Toward the end of his life, Gerard Manley Hopkins (1844–89) suffered several long bouts of depression. His “dark sonnets” record these episodes with an admirable directness. He told the poet Robert Bridges, a close friend, that the sonnets came to him “like inspirations unbidden and against my will.” Together, they are the record of Hopkins’s effort to understand an (...)
Article
Hopkins Agonistes
The Poet’s Quarrel with Himself & God
The remainder of this article is only available to paid subscribers. If you’re not currently a Commonweal subscriber in print or online, an online-only subscription costs just $34 a year. Click here for immediate access.
