“The Second Coming” and the “Long-Legged Fly” Analysis
Yeats’s devotion to spirituality in the ”Second Coming”, led to the development of a rare rational and spiritual system that emphasized the role of fate and historical determinism. In other words, the belief those events have been predetermined. In the “Long-Legged Fly”, the apparent theme that Yeats aims to show is that serenity and calmness is essential in order for one to utilize their genius skills.
In Yeat’s, “The Second Coming”, there is a notion of war incorporated with good verses evil. Throughout this poem the inference is that civilization has drifted away from its morals and beliefs. Are good people still good if they don’t stand up for what is wrong in the face of disorder? In addition are evil people still evil even “full of passionate intensity”. How can one tell the difference between good and evil with the impediment of war at edge?
Yeats starts out by describing a falcon flying away from its master. However, in this panorama the falcon flew too far away and is instantly disoriented. In Europe, I understand that this is a reference to the failure of traditional social arrangements at the time Yeats was writing poetry. This flacon refers to a practice often connected with noble class in medieval society, who had enough wealth to hunt with birds of prey. Nevertheless, when Yeats refers to twentieth centuries of history as only a “stony sleep”, he is validating that the accomplishments of history are relative and that the recognized order can be defeated at any point in time. Yeats explains that Europe’s only guilt is but itself for all its complications. Later on in the poem a shift takes place in which rebellion and violence is transpiring. Yeats grieves that only bad people seem to have any eagerness and excitement. Throughout the poem, Yeats sets up new visions in terms of violence and society.
The notion of being mighty is intensified by the size of the cat, the Sphinx. This suggests the power of the process, which integrates the human intellect with the animal power. However this idea rather conflicts with the conventional Christian idea that Christ overcomes the Beast of Revelation. So Yeats is challenging certain images in conventional Christianity. In this poem Yeats is displaying certain mindsets, which are unconventional and could have insulted some orthodox Christians.
“The Second Coming” is almost an opposite approach to what Yeats is talking about in the “Long-Legged Fly”. From the theme of war to the theme of peacefulness, Yeats can switch gears between poems and still maintain his beautiful poetic flow of writing. In Yeats’ poem “Long-Legged Fly”, he examines the perception of “human genius”. I believe