In the first Canto of Hudibras, Samuel Butler depicts two colorful yet apparently completely contrary persona's in the form of Hudibras and his "squire" Ralph (or Ralpho). Hudibras is a court knight, a man who Butler describes as "A wight.., whose very sight woul'd / Entitle him Mirror of Knight" (15-16). He is described as a knight whose sword is ancient and rusty, spending so much time sheathed that the scabbard was worn through at the bottom. He is portrayed as booked learned, but apparently with little depth of wit, since he shared it only sparing lest he "wear it out" (47).
His squire, Ralph was another sort, whereas Hudibras gained his intellectual storehouse from study, Ralph or Ralpho as he is sometimes referred to, found his wit in another far different source. As Butler wrote, "His wit was sent him for a token, / But in the carriage cracked' and broken (485-86). Moreover, "He cou'd deep mysteries unriddle / as easily as thread a needle" (499-500). Butler goes on to describe Ralph's wit as coming from "A light that falls down from on high" (507) but he suggests that it's from spirits, that bewitch and that it might be of a source not entirely condoned by Christian beliefs.
So, apparently in Hudibras, Samuel Butler's dynamic duo are a pair of ill-matched bookends. The author claims, in spite of what appears to be a powerful body of evidence to the contrary, that "Their arms and equipage did fit / As well virtues, part and wit" (626-7). But what we see here is how Butler uses paradoxical characterization to increase the level of satire in the poem. As the reader is shown in the first Canto, even a fairly common place event, such as bear-baiting, provides a barrier to the duo, that they cannot surmount without delving into overly philosophical debate and misadventure that simply adds a powerful element of farce to the high satire of the piece. Butler uses Hudibras and Ralpho as comic figures who represent the all that is wrong with both sides of the warring between the Parliament and the Crown of 18th Century England. Each debate between the two serves to expose more and more the paradoxical and farcical nature of the strife between the two factions vying for control of Britain.
I like your observation that Hudibras and Ralph are "a pair of ill-matched bookends" and your analysis of the paradoxical nature of their relationship.
ReplyDeleteIn some ways, the tension between the two reminds me of modern politics (in my opinion). These days, it seems like the two sides are so focused on standing their ground on issues that we aren't making any forward progress (i.e. cut taxes vs. cut spending; why not both?). I don't know that today's politicians would appreciate the nuances of Butler's argument, but it certainly resonates.
Which is to say, election season can't be over quick enough.