A Young Peasant

I truly enjoyed John Clare's poems. Although I agree with some of the others of how it was a little irritating that Clare does not use punctuation and uses odd spelling, it is my opinion that this also adds to Clare's country charm. He was born into a poor family in Northhamptonshire in a small village. Luckily he received an education, partially only because he showed a strong appetite for learning .His lack of punctuation and strange words show that Clare was apart of the country he described. Also the "strange" words he uses in his poetry are actually part of the dialect of the region in which he grew up. Clare incorporates his cultural background to enrich his poetry. By reading Clare's poetry I felt like I was able to see nature through the eyes of someone who actually lived in it, not someone who simply went on excursions and was inspired by it. This is perhaps what was the most enjoyable aspect of Clare's poetry. Furthermore, Clare's use of rich imagery was also amazing to read. When reading his poetry my mind was filled with images of woods, birds, streams, dirt, insects, and the "locals".