The Task and Other Poems

by William Cowper, James Sambrook

This scarce book was first published in 1891. It comprises a collection of poems by the 18th century poet and hymnologist, William Cooper, who was one of the most popular poets of the age and can be considered as a forerunner to the Romantic poets. It is a n absorbing collection that will delight all poetry lovers. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

Genres: Poetry, Classics

Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

The Task , best-known work of William Cowper, British poet, considered a precursor of romanticism, in 1785 praises rural life and leisure.

William Cowper served as an English hymnodist. Cowper, one most popular man of his time, wrote of everyday nature scenes of the English countryside and thus changed the direction of 18th century. In many ways, he foreran later authors. Samuel Taylor Coleridge called him "modern," whilst William Wordsworth particularly admired Yardley-Oak . He a nephew of Judith Madan.

From severe manic depression, Cowper suffered, found refuge in a fervent evangelical Christianity, the inspiration behind his much-loved hymns, often experienced doubt, and feared doom to eternal damnation. His religious sentiment and association with John Newton (who wrote Amazing Grace , the hymn) led to much memorable writing.

Reviews

[Sean Barrs · Rating 4 out of 5]

“We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for. To quote from Whitman, "O me! O life!... of the questions of these recurring; of the endless trains of the faithless... of cities filled with the foolish; what good amid these, O me, O life?" Answer. That you are here - that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. That the powerful play *goes on* and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?”
- N.H Kleinbaum, Dead Poet’s Society

It’s amazing how many talented poets never receive the recognition they deserve. Outside academic circles, William Cowper is a name not many will hear and one even fewer will bother to read up on. But I suppose that’s just how literature has always worked and, unfortunately, always will. So many names get lost and so many are never heard.

I think it’s the duty of the English academic to ensure that these names resurface and remain relevant because there is so much importance attached to their words. The things they write on, though removed from our own current situations, are still fiercely important. We can learn from poetry. We can learn what drove these people and how we can utilise such things in our own lives. And this is why I chose to study it. The quote I attached at the top articulates more than I ever could about poetry. We should never forget our writers.

The lucky ones are immortalised in the canon of literature; but just because something is in the canon it doesn’t mean that it is necessarily good or deserving of its place, though that’s something for the critics to argue over. The same is true for what we read today. The books that fall into the bestseller list and become popular often undeservedly outshine books that are on the fringes of the marketplace. Without wanting to go into a fall blown rant about how under-read some writers are, I will cut this short and simply say that Cowper is much better than his legacy would suggest.

His poetry was a precursor to the Romantic literary movement. In here are themes that would appear in Blake and Wordsworth shortly after. They received the fame he did not. I suppose they had the advantage of writing when poetry exploded, when it became popular and, dare I say it, even sexy. Just look at what Byron did with his writing and where it got him. I’m digressing here, but the point is Cowper was good. Cowper was funny and he was sarcastic and he was bitter. His stance on slavery was razor sharp:

SWEET MEAT HAS SOUR SAUCE OR, THE SLAVE-TRADER IN THE DUMPS

[Written early in 1788. Published by Southey, 1836.]

A TRADER I am to the African shore,
But since that my trading is like to be o'er,
I'll sing you a song that you ne'er heard before,
Which nobody can deny, deny,
Which nobody can deny.

When I first heard the news it gave me a shock,
Much like what they call an electrical knock,
And now I am going to sell off my stock,
Which nobody can deny.

'Tis a curious assortment of dainty regales,
To tickle the negroes with when the ship sails,
Fine chains for the neck, and a cat with nine tails,
Which nobody can deny.

Here's supple-jack plenty, and store of rat-tan,
That will wind itself round the sides of a man,
As close as a hoop round a bucket or can,
Which nobody can deny.

Here's padlocks and bolts, and screws for the thumbs,
That squeeze them so lovingly till the blood comes,
They sweeten the temper like comfits or plums,
Which nobody can deny.

When a negro his head from his victuals withdraws,
And clenches his teeth and thrusts out his paws,
Here's a notable engine to open his jaws,
Which nobody can deny.

Thus going to market, we kindly prepare
A pretty black cargo of African ware,
For what they must meet with when they get there,
Which nobody can deny.

'Twould do your heart good to see 'em below,
Lie flat on their backs all the way as we go,
Like sprats on a gridiron, scores in a row,
Which nobody can deny.

But ah! if in vain I have studied an art
So gainful to me, all boasting apart,
I think it will break my compassionate heart,
Which nobody can deny.

For oh! how it enters my soul like an awl!
This pity, which some people self-pity call,
Is sure the most heart-piercing pity of all,
Which nobody can deny.

So this is my song, as I told you before;
Come buy off my stock, for I must no more
Carry Caesars and Pompeys to Sugar-cane shore,
Which nobody can deny, deny,
Which nobody can deny.

***********************************************

This is such a brilliant piece of writing. Cowper channels the voice of stupidity and demonstrates how such an ignorant, stupid, slaver could have actually thought. It predates the narrative formation of point of view within the novel, but the effect is the same. So this is a collection by a massively under-read poet, one I’m so glad I encountered. More poetry for me!

[Katie Lumsden · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read – though I'm not sure I fully understood it!

[Anisha Inkspill · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are four poems in this book including The Task, which is a novella length poem. The remaining 13 pages has an introduction and the 3 other poems; these are much shorter in length and shows Cowper’s chilled-out nature better.

The book I downloaded from Guttenberg explains:

In the summer of 1783, when one of the three friends had been reading blank verse aloud to the other two, *Lady Austen, from her seat upon the sofa, urged upon Cowper, as she had urged before, that blank verse was to be preferred to the rhymed couplets in which his first book had been written, and that he should write a poem in blank verse. "I will," he said, "if you will give me a subject." "Oh," she answered, "you can write upon anything. Write on this sofa." He playfully accepted that as "the task" set him, and began his poem called "The Task," which was finished in the summer of the next year, 1784. But

Cowper, William. The Task and Other Poems. Kindle Edition.

The Task was published in 1785 and is divided into 6 parts which it calls Book and follows it with a number in Roman numerals and a heading, below I give a short extract from each. I thought each one could be read individually. What comes through, aside from the wonderful descriptions, is Cowper is not afraid to speak his mind. He voices his opinion on science, justice, education, religion, monarchs (especially tyrannous ones), and the ruins a growing industry will bring. Throughout, the strongest theme is equality, liberty and the love of nature (especially god). My favourite was Book 1 as it ran through the history of the sofa, to my modern eyes at times seemed humorous in an absurd way but I’m not sure if that was the intention.

I came to know of this poem from my background reading about The Enlightenment where the mention of this poem cropped up several times. Also, jane austen mentions Cowper and describes him as Jane Austen’s “favourite moral writer in verse.”. As a read I connected to this work better than Absalom And Achitophel, it didn’t feel as dated and I could follow it easier. Cowper’s style has a stream of consciousness feel to it as he moves and meanders from one topic to the next like it’s a thought he’s having in the moment. Unlike the shorter poems in this book, the tone of The Task is driven by an earthy mix of reprimanding and solemnity with a touch of playfulness. I found it refreshing how Cowper was not afraid to speak his mind and say what he thought. When this poem was published George III is on the throne of England, the French Revolution is stirring and the Industrial Revolution is making an impact; Cowper has something to say about each of these.

Here are some short extracts from each book of Cowper’s poemThe Task
Book I – The Sofa – 23 pages long

Joint-stools were then created; on three legs
Upborne they stood. Three legs upholding firm
A massy slab, in fashion square or round.
On such a stool immortal Alfred sat,
And swayed the sceptre of his infant realms;
And such in ancient halls and mansions drear
May still be seen, but perforated sore
And drilled in holes the solid oak is found,
By worms voracious eating through and through.

Cowper, William. The Task and Other Poems (p. 2). Kindle Edition.

Book II – The Timepiece – 25 pages long

The schools became a scene
Of solemn farce, where ignorance in stilts,
His cap well lined with logic not his own,
With parrot tongue performed the scholar's part,
Proceeding soon a graduated dunce.

Cowper, William. The Task and Other Poems (p. 45). Kindle Edition.

Book III – The Garden – 25 pages long

I was a stricken deer that left the herd
Long since; with many an arrow deep infixt
My panting side was charged, when I withdrew
To seek a tranquil death in distant shades.
There was I found by one who had himself
Been hurt by the archers. In his side he bore,
And in his hands and feet, the cruel scars.
With gentle force soliciting the darts
He drew them forth, and healed and bade me live.

Cowper, William. The Task and Other Poems (p. 51). Kindle Edition.

Book IV – The Winter Evening – 23 pages long

Is Winter hideous in a garb like this?
Needs he the tragic fur, the smoke of lamps,
The pent-up breath of an unsavoury throng
To thaw him into feeling, or the smart
And snappish dialogue that flippant wits
Call comedy, to prompt him with a smile?
The self-complacent actor, when he views
(Stealing a sidelong glance at a full house)
The slope of faces from the floor to the roof,
As if one master-spring controlled them all,
Relaxed into an universal grin,
Sees not a countenance there that speaks a joy
Half so refined or so sincere as ours.

Cowper, William. The Task and Other Poems (p. 78). Kindle Edition.

Book V – The Winter Morning Walk – 26 pages long

Drawn from his refuge in some lonely elm
That age or injury has hollowed deep,
Where on his bed of wool and matted leaves
He has outslept the winter, ventures forth
To frisk awhile, and bask in the warm sun,
The squirrel, flippant, pert, and full of play.

Cowper, William. The Task and Other Poems (p. 130). Kindle Edition.

Book VI – The Winter Morning at Noon – 25 pages long

The night was winter in his roughest mood,
The morning sharp and clear; but now at noon
Upon the southern side of the slant hills,
And where the woods fence off the northern blast,
The season smiles, resigning all its rage,
And has the warmth of May. The vault is blue
Without a cloud, and white without a speck
The dazzling splendour of the scene below.

Cowper, William. The Task and Other Poems (p. 123). Kindle Edition.


* From what I can tell, Lady Austen is no relation to Jane Austen.

[Victoria Foote-Blackman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading William Cowper's The Task is, to put it succinctly, a task. But like many tasks, it is one that ultimately is deeply gratifying. This very long poem, written in blank verse and covering 101 pages in this edition (and in a small typeface, no less), was Cowper's magnum opus and justifiably made him famous. Published in 1785, The Task left a deep impression on its readers, including the Romantic poets William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge; they attributed this passionate panegyric to nature as a precursor to their own poetry.

The text is separated into six books redolent with spiritual exaltation, despair, and a hefty amount of admonition. Book I, entitled The Sofa, is followed by Book II called the Timepiece, and Book III The Garden. The last three books are set in winter, with the following titles: The Winter Evening, The Winter Morning Walk, and The Winter Walk at Noon.

Cowper (1731-1800) was born into a religious family, which set the tone for the rest of his life; his father was a church rector in the county of Hertfordshire in England. His mother died when he was seven, a tragedy from which the sensitive child never fully recovered. In his 20's he worked for a law office, experienced unrequited love, and battled depression and bouts of madness that landed him for a time in a lunatic asylum. His fortunes turned in his early 30's when he was saved from insanity by going to live with a retired clergyman and his wife, Mary Unwin. After the early death of Mr. Unwin, Cowper stayed on with his widow, with whom he lived for years in apparent domestic bliss. He appears to have spent most of his time working in the garden, writing, and going for long walks.

The origins of The Task are as light and frothy as The Task is not. A neighbour, Lady Austen, apparently noting his fretful disposition, challenged him to write a poem--any poem, and why not launch it with a discussion about something as mundane as a sofa? Smitten by her charms, Cowper sat down to what he called his "task." (Mrs. Unwin did become uncomfortable with his infatuation and later dismissed the lady from their entourage.) He commences his tome with the comforts of sitting on a sofa, but with his lofty, spiritually exalted mind and physical restlessness he can't stay still for long. Thus he launches into pages of poetry in which he extols with rich language and metaphor the comforts of the beautiful God-given natural world he explores, and excoriates in almost equal measure the self-centered rapaciousness and cruelty of mankind.

Cowper was preternaturally what we would call today an 'empath,' but more than that was also a visionary. Already deeply sympathetic to the poor and the trammeled, he was properly horrified by the existence of slavery at a time when few considered it an injustice. He also speaks at various times with indignation at the gratuitous cruelty of man not only to fellow man but to animals. Though as anthropocentric as any other, Cowper still championed the need to protect the poor innocent "brutes" he observed as always at the mercy of unfeeling humans. He also takes to task the hypocrisy of many in the church, and Book II becomes a Jeremiad against clerical sinners of all kinds. Scientists and scholars are also the objects of finger-wagging when he feels they hold worldly knowledge as more sacrosanct than God's creation.

Still, the Task continues to compel. Not only was Cowper, like many sensitive souls, premonitory of social changes that would come about well after his lifetime, but his verse describing the beauty of trees, flowing brooks, and flowers is mouth-watering. By the end of The Task the reader will feel that she or he has accompanied Cowper on all his walks, through all the seasons and at all hours of the day, and regardless of one's own religious affiliation that she or he has made a friend for life.

This edition also contains two other short poems, one a heartfelt tribute to the woman who shared his life, Mrs. Mary Unwin, and The Diverting History of John Gilpin, a witty and rollicking adventure that couldn't be more unlike the deeply formal, earnest, impassioned Cowper we have come to know in The Task.

One piece of advice. Keep access to an encyclopedia or Wikipedia at hand. Though Cowper sometimes derided book-learning, he was--to say the least --very well-read. His verse is sometimes punctuated with allusions to various historical and biblical figures and incidents. Reading these sections will be more enlightening if you do as I did: research the references. You will be that much more enriched by this remarkable document to humanity.

[Abigail Bok · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Task” is said to have been Jane Austen’s favorite poem, and I read it to try to understand why. If it was, it must have appealed to a very secret zone of her heart, because I have to stretch pretty far to see connections to her works.

William Cowper was a poet of the second half of the eighteenth century, a man preyed upon by major episodes of depression but blessed in finding friends who accepted and even supported him as he was. One of these friends for a time was Lady Anne Austen (unknown whether there was any connection to Jane), and she it was who urged him to escape rhyming couplets and attempt free verse. When he asked her on what subject he should write, she answered, “Oh, you can write upon anything. Write on this sofa.”

So that is the starting point of the poem, but it doesn’t stick to topic for long. It rambles through panegyrics to nature, opposition to slavery and to hunting, thoughts on what makes a good and a bad clergyman, advice for living well, and even a stretch of millenarian visioning. (The latter I found vaguely disturbing and it made me worry about Jane Austen’s taste. Perhaps she skimmed that bit.)

My copyeditor soul is challenged by inverted syntax but the poem is nevertheless not terribly difficult to read or understand, and the versifying is often quite skilled, with deft internal rhyming and occasional blunt sentence endings of the type Austen adored. One thing she might have derived from study of the work was the notion that a book can be simultaneously about nothing (the sofa) and about everything (how to live well and ethically, Man’s relationship with God). That capacity for packing the universe into the everyday may lie at the heart of her genius. I can see Walt Whitman being inspired by these hosannas as well.

The poem is long—more than 100 pages in my edition—and occasionally flabby (why the pages on growing cucumbers in cold frames?), but it also has its beauties, especially when celebrating rural life and natural beauty. There are satisfying aphorisms buried in its pages and several phrases that have become chestnuts in the English language. There are lines Austen put into the mouths of her characters and lines I might put to the same purpose. It feels as if the free verse form freed Cowper to pour out the essence of who he was and aspired to be, in a great confessional to a woman soon to be estranged by the jealousy of the woman who fed and sheltered hin (the nature of these relationships believed to be chaste carnally but psychologically intimate).

It’s a revealing look into the texture of an emotionally unstable person’s mind and on that level sometimes uncomfortable, but I did enjoy the beauty of the language and the advice on living well and gratefully.

[Grace Harwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adore this wonderful poem created by Cowper after being challenged by his friend and neighbour to write in blank verse on the subject of "anything - write on this sofa". Like Cowper, I started on the sofa too (reading it) but you don't stay there for long as the poet takes you on a wonderful journey through space and time (including into the future: "My very gentle reader, yet unborn,/Of whom I needs must augur better things,
Since Heaven would sure grow weary of a world/Productive only of a race like us." (p. 40) Sadly, for Cowper, the world hasn't changed that much in two hundred and odd years and we're still the very fallible human "race like us".) He even predicts facebook: "She that asks
Her dear five hundred friends, contemns them all,..." - well, almost...

This poem has an immense variety of themes and subjects which it traverses through the five books it is comprised of, including ecological themes and the necessity for protecting nature and the world around us, commentary on the state of the human race and society, and religion. It was incredibly popular at time of publication, and pops up in Jane Austen's Mansfield Park, as well as being an inspiration to another famous eighteenth century author, Charlotte Smith. And, it's got to be said that it's as relevant today as it ever was in the eighteenth century (as I said - we've not changed all that much). Consider the following:

So fare we in this prison-house the world.
And ’tis a fearful spectacle to see
So many maniacs dancing in their chains.
They gaze upon the links that hold them fast
With eyes of anguish, execrate their lot,
Then shake them in despair, and dance again.

This wonderful edition also features the very funny comic adventures of John Gilpin. I note that some folks have experienced problems in reading this, but I didn't experience any problems - it all appears as it should do with no typos that I can see.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Task was a tough read for me at times...in length and heavy, often unfamiliar language. But the more I read, the more I found these absolute jewels of godly wisdom. I love and respect Cowper -- and mourn the fact that his legacy often relegates him to the category of "madman."

[Anne (In Search of Wonder) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The main work in this book is supposedly about the sofa. Maybe the first and last page are about the sofa, but he goes faaaaarrrr afield of his primary subject. Politics, nature, religion, nature, politics, religion, around and around and around, revisiting these topics.

I started another of his books of poetry and found much the same thing. Also very long irregular stanzas that I found difficult to track. I feel like maybe some ADD contributed to his inspiration.

Also, I read a cheap (free?) Kindle edition via Hoopla and there were a lot of typing errors.

But there were a lot of phrases and lines that I highlighted because they were so eloquent and beautifully put. And the shorter poems at the end of the book were more concise and easier to track.

"Tis liberty alone that gives the flower
Of fleeting life its lustre and perfume. "

"Grace makes the slave a freeman."

"Transformation of apostate man
From fool to wise, from earthly to divine,
Is work for Him that made him. "

"Nature is but a name for an effect
Whose cause is God. "

"The bird that flutters least is longest on the wind."

[Lea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m still new to poetry and have mostly only read poets from the 21st century. A 24 page poem about a sofa, or on the theme of a sofa, was not what I was expecting. The religious tie-in to everything speaks to the time frame. I didn’t really enjoy reading it but I could imagine those at the time finding it of value.

I read this for the 2023 read harder challenge - a favorite book by your favorite author, and this was on a list of known books Jane Austen read.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book might be a good book but it wasn’t right for me. I found it dated and hard to want to read it made me mostly want to sleep and go cross eyed.

[Joseph Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

No one has written so beautifully what I feel so deeply about God as Cowper did in the Task. Lean “to seek Him where his mercy shines!”