Herbert has attained reconciliation with God, crossing the pathos of conflict.

Answer

“Herbert has attained reconciliation with God, crossing the pathos of conflict.”—Explain. [NU. 2022]

Or, Comment on the spiritual conflict which is dominant in Herbert’s poem “The Collar”. [NU. 2019, 2021] ★★★

In George Herbert’s (1593-1633) poem “The Collar,” we see a struggle between religious faith and freedom. Herbert was a priest in the Church of England. “The Collar” was published in his famous 1633 collection The Temple. In this poem, the poet feels spiritual conflict; he feels burdened by his religious duties. He feels tired, angry, and even doubts. He wants to leave this life and live with freedom and luxury. In the end, Herbert hears God’s gentle voice and returns to faith.

Here we will see how spiritual conflict is dominant in “The Collar” and how the poet attains reconciliation at last. 

Weight of Religious Duties: From the very beginning of the poem, we clearly see that the poet is feeling the weight of religious duties. He hits the table and says he will go out and leave his religious life.

“I struck the board, and cried, “No more;

I will abroad!”

This means he is angry and tired. He longs to do whatever he wants. He thinks his life is free as the open road, loose as the wind, and full of possibilities. The poet wants to live like other people—free, happy, and full of joy. He feels that his life is full of rules, pain, and no reward.

Even the title “The Collar” is a reminder of the poet’s spiritual conflict. Here, the “collar” is the priest’s white collar. It can also mean a dog’s collar, which is the symbol of being controlled. The poet suggests his life is fully controlled and restricted by religious faith.

Guilt and Sorrow: The poet thinks he only gets guilt and sorrow in return for his religious faith. He remembers a time when he felt joyful. He says:

“Sure there was wine

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