The Collar

The Collar

George Herbert was born on April 3, 1593 at Montgomery Castle, the

fifth son of an eminent Welsh family. Herbert's religious beliefs

caused him to be an active opponent of the puritans and the Calvinists.

Herbert became the cannon of Lincoln Cathedral and in 1630 he took holy

orders. During the years Herbert spent at Bemerton he worked on a

collection of verses known as The Temple. Upon his death they

published the manuscript. The poem "The Collar" is a complaint voiced

by person embittered against the constraints that bind him. Impatient

with the human condition, the writer resolves to break free. "My lines

and life are free, free as the road, / Loose as the wind, as large as

store" he insists. The accompanying gesture, "I struck the board and

cried, 'No more!'" is a dramatic, and boastful act. The tone of these

lines is recognized as an exaggeration. The writer is impatient with

the need to recognize one's dependence and to accept one's need to

worship and serve God. The poem as a whole is about blowing off

steam. Herbert develops two quite vivid major images to build the

poem's theme. The images of restraints such as "collars / cages /

cable / rope"suggests something stiff and restrictive, but not harmful,

like a noose or shackles. The title of the poem, "The Collar," an

article of clothing a man wears when he must be at his best. The word

"Collar" also refers to the white band worn by the clergy, and it is

the role of priest the poem alludes to. This collar symbolizes the

priest's role as servant. The writer chafes at being "in suit." The

image has at least a double meaning. The word "suit" refers to the

clerical "suit" and connotatively to the attendance required of a

vassal at his lord's court. "Forsake thy cage, / Thy rope of sands."

The word "cage" suggests a contraption for animals. The purpose is not

to harm but merely to restrict movement, and keep from harm. This

prevents the creature from getting hurt by its impulses and curiosity

about what lies beyond the confines. This imagery of restraints

suggests the writer of being in an animalistic state. This animalistic

condition is clear when "as I raved and grew more fierce and wild/ At

every word." The writer is getting himself worked up. He is

unreasoning, like an animal. Even the text, seems to bark: "What?

Shall I ever sigh and pine?