22 pages • 44 minutes read
Andrew MarvellAn Horatian Ode upon Cromwell's Return from Ireland
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1681A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Themes
Militarism and Might Making Right
The speaker of Marvell’s ode highlights Cromwell’s military abilities. Cromwell’s behavior on the battlefield is celebrated both as evidence that he is sensitive and willing to sacrifice. He bears the “deepest scars” (Line 46) of the civil war and proves his right to take over England with “forced pow’r” (Line 66). Every action that Cromwell takes is violent. His qualities make him a good leader, such as his ability to “sway” (Line 83) to reasoned arguments. The speaker depicts Cromwell as a militaristic and mighty leader who favors force over reason or morality.
The speaker states that “The same arts that did gain / A pow’r, must it maintain” (Lines 119-120). Since Cromwell’s power was “forced” (Line 66) upon the English populace, the speaker suggests that force is the only way for Cromwell to maintain control. This prophesizes how Cromwell’s rule will be tyrannical and strict, similar to a military leader over their troops. The speaker foresees Cromwell’s violent takeover of England as the beginning of his conquests: “Cromwell could not cease / In the inglorious arts of peace” (Line 9-10).
The speaker bemoans that one “therefore must make room / Where greater spirits come” (Lines 43-44). At times, they go so far as to call Cromwell’s actions unjust, stating that laws will “hold or break / As men are strong or weak” (Lines 39-40). This suggests that the “might makes right” mentality leads not to the stable government that Cromwell promises, but to legal instability and constant power struggles.
Failures of Ancient Republicanism
Cromwell’s ascendance to Lord Protector hinges on the republican principles he aims to put in place. Cromwell’s republicanism bears a resemblance to the Ancient Roman Republic that existed between 509 and 27 B.C.E. Though called a republic, where power is meant to be held by the people and their elected representatives, the Roman Republic resembles a constitutional dictatorship. This reinforces the speaker’s concerns about Cromwell’s message and his ability to execute it as a military strongman.
Cromwell, according to the speaker, is a popular leader who obtains English Parliament’s support and is willing to suffer for what he believes. These qualities place Cromwell at the end of a long history of military leaders who became politicians through the renown and popularity they gained through wartime leadership. The connection Marvell makes between Cromwell and “Caesar” (Line 101) is illustrative of this point. Julius Caesar was among many militaristic strongmen who tried to overthrow the Roman government. Caesar, like Cromwell, waged a civil war against Rome after becoming an elected official.
Caesar was against the Roman Republic and precipitated its fall. The speaker’s comparison exemplifies how this poem fails to praise Cromwell except through mixed metaphors and contradictions. Marvell uses the comparison to establish that Cromwell’s rule, like that of ancient strongmen, is doomed to fail and turn into tyranny worse than monarchy.
Predestination and Inevitability
The speaker suggests that they do not agree with Cromwell’s rule. However, they resign themselves to it. The speaker views Cromwell’s ascension as predestined and inevitable.
In the speaker’s words, “’Tis madness to resist or blame / The force of angry Heaven’s flame” (Lines 25-26). Cromwell’s military might is presented as an extension of divine will. This is reinforced by the “active star” (Line 12) that originally urged him into service. That service shaped Cromwell into the man he became, “the war’s and fortune’s son” (Line 114). “Fortune” refers both to Cromwell’s individual luck, but also to the wheel of fortune, which inevitably tuns regardless of human action.
Like most of the speaker’s characterizations of Cromwell, it is difficult to tell how seriously to take his representation of Cromwell’s predestination. Some lines, such as when Cromwell climbs “by industrious valour” (Line 33), suggest alternative views of Cromwell’s ascension. However, it is important to note that pre-destination and individual industry are not mutually exclusive. Nor is the idea of Cromwell’s rule being both unjust and predetermined. The phrase “active star” (Line 12), particularly when read astrologically, implies that the star also has a passive phase, and that Cromwell’s rule is temporary.
