Critically analyze the poem "joy and pleasure"
Answers
Though pleasure may be shadow-like with respect to time and length, everything else about the sensation is surely the opposite in demeanour? Not dim or dusky but bright, brilliant and bubbly. Just consider an extra-large dollop of cream in a cup of coffee or on top of a mouth-watering dessert or the light-headedness that comes from splashing out on a shopping spree or something else equally enjoyable. A sense of delight seems in-built, the sound of the syllables as you say the word out loud echoing the sumptuous and indulgent nature of its encounters. But indulge mindlessly in pleasure at your peril as according to William Henry Davies, its darkness goes deeper than mere surface. Far from being frivolous and full of good spirit, Davies portrays pleasure as filled with pitfalls and less-than-preferable personality traits that will potentially affect – and infect. It is shallow, senseless and self-centred and almost always tinged with a sense of shame; reading this poem, the term ‘guilty pleasure’ springs to mind and is given something of a new meaning. Instead it is the altogether more modest experience of joy that we should be searching for, striving towards and revelling in; though it might not be as dazzling or obviously inviting, its simplicity will reward us on a deeper, more fulfilling level.
Though he may have a point, Davies is perhaps being rash in dismissing the pleasure of pleasure so swiftly and categorically. Both have their finer points; pleasure is not all black, joy is not all white. In reading the poem, it strikes me that the difference between the two all comes down to a simple matter of semantics; a nuance of meaning barely noticeable in casual use but which makes the apparent synonyms quite distinctive indeed. To me, joy is distinguished as not only nice – as Davies characterises it through comparisons with cute creatures of nature – but pure, serene, unspoilt…even religiously divine. In contrast, pleasure seems to be defined by hedonism and decadence (and dare I say, more than a little bit of naughtiness). Where I may be inclined to agree with Davies in doing down pleasure is in that it often does have the tendency to be one sided and ever-so-selfish whereas joy opens up a two-way process, offering something other than just personal gratification. Just another example of how fascinating the English language can be…but getting back to the point, why should we have one without the other? Surely there’s a time for joy, a time for pleasure and indeed, a time for both joy and pleasure together.