Analysis Of Be Drunk By Charles Baudelaire

‘A text cannot help but be a product of its time.’ A text always reflects the time in which it was created. It always at least contains some elements, if not none. The poems by Charles Baudelaire and Viktor Khlebnikov reflect the period they belong to through the use of distinguishable elements such as nature imagery, aesthetic experience, and change define the period the poems have come from, as well as the reactions towards the events that have happened in the society and time. Be Drunk by Charles Baudelaire is clearly a product of the Romantic Era, which was a reaction to the Industrial Revolution. The use of nature imagery and an aesthetic vibe in this poem reflects the characteristics of this era. ‘..Green grass of a ditch..ask the wind,
It makes it seem as though the objects are alive, and as though the reader could achieve the beauty and doings of nature. This conflicts man-made objects which is what brang out the Industrial Revolution and is a significant part of the Romantic reaction to it. ‘So as not to be the martyred slaves of time’ expresses an attempt to go against something that cannot be accomplished. It also expresses the struggle for one’s liberty or freedom from society. This struggle for reaching one’s unappeasable desire which cannot be attained is individualism, a clear feature that distinguished the Romantic Era. Because the Romantic Era contained many individualists, who valued self-reliance and independence, they often led a solitary life rather than a life connecting with society. This is linked with this poem- ‘in the mournful solitude of your room’. The poet could be mourning for what society has become, or the fact that he is always in his room by himself. This era was also about aesthetic
The poem by Khlebnikov has some futuristic elements that reflect on its time. The personification of the objects-lips, glances, brows, visage and chain, could suggest that these unconscious things are aware or themselves and have something to speak out. The lips, brows, visage symbolise the people of this period- the lips speaking, brows raised, and faces changed at the rapid change in this era, while the chain represents machines and technology. The onomatopoeia at the beginning of the first five lines are sounds that gradually change so that the first sound starts to mould and develop into the last sound. ‘..Li-eh-eh-ey..gzi-gzi-gzeh-o..’ It symbolises that change is the subject of talk which clearly reflects the element that created the futurist period- change. ‘Thus on a canvas of some correspondences, beyond dimension lived the face.’ This could mean that on a world of some agreements, beyond the outward appearance, there were people. This reflects the futuristic period by uncovering that there were still people who had views and opinions and wanted to speak out, behind all this rapid change in the