Spanish Cloister

Soliloquy Of Spanish Cloister essay Catherine Hardee 1st period A.P.

In the poem Soliloquy Of Spanish Cloister it is made very clear in the first few lines that the speaker has a deep hatred for Brother Lawrence. The Poem takes place in a monastery and the two characters are two monks. Brother Lawrence seems to be the one that everyone looks up to in high regard while the speaker is just the gardener. The speaker is deemed un credible after only a few words. He shows this by letting his jealousy control him and lead him to exaggerate the story.

[Portrait of Juan Tizol(?) and Lawrence Brown(?), ...

Lawrence Lessig

Portrait of Lawrence Washington, ca. 1738, older h...

When a speaker tries to persuade someone they must first convince the reader that their opinion is credible. By watching the speaker's motives it is obvious that he is not creating his opinion fairly. His motives show through his attempts at seeming angelic when he discusses the ways he plans on sending Brother Lawrence to Hell. The irony that Browning's uses with the speaker making a deall with the devil are humorous.

It is much easier to believe a speaker that can at least pretend to see both sides of the story. The speaker's perception of the whole situation is black and white. When you mix this perception with his crazy emotions it proves him to be very unstable. His emotions shines through when he scolds Brother Lawrence for gulping his drink and not crossing his silverware after he is finished eating. Both of these things seem to be the affects of the speaker searching for a reason to condemn Brother Lawrence. He twists these acts into reason to condemn Brother Lawrence to Hell when in actuality they are just possible etiquette mistakes.

His hypocrisy was the strongest reason that he lost credibility. He talks in the beginning of the poem about how a monk should act. He goes over problems that he sees with Brother Lawrence's disrespectful manners. But by the end of the poem he is committing sins left and right. Not crossing your silverware seems like such a minute problem to the speaker wanting to send someone's soul to Hell.

The speaker not only proves himself to be uncredible but also shows he just not to smart. I wonder if he read this poem over if he would still be so hypocritical to the irony in his actions.

The Prince Regent by Sir Thomas Lawrence, c. 1814.

Lawrence Shackleford Holt Burlington North Carolin...

Historic James Fort plaque, Bridgetown