Both the 'Nativity Ode' and 'Lycidas' are poems that struggle to reconcile themes that are posed as irreconcilable Identify some of these in each. Which poem is more successful in its attempts to do so? ( MEG 101 ) ( CHRIST'S NATIVITY AND LYCIDAS )

Both the 'Nativity Ode' and 'Lycidas' are poems that grapple with complex and sometimes irreconcilable themes. In the 'Nativity Ode', some of these themes include the Christian celebration of the birth of Jesus, the pagan celebration of the winter solstice, and the political and religious tensions of Milton's time. In 'Lycidas', some of the themes include the personal grief of losing a friend, the theological debate over predestination, and the question of the poet's vocation.

In the 'Nativity Ode', Milton attempts to reconcile the Christian celebration of the birth of Jesus with the pagan celebration of the winter solstice. He does this by appropriating pagan images and symbols and giving them Christian meanings. For example, he refers to the sun as the "great World-Power" and the "soul of this world," but then connects these images to the Christian idea of Christ as the "true light" that has come into the world. However, some critics argue that these pagan images are more distracting than enhancing to the poem's themes and that they undermine the Christian message of the poem.

In 'Lycidas', Milton attempts to reconcile his personal grief over the death of his friend with the larger theological and philosophical debates of his time. He does this by using the death of Lycidas as a metaphor for the death of poetry and the decay of English culture, but also by connecting this loss to the larger question of human mortality and the role of faith in the face of death. However, some critics argue that the poem's themes are too diffuse and that its attempts to reconcile its various threads are not entirely successful.

In my opinion, 'Lycidas' is more successful in its attempts to reconcile its various themes. Although the poem is complex and multifaceted, it holds together as a unified whole, and its use of metaphor and allegory serves to deepen and enrich its themes rather than detract from them. In contrast, the 'Nativity Ode' sometimes feels disjointed and fragmented, and its attempts to reconcile pagan and Christian themes can be distracting rather than illuminating. Overall, both poems are remarkable achievements of Milton's poetic genius, but 'Lycidas' is the more successful of the two in its attempts to reconcile its various themes.