Brewed god knows how long

Study Guide. By Philip Larkin. Previous Next. Stanza 1 Lines Once I am sure there's nothing going on I step inside, letting the door thud shut. Right away, you find out that the poem has a first-person speaker. The guy at least we're assuming that he's a guy, for now anyway enters the church only after making sure that "there's nothing going on," which suggests to us that he's not very comfortable being there during mass, a pancake breakfast, or any other churchy activities.

Once inside, he lets the door "thud shut" behind him. Know what else? Larkin's use of the spondee really helps us hear the sound of that door closing behind the guy, contributing to the creepy atmosphere of being alone inside a huge building. Referring to the groups of flowers as random "sprawlings" also robs the church of the sense of orderliness and discipline that it's supposed to reflect. At the end of line 4, Larkin hits you with a really hard enjambment with the word "cut" left hanging off the end of the line.

In one sense, this refers to the flowers, which have obviously been cut for presenting. The use of "cut," though, as opposed to "picked" or "plucked"—followed up with a description of the flowers as "brownish," or wilting—introduces some sense of harshness, and decay, into the poem.

For, though I've no idea What this accoutred frowsty barn is worth, It pleases me to stand in silence here; A serious house on serious earth it is, In whose blent air all our compulsions meet, Are recognized, and robed as destinies. And that much never can be obsolete, Since someone will forever be surprising A hunger in himself to be more serious, And gravitating with it to this ground, Which, he once heard, was proper to grow wise in, If only that so many dead lie round.

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Nov 07, AM. Assia books view quotes. Apr 06, PM. Looking1around books view quotes. Apr 11, PM. Hektor 5, books view quotes. Mar 06, AM. Neena books view quotes. Feb 06, PM. Jessica books view quotes. Nov 16, PM. Jul 27, AM. The speaker appears to be a person who frequents churches with the attitude of a museum-goer—he's only there for the history and the architecture, and to have a laugh with a biblical text—yet he is humble in one respect: he rides a bicycle and wears old fashioned clips to stop chain oil getting onto his clothes.

He feels he has to do this, perhaps because he's been brought up in a god-fearing environment, where it is proper to be clean; after all, cleanliness is next to godliness, as the saying goes. After mounting the lectern, which suggests he fancies himself as a minister, a vicar, a priest, he confesses an ignorance, which is a pretext, for he knows a lot about church interiors, and knows the names of things.

This humble cyclist is more than he makes out, for he starts to ask himself serious questions about churches in general, what sort of future have they in a world that seems to be ignoring religious tradition. A world that's becoming more secular, more materialistic.

Has it been mere superstition holding the fabric of the church together for so long? Power of some sort has to continue but how? Just imagine a time when the last ever person leaves a place of worship such as this.

It could a carpenter, a pious tourist, an aged worshiper—or someone else with a religious impulse who wants to rebuild and start over? So this reflects tradition, the common metre meter in American English of the land, setting a steady five beats per line on average:. And note the astute use of enjambment— when one line flows into another, without punctuation, to keep the sense flowing - particularly strong in stanzas five and six but present in each one. Full rhyme confirms sense whilst slant rhyme questions it.

The fact that Larkin uses a lot of slant rhyme in this poem must be significant. Is he suggesting that, whilst he acknowledges the history and importance of a building like a church, he questions the notion of worshiping a god? The title is interesting as it implies that the poem is about the regular worshipers, the churchgoers, those who turn up each Sunday, yet, the opening line seems to suggest that this is not the case at all.

This churchgoer is someone a little different, probably the poet himself, timidly soft-footing it in to the church only because it is empty. The speaker is drawn to the tense, musty, unignorable silence of yet another church, curious to find out more about why he's there, wondering what to look for. It's quite clear that the speaker has an initial tongue-in-cheek approach to the interior. There is a hint that he thinks it like a brewery Brewed God knows how long ; he has an awkward reverence and in fact doesn't stay that long.

But he does sign the book, a sign of respect, whilst the donation of an Irish sixpence is worthless. This churchgoer is ambivalent, unsure of his own religious feelings. Is he in the church to find solace, or is he only there to have a go at those who have faith? Larkin teases the reader, presenting a rational argument laced with doubt and agnostic cynicism. Acerbic in tone, the speaker is just human enough to acknowledge that A serious house on serious earth it is , suggesting that people will always need a holy space to worship in.

This poem is packed with a rich mixture of common and rare vocabulary. It can be read out loud, it can be whispered quietly, it can be read in silence—it seems to satisfy all criteria for the reading of a poem. Readers will note the almost sneaky way the speaker enters the church, only when there's nothing going on , and moves forward through the tense, musty silence, Brewed God knows how long, before mockingly announcing Here endeth and listening to the response— The echoes snigger briefly.

The language is that of a non-believer certainly, an atheist perhaps but not such a devout one, and gives the reader the impression that here is someone out to poke fun at the established church.