; sexuality; and good and evil. And it's all really fun(ny) to read too!
Here is the poem:
IAnd your task? Well, look below at a selection of paintings.
Not my best side, I'm afraid.
The artist didn't give me a chance to
Pose properly, and as you can see,
Poor chap, he had this obsession with
Triangles, so he left off two of my
Feet. I didn't comment at the time
(What, after all, are two feet
To a monster?) but afterwards
I was sorry for the bad publicity.
Why, I said to myself, should my conqueror
Be so ostentatiously beardless, and ride
A horse with a deformed neck and square hoofs?
Why should my victim be so
Unattractive as to be inedible,
And why should she have me literally
On a string? I don't mind dying
Ritually, since I always rise again,
But I should have liked a little more blood
To show they were taking me seriously.
II
It's hard for a girl to be sure if
She wants to be rescued. I mean, I quite
Took to the dragon. It's nice to be
Liked, if you know what I mean. He was
So nicely physical, with his claws
And lovely green skin, and that sexy tail,
And the way he looked at me,
He made me feel he was all ready to
Eat me. And any girl enjoys that.
So when this boy turned up, wearing machinery,
On a really dangerous horse, to be honest
I didn't much fancy him. I mean,
What was he like underneath the hardware?
He might have acne, blackheads or even
Bad breath for all I could tell, but the dragon--
Well, you could see all his equipment
At a glance. Still, what could I do?
The dragon got himself beaten by the boy,
And a girl's got to think of her future.
III
I have diplomas in Dragon
Management and Virgin Reclamation.
My horse is the latest model, with
Automatic transmission and built-in
Obsolescence. My spear is custom-built,
And my prototype armour
Still on the secret list. You can't
Do better than me at the moment.
I'm qualified and equipped to the
Eyebrow. So why be difficult?
Don't you want to be killed and/or rescued
In the most contemporary way? Don't
You want to carry out the roles
That sociology and myth have designed for you?
Don't you realize that, by being choosy,
You are endangering job prospects
In the spear- and horse-building industries?
What, in any case, does it matter what
You want? You're in my way.
Sandro BOTTICELLI (1445-1510), 'Venus and Mars': Mars, god of war, was one of the lovers of Venus, goddess of love. Here Mars is asleep and unarmed, while Venus is awake and alert. The meaning of the picture is that love conquers war, or love conquers all.
Peter Paul RUBENS (1577-1640), 'Samson and Delilah': Samson, the Jewish hero, fell in love with Delilah. She was bribed by the Philistines, and discovered that his strength came from his hair which had never been cut. While he was asleep it was cut, Samson was drained of his strength and the Philistines were able to capture him. Old Testament (Judges 16: 17-20). Rubens depicts a candlelit interior; the Philistines wait at the door, one of their number cuts Samson's hair, while an elderly woman provides extra light. In a niche behind is a statue of the goddess of love, Venus, with Cupid, a reference to the cause of Samson's fate.
Thomas GAINSBOROUGH (1727-1788), 'Mr and Mrs Andrews': The landscape evokes Robert Andrew's estate, to which his marriage added property. He has a gun under his arm, while his wife sits on an elaborate wooden bench. The painting of Mrs Andrews' lap is unfinished. The space may have been reserved for a child for Mrs Andrews to hold. The painting follows the fashionable convention of the conversation piece, a (usually) small-scale portrait showing two or more people, often out of doors.
Tiziano Vecelli (1485-1576), 'Venus and Adonis': The goddess Venus conceived a hopeless passion for the beautiful mortal Adonis, and here implores him to stay and love her, rather than go hunting. Adonis refused, and was later accidentally killed and anemones sprung from his blood. Cupid is in the background.
Your task is to choose one of them, and then write a dramatic monologue for each of the main protagonists.
Your set of monologues should:
- be original - both in your ideas and in the language you use;
- surprise the reader - by your unusual take on the story or your challenge of what we would expect;
- be different - each poem should exude the specific and idiosyncratic voice of that specific character (like in Fanthorpe's poem), and be written in the 1st Person.
Good luck, and have fun!
Mr Savage
