The Shadow of Captain Bligh - Book Report/Review Example

Hugh MacLennan's essay The Shadow of Captain Bligh , written in 1953, is interesting. The essay is in special reference to Joseph Haydn, a famous Austrian composer of the classical period, and Captain William Bligh, well known for being the Commanding Lieutenant of the ship H.M.S. Bounty. The author describes the thoughts that came to his mind on a particular evening when he had been listening to Haydn's composition Mass for St. Cecilia, a partially lost composition until a certain Dr. Brand recovered it sometime around the middle of the twentieth century and which had hardly been heard performed until it appeared in a recording of the Haydn Society around that time. MacLennan truly believes that Haydn was one of the greatest composers ever, and the particular composition he had just been listening to was so "majestic and intimate" that it was "worth all the music composed since the death of Beethoven." Moreover, the music flows smoothly and effortlessly, and it is impossible that it cannot drive any lover of music into raptures. MacLennan is a great admirer of Haydn, appreciative of the speed with which the composer would produce beautiful music. But perhaps Haydn was not unique in that; the creative geniuses of his time- Handel, Mozart, Bach, and Beethoven, for example- were all highly proficient in composing masterpieces in a very short time. Handel, for example, composed The Messiah in a few weeks, and Mozart wrote one of his most famous symphonies in a couple of days. MacLennan rues the fact that the nineteenth and twentieth centuries have not produced such creative greats as those of older times . Whatever few have come, have been produced great works at long intervals in their career. "Our most famous poets will die leaving behind only a slim body of published verse", says MacLennan. "The average modern novelist takes from two to three years to write a single good novel," he rues. "Our musicians- men like Sibelius, Stravinsky, and Vaughan Williams- have together, in their long lives, equalled only a fraction of Haydn's output." Yet, something troubles MacLennan- the indication that Haydn was possibly unaffected by the social injustices of his time, and apparently thought he owed responsibility to none but himself, his family, and his God. MacLennan elucidates this view of his by saying that Captain William Bligh happened to be one of Haydn's contemporaries, and yet the former's atrocities had never affected the latter's work. Bligh, appointed Commanding Lieutenant of the ship H.M.S. Bounty for its trip to Tahiti to collect breadplants and take them to the West Indies to see if they flourished there, is famous for his cruelty. It is said- although there is no concrete proof to suggest this- that he regularly subjected his crew to abusive behavior; a sharp, acidic tongue was only a minor point compared to the flogging with which he punished his men. Mickey Spillane's Mutiny on the Bounty, says MacLennan, factually describes revolting episodes of Bligh's cruelty. Apparently, Bounty sailors were often punished by being flogged till the flesh hung in loose strips from their backs; and yet, Bligh's cruelty had the total sanction of the government he worked under. If the mutineers revolted on account of Bligh's cruelty, then their mutiny had practically no effect on society, and when they were later court-martialled, it wasn't once considered whether Bligh had really been so cruel as to drive the mutineers to rebellion. And yet, nobody apparently cared what was happening in society. Haydn and his contemporary geniuses went on producing great works without a single care in the world, able to enjoy an odd sense of freedom from social responsibilities that subsequent artists have not been able to enjoy, says MacLennan. The shadow of Captain Bligh and his actions did not affect Haydn the way the miseries of the world have affected modern creative masters. "In the nineteenth century, men of imagination turned their attention to the miseries of the world they saw about them, accepted responsibility for it and forever lost the peace and concentration of spirit which enabled the Haydns and Mozarts to devote the full force of their genius to the realization of the gifts God had given them.", says MacLennan. A modern artist in Haydn's place could never have lived under a regime that permitted such atrocities as Bligh's and not protest against it. In no way could a modern artist have witnessed public flogging and then gone home and composed exquisite music totally unperturbed by what he had witnessed. Perhaps that's why, feels MacLennan, there has been no artist able to match up to the talents of old-time creative masters. If an artist is not at peace with himself, how can anyone expect him to produce a masterpiece. And an artist, while remaining conscious of the evils of the society he lives in, can never be at peace with himself until he feels he is doing something concrete to change the world. Therefore, every work of every modern artist has in some way or the other reflected "the aspirations and obsessions of its time". Critics who argue that the subject matter of modern art is proof of the decadence of modern society are not really conscious of what they are saying, feels MacLennan. That, basically, is the subject matter of MacLennan's essay. But how true are MacLennan's words in the context of today He is perhaps right when he says that modern art reflects societal conditions. Take for example the book which won the Man Booker in 2008: The White Tiger, by Aravind Adiga, an Indian journalist. It reflects the structure and norms of a society in a developing country, and as a winner of the prestigious prize, can truly be considered one of the best books of 2008. Or take for example the film Slumdog Millionaire, which won the Best Picture award, among other awards, at all the prestigious movie awards, including the Oscar. This film too reflects society in a developing country, essentially of the slums in Mumbai. In music, for example, there have often been songs that reflect the present miseries of the world; one of the best known Christmas songs, recorded first in 1985 by Band-Aid, reflected the drought and famine in Ethiopia at that time. More recently, Mattafix and the actor Matt Damon collaborated on a song reflecting the miseries of the inhabitants of Darfur. In recent years, Live Earth concerts have become famous for promoting the cause of mitigating climate change. Art today does indeed reflect the truth of society. But is it true that art in the older times did not reflect the miseries of society That the creative geniuses of the times before the nineteenth century were indeed unaffected by what happened in the world around them MacLennan makes a rather arbitrary assumption when he says that Haydn and his contemporaries were unaffected by their societal conditions, because it is well-known that Charles Dickens, for example, and even the great female authors like Jane Austen and Louisa May Alcott and the Bronte sisters were acutely aware of the conditions in society in their time, and did not hesitate to write about them. Nevertheless, MacLennan's essay, written in a lucid and easy style, is an absorbing read. ___________________________________________________________________________________ (Word count: 1210 words.) Read More