Christendom College welcomed acclaimed poet and critic James Matthew Wilson back to campus as part of the college’s Collegiate Lecture Series, with Wilson delivering a thought-provoking lecture titled “The Part the Muses Give Us: Poetry as First Art.” The lecture explored the power and nature of poetry, with Wilson arguing that poetry done correctly can be a “share in divine inspiration.”
Wilson, author of the recently published poetry collection Saint Thomas and the Forbidden Birds, opened his lecture by comparing various definitions of poetry offered by famous writers, noting how each was, in its own way, incomplete. He then highlighted the four natural aspects of poetry—metaphor, meter, melody, and memory—going on to explain how critical each one is to poetry and how all blend together in a balanced way.
“Metrical order is, in fact, the first metaphor—the foundational metaphor whereby the grand and divine order above is brought into intelligible form for us here below, shaping and forming us to its pattern,” Wilson explained. “And so we see, though we weren’t looking for it, that there’s a certain resemblance to the Holy Trinity in the essence of poetry. Memory, meter, and metaphor are bound up in one another; they penetrate one another and form a single essence.”
Wilson then delved into the power of memory in poetry, quoting St. Augustine and Aristotle to illustrate how this connection makes lyric poetry such a significant art form.
“Poetry can enter into the depths of memory—into the interior of the self—and by the power of metaphor, make vivid and imaginable what was once shrouded in the darkness of interiority and inexpressibility,” said Wilson. “The nature of the soul, the life of the mind, the movements of the heart—all of these seem incoherent and inexpressible until they find the right metaphor to reveal them. Thus, the lyric poem, which in the ancient world was a minor art, became one of the most important forms of art, a technique and aid to memory that allows one to enter the depths of the soul and give it articulate expression through metaphor and meter.”
He went on to explain that ancient poetry was characterized by being narrative, metrical, mnemonic, publicly performed, and memorable, and described how poetry—“the part the Muses give us, with melody and rhythm”—is a share in divine inspiration, the final essential touch that perfects an otherwise incomplete work.
Wilson closed by sharing several excerpts of poetry that demonstrated the four essential qualities of poetry he had proposed. The whole event finished with a Q&A session, in which students, faculty, staff, and members of the local community asked questions ranging from Wilson’s thoughts on Wordsworth’s approach to poetry to the role of the passions in poetry. Wilson advised students to master writing in meter before they advanced to more complex poetry-writing, explaining how it would give them a strong foundation to build on.
Wilson’s lecture was a continuation of his recent discussion with College President George A. Harne, Ph.D., on the college’s new Christendom Conversations podcast, where the two delved into the relation of beauty, truth, and suffering, and enjoyed a reading of some of Wilson’s poetry.
Christendom’s Collegiate Lecture Series is a key aspect of the college’s academic life, providing cultural, intellectual, and spiritual enrichment beyond the classroom. The speaker series allows students, faculty, staff, alumni, and others to gain greater insight into important issues and to interact with leaders in the Church and in society.
Contributed by Bridget Palm ’28.