Church+Going

__**Church Going**__


 * Thesis:** In the poem Church Going by Philip Larkin, Larkin expresses his distaste for the present church as well as the trivialization of religion in modern society.

Content: 1. Brief background info on Philip Larkin 2. Structure of Poem
 * Cynicism led him to be an atheist --> influences his poetry.
 * Publishes only 3-5 poems a year --> lots of time to work on poetry so everything he does is very deliberate
 * Poetry appears straight-forward and themes are easy to grasp but are a lot more complex when looking at it from an analytical perspective.
 * Seven stanzas, each one with nine lines, ten syllables per line
 * Irregular rhyme scheme of ABABCDECE
 * Church Going has a strict structure however there are irregularities making the poem seem uneven. Larkin uses this is illustrate the breaking down of the present church as well as to make the reader feel at unrest so that we can relate to how he feels when he enters a church.
 * Example 1: Ten syllables per line usually indicates iambic pentameter, however Larkin uses commas and other forms of punctuation so that the feeling of stress-unstress is lost. There also irregularities, some lines are 9 syllables while others are 11.
 * Example 2: The rhyme scheme seems like its ABABCECE, Larkin then throws in the D line to throw us off.
 * Poem is split into three parts:
 * Entering and describing the Church
 * Deep thought and dissaproval for the church
 * Reflection that the church is important

3. First Two Stanzas
 * Title can be interpreted in two ways
 * Church Going as in someone going to the church
 * Church Going as in the ideals and principles of the church itself are "going" away or dissipating (addresses the theme of the poem)
 * In the first two stanzas Larkin describes the church and through this expresses his disapproval and irreverence for the church.
 * Line "Cleaned or restored" takes away from the genuineness of church, making it seem fake.
 * First line: "Once I am sure there's nothing going on" shows us how the speaker is already skeptical of religion.
 * When one thinks of a church we think of something grand or elaborate and most importantly special. Larkin however makes the church seem commonplace, boring, and dull. This is done in a variety of ways:
 * Trivial diction
 * examples: "Another" church, the word another implies that all churches are the same and thereby the speaker is expressing boredom with the church. He also refers to bibles as "little books", making them seem trivial which is disrespectful because bibles are considered to be holy. "Some brass and stuff"
 * Mundane imagery
 * examples: "Up at the holy end; the small neat organ", by expressing it as the holy end and a small neat organ Larkin makes the church seem common and small as opposed to grand and elaborate. Does not use much description, tends to list things he sees which gives a boring image. (example: matting, seats, and stone OR little books; sprawlings of flowers, cut For Sunday, brownish now; some brass and stuff) Brownish flowers can also represent the decaying of the church.
 * Larkin also creates an unwelcoming environment to make the church seem like a place for people to feel uncomfortable and awkward.
 * Onomatopeia: "Door thud shut" creates a loud bang, makes the church seem empty.
 * "Tense, musty, unignorable silence" is somewhat unsettling
 * "cycle-clips", "Here endeth" much more loudly than I'd meant = out of place
 * intimidating diction: "Hectoring" and "snigger" make the church seem intimidating and hostile.
 * By describing the church in this way, Larkin takes away any spiritual or psychological value away from the Church. At the end, Larkin "Reflect the place was not worth stopping for."

4. Next 3 stanzas
 * The persona engages in deep thought about the church. These three stanzas can be described as a stream of thought, in which Larkin poses a scenario in which the church goes out of use.
 * "Yet stop I did: in fact I often do." is ironic because although Larkin does not enjoy the church he still goes, this shows the attractive power of the church.
 * Larkin uses imagery again in the last four lines of the first stanza to make the church seem trivial. describing it as a place only for show and a place for sheep.
 * Second stanza, Larkin mocks religion by comparing it to superstition.
 * For Example: "Or, after dark, will dubious women come to make their children touch a particular stone; Pick simples for a cancer." The word simples is referring to a medicinal herb, however it can also be taken as simple-minded for the dubious women who come to the church in hopes that that will heal their cancer.
 * The persona then concludes that relgion must "die" and goes on to contemplate how it will die.
 * "Grassy, weedy pavement, brambles, buttress, sky" makes the church seem barren once again taking away any spiritual worth
 * Third Stanza:
 * Larkin contemplates who will be the very last person to go to the church and goes on to list all the "current" church goers
 * Crew = construction worker, Ruin-bibber = treasure hunter, Christmas-addict = someone who just goes for christmas rituals.
 * Larkin shows the trivialization of church seeing as he doesnt mention a single church goer who goes for the church's intended purpose.
 * Sarcastic tone further emphasizes this.
 * Larkin then finally wonders if the last person will be a person like him.

5. Last two Stanzas
 * Ironic because Larkin is constantly criticizing the church but then ends by concluding that the church is important through his own criticism.
 * "Bored...unsplit" creates a barren image of the church and reflects how the church has lost its purpose.
 * The word "serious" is repeated to show how Larkin believes that the church is a place for man to seek retribution and better himself.
 * "Since...ground" is referring to the people who go to the church to better themselves.

Conclusion: "Church Going" is an incredibly deep and complex poem in which Larkin expresses his distaste for the present church as well as the trivialization of religion in modern society. However, at the end Larkin concludes that a church is needed for men to better themselves and that it is a place of retribution. Although Larkin disapproves of the current church, he is drawn to it because he feels that there is something there (besides the ceremonies and rituals) that allows him to better understand his life, providing a metaphor for him to understand and articulate the deeper meaning behind his existence. 