Analysis of W.E. Henley's Poem, Invictus

On June 11^th, 2001, one of the most well-known murderers of the 1990s scribbled down the words to William Ernest Henley's Invictus; Timothy McVeigh, the chief terrorist and conspirator involved in the Oklahoma City Bombing that claimed 168 lives, issued this final statement before his death by lethal injection. While it may have been aimless, inappropriate, out of context, and perhaps overdramatic, McVeigh's somber exit nonetheless exemplified the prominence of Victorian poet Henley's poignant sixteen lines. As a victim of crippling tubercular arthritis from a young age, Henley generated several poems about his infirmities during his lifetime. Without a doubt, Invictus, carrying the elements of a simple poem with simple device, was written as one of many works reflective of Henley's ability to lead an active, vigorous life despite his affliction. (Flora 15) Still, another idea looms: can there be more to Invictus than a cripple overcoming his medical frailty? Invictus, in its simple, yet general and broad form, does entrust much to the reader in finding its meaning, and, because of this, it has spawned a large variety of interpretations. Though its open-endedness is the characteristic to which part the poem's widespread success can be attributed, its basic poetic structure and nearly universal readability permit its powerful message to be read and understood by almost anyone.

Invictus

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find me, unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate;
I am the captain of my soul.

The strong, resilient enunciation of the poem's title carries a remarkable effect from the outset, emphasizing Henley's intention to show might in the face of adversity. The Latin, powerful-sounding Invictus's definition is no less noticeable: the "unconquerable." In the first stanza, Henley refers to the "night that covers me, black as the pit from pole to pole" (lines 1 and 2); this night is generally a metaphor for the hardships and problems of a worldly existence, but the line could clearly be understood at the discretion of the reader by assigning the night any of negative roles (any particular hardship that may encompass a person's entire life, such as a handicap like Henley's; persistent, taxing responsibilities; or sustained emotional injury). The next line, "the pit from pole to pole" is a basic way of likening the darkness (or the difficulty) of the night to the lightless, deep desolation of the center of the earth, and its meaning does not require any change as understanding of the poem changes. Lines 3 and 4, "I thank whatever gods may be/for my unconquerable soul," parallel the title and introduce the poem's primary focus. By suggesting that the soul is the creation of a higher power, the line reinforces the theme of the unconquerable by associating the soul with the interminable (Connel 56). Some critics have argued that line 3 is hard proof of the author's agnosticism, but other interpretations have left the statement as a choice in poetic device rather than a religious preference, even hailing the poem as one not quite contradictory (as agnostic analyses contend) to conventional Christianity. Regardless of this, Henley definitely intended to carry the meaning of his poetry to the spiritual level, which is further explored in the third stanza. (Buckley 84)

The second stanza bears the image of a hapless victim whose predators are the violent "circumstance" and "chance"; both abstract concepts are solidified by lines 6-9. Line 6, "In the fell clutch of circumstance," followed by line 7, "I have not winced nor cried aloud" immediately instills an image of an animal captured by the "fell clutch" of a predatory bird. The circumstance, in Henley's case, was likely a reference to his unfortunate condition but, much like the many parts of the poem, is manipulatable to personal perspective. Though cursed with a great burden, he did not "wince nor cry aloud," that is, complain vociferously about his pain, as an animal carried away would squeal to its demise. Then Chance, in lines 8-9, appears with a baseball bat to do his damage: "Under the bludgeoning of chance/my head is bloody, but unbowed." Henley's choice of imagery best describes any case of one downtrodden by misfortune who has not conceded due to events that transpire beyond his control, much as a hardy prisoner beaten by his captors would not allow his head to bow in defeat. (Connel 58)

Both warning and consoling, the third stanza brings in something past that introduced in the second, showing a more spiritual side of the poem: "Beyond this place of wrath and tears/looms the Horror of the shade" (lines 11 and 12). The "place of wrath and tears" of which Henley writes is the world we live in, the place where we are the prey of circumstance and the prisoners of chance. Beyond it, however, Henley suggests that there is more by expressing his belief in an afterlife, but he does not simply relegate the "Beyond" to simple optimism. Line 12's "Horror of the shade" is the unknown that is across the threshold of life and death that may hold more hardships for the soul yet, and it is undoubtedly a concept explored by many poets. (Connel 60) "The menace of the years" (Line 13), of course, is the expiration of our worldly time, the end of which would mark the beginning of the journey to the shade beyond. To this, Henley holds defiantly that this imminent end "finds, and shall find him unafraid." This disregard for fear is a declaration of acceptance of all that will come at the expiration of the flesh. (Buckley 89)

Possibly the most famous and memorable of all, the fourth stanza is the poem's final affirmation of spiritual fortitude. Lines 16 and 17 are strongly associated with Christian ideas and images. "It matters not how strait the gate" (line 16) contains a direct biblical allusion: "Strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it" (Matthew 7:13-14). Line 16 is not a contradiction of the straight and narrow path, but rather an acceptance of its challenge, similar to that in the third stanza. (Connel 62) "Scroll," in line 17, again alludes to heavenly imagery; it does not matter what punishments one may bear from life and the afterlife as long as one is confidently in control. The bold, fearless end to the poem is an affirmation that, as the decision-makers in our lifetimes, we are the sole authorities over ourselves, and a powerful line that seems to have a wide variety of applications for any situation. Left in context and even if taken slightly out of context of the poem, its intense implications of power ("master" and "captain") in combination with its subjects (the fate and the soul, things that are normally implied to be beyond our reach) give the final stanza an intrinsic quality found in all things frequently quoted as words of strength, such as Franklin Delano Roosevelt's "We have nothing to fear but fear itself." Coincidentally enough, FDR was known to quote the concluding couplet of Invictus himself when asked how he dealt with his struggle with polio (Ross 23).

The Feeling of Invictus-ability

Invictus exudes a very passionate fervor that any person that possesses an understanding of hardship can feel. When W.E. Henley wrote it at the age of 26, he wrote it because of his own personal trials and tribulations, as an insight to pass unto others. While examining the poem, it is easy to find that it can be interpreted differently from different personal perspectives (Connel 75). For this, the poem has been criticized as being "bad" art, much like a sporadic slew of paint on a canvas, but it is an entirely different argument to dismiss it altogether. Aaron Haspel from God of the Machine states:

The reader who enjoys this poem supplies his own motive. Many readers are willing to do so, and the pleasure that they take in this poem is genuine. Popular poems are frequently on the "Invictus" model: they contain a couple of famous lines and a lot of unspecified motive for the reader to fill in.

Invictus's nifty characteristic of relying heavily on individual attitudes combined with a general subject that a majority of people understand has generated a litter of responses and analyses of the poem. To someone rapidly approaching death, the poem may be an affirmation of strength he will hold in the afterlife. Likewise, to someone far from his time, Invictus could be the affirmation of strength necessary to pursue each coming day zealously, avoiding the pitfalls of apathy and torpor. The "unspecified motive" as described by Haspel holds infinite possibilities; but, then, it is arguably the opinion of the critic to determine whether art (in this case, the thematic structure of the poem) should be a definite form or not. (Haspel)

Though it is obvious what makes Invictus so broadly understood-the poem's lack of any semblance of specifics-the question of why it is attractive lurks. Other things aside, it could consist of lines on a sheet of paper so utterly devoid of creativity that they essentially call on the imagination of the audience to concoct the art for them (which sounds a little bit similar to a few cases of "modern art"), yet, in spite of that, it reveals qualities that make it more than a work that only self-absorbed pseudointellectuals can appreciate. First and foremost, the poem is undemanding to read and comprehend; Henley's metaphors and allusions, even if not directly recognized, are easily readable from context. The poem also has a feel of stereotypical poetry, with an ABAB rhyme scheme that not only contributes to the pace, but allows for easy and effective aural interpretation.

Powerful, feel-good poetry like Invictus always manages to seep into the expressions of famous figures valiantly presenting their causes to fight adversity in some form. From Sunrise at Campobello, dictating a crippled Franklin Delano Roosevelt proudly declaring "I am the master of my fate/I am the captain of my soul," to McVeigh's soundless final statement against his perceived oppressors, the poem of the unconquered is undeniably a catalyst to stirring emotions. Even Timmy McVeigh, the terrorist who dramatically attempted to engineer his demise into martyrdom, perhaps had a right to invoke the poem; perhaps his own unspecified motive was worthy enough to tarnish the poem's reputation. Whether this was the case or not, he picked the perfect poem to do so.

Citations:

Buckey, Jerome Hamilton. William Ernest Henley: A Study in the "Counter-Decadence"

of the 'nineties. New York, NY: Octagon Books, 1971.

Connel, John. W.E. Henley. London: Constable Publishers, 1949.

Flora, Joseph M. William Ernest Henley. New York, NY: Twayne Publishers, Inc., 1970.

Haspel, Aaron. "How to Read a Poem IV: Public and Private reading."

God of the Machine. 14 Feb. 2004. Online. Available: http://www.godofthemachine.com/archives/00000309.html

5 Feb. 2003

Ross, John D. Henley and Burns. Port Washington, NY: Kennikat Press, 1970.