This Be The Truth

“This Be the Verse” - Philip Larkin

They fuck you up, your mum and dad.

They may not mean to, but they do.

They fill you with the faults they had

And add some extra, just for you.

But they were fucked up in their turn

By fools in old-style hats and coats,

Who half the time were soppy-stern

And half at one another’s throats.

Man hands on misery to man.

It deepens like a coastal shelf.

Get out as early as you can,

And don’t have any kids yourself.

After reading this tidy sum of lines and verse, I was surprised to find out that Larkin was almost nominated to be The Poet Laureate of England. While I found the poem to be refreshingly honest and witty, I was almost sure that scholars would not respond well to his sort of candor. As he plays with traditional form in poetry, Larkin almost mocks the flowery idealism of past poems, outright rejecting the idea that a solution is within grasp. The format resembles that of a sonnet, without the last two lines that are typical in most Shakespearean sonnets. Generally these last two lines provide some sort of resolution to a problem that has been set up in the first three sections of the poem. Omitting the last two lines of the sonnet almost alludes to the fact that the problem, of which Larkin has outline, has no obtainable solution. While he provides a pithy alternative, despite the hilarity of the sentiment, it is still rather bleak and unrealistic to ask men to die “early” and abandon the survival of the species. With this nihilistic, postmodern, and indifferent content, Larkin's themes become apparent. Obviously the product of a war-torn world, Larkin's brutal honesty and strong voice reflect the public's desire for more upfront and identifiable work from poets in the years following the atrocities of WWII. His subsequent popularity demonstrates the need for truth and sincerity in a society disillusioned by violence. Devoid of hope, Larkin's poem continues and informs the rise of existentialism within science-saturated societies. Although Larkin offers no positive antidote to this prolonged ennui and misery, he does not demean the intelligence or situation of the audience. The clarity Larkin employs to illuminate this problem comes as a relief to those who have been used to having their emotional suffering swept under the rug. In that sense, Larkin's work is transcends the realm of indulgent art and serves a more utilitarian purpose. Audiences clearly relate to the simple lines and colloquial language. The themes are universal, and the blatant descriptions of social disease become almost prescriptive.