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On the 11th October 2008 we broke our
journey in a small village called Helpston, parking just opposite
the memorial on the crossroads. It was a planned visit on
the way home following a week in Norfolk as in our party were
three generations of the direct descendents of John Clare (their
Great, Great,.. Grandfather). I'd been told the story of her
famous Ancestor by my new partner and I was fascinated to
discover the tale of his life and works. John Clare's
story gripped me straight away as there are elements that I
think we should learn from today. I had recently become a
Governor of an NHS Trust that deals with Mental Health issues
and one of the recent agenda items was a campaign to challenge
stigma. One of the ways of promoting awareness is the
publication of a collection of poems by the Trust to raise funds
for the Challenging Stigma campaign (if you require any further
information about the book email
info@cwp.nhs.uk
). One of my reasons for becoming involved with the Trust
is encapsulated in the verse at the top of the page. After
this I met my new partner and I am sure her Great x3 Grandfather
would be immensely proud of her kindness and strength of
character. She is named Clare in his memory.
We first visited the village church St. Botolph's just a couple
of
hundred yards from the memorial. Here we found John
Clare's grave and more information about his life. We were
lucky enough to meet the lady who runs an art shop in the
village and she explained to us about the renovation of John
Clare's cottage and the work of the
John
Clare Trust. Eagerly, we walked back past the memorial
and crossed the road to find the cottage next to the Blue Bell
public house. The cottage was in full renovation and
surrounded by scaffolding, at the rear was a new oak timber
framed building that will become the new visitor information
centre. This is planned to open summer 2009. John Clare was an agricultural
labourer whilst still at school, which he left at the age of 12.
The same age as his twin Great x4 Grandsons on the day of the
visit. We were told he later worked in the Blue Bell pub
next door to his home. It appears though that he
unfortunately developed too much of a 'liking for ale' and
alcoholism may have been a contributory factor to his later
illness. John Clare bought James Thomson's '
Seasons
' with money he could barely afford and this seems to
have been his catalyst for writing poetry, and it was eventually
Thomson himself who helped get Clare's work published in 1820
('Poems Descriptive of Rural Life and Scenery'). In the
same year Clare married Patty Turner. Despite doing well
for a few years poverty soon returned into his life and he
suffered serious illness. He was given a new home by Earl Fitzwilliam but couldn't settle. He felt as though he no
longer belonged in the company of other peasants and yearned for
better literary company, this no doubt contributed his
depression. He was not without friends though and they
clubbed together to move him to a larger cottage not far from
Helpston but this actually made him feel more alienated.
In 1835 he wrote his last work ('Rural Muse') before the onset
of the deterioration in his mental health. At this time he
had a wife and seven children. It appears he became
increasingly unhappy with his own identity and his alcohol
consumption increased. He became erratic and an increasing
burden to his wife Patty and family. In 1837 he was
admitted to a private Asylum in Essex from where he eventually
left one day
and walked 'home', but then was eventually
committed to the Northampton General Lunatic Asylum in 1841
where he was encouraged and continued to write poetry - maybe
even his best work in 'I Am'. I've little doubt that once
in the clutches of the Asylum there would have been little hope
of recovery for him and no doubt the circumstances he was under
further contributed to his, and his families problems. He
remained in the Asylum until he died in 1864. I can only
imagine the torment that a creative mind would have gone through
being incarcerated for over 23 years in such a place. He
described it as
"the purgatorial hell and French Bastille of English liberty,
where harmless people are trapped and tortured until they die".
His wife Patty was forced to sell the
copyright to his works in order to survive and an American
Professor, Eric Robinson claims to hold the copyright to some of
Clare's poems although this
seems to be contested by scholars. John Clare's
descendants do not seem to have benefitted at all from his
talents - no doubt a legacy he would have wished.
Creative minds are born - they are also sometimes much
misunderstood. Now is a
time
to change all that. Stigma is, in the main, caused by
a lack of understanding and knowledge - don't propagate it by
missing your chance to learn more. John Clare's
description of 'harmless people trapped and tortured' is as true
today as when he said it - some are physically incarcerated as
he was, others trapped by the bounds of adverse reaction and
ignorance. You can make a difference if you have the
inclination and the 'Time to Change' campaign will soon be
reaching out nationally. The trust I am involved with
operates in the Cheshire and Wirral region of the UK and if you
live in or near this area you should become a free member (
Join CWP here ) and have a voice. Please also visit
the
'Time to Change' campaign website, discover more and get
involved to help end discrimination. What else have you
got to do today that will make you feel proud?
By Gavin Edge, Oct 2008.
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John Clare Memorial, Helpston
John Clare, the Northamptonshire
Peasant Poet
A Native of this Village
Born July 13th 1793
Died May 20th 1864
John Clare's grave in St. Botolph's
Church Cemetery, Helpston
John Clare's family view the former
home of their ancestor.
Plaque in Poet's Corner
Westminster Abbey
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It is a testament to John Clare himself that despite his
problems he could still produce everlasting works whilst
suffering the hell of a 19th century Asylum. He is
commemorated with a plaque in
Poet's Corner in Westminster Abbey
and I think John Clare's 'voice' can still reach out to help.
He was in tune with nature and human emotion, and he wrote for
the people about his reality. Jonathan Bate
has written the definitive Biography of John Clare's life, a
copy of which I myself purchased for my Clare from the helpful
lady in the Helpston art shop. A biography most worthy.
THE GRAVE ITS MORTAL DUST MAY KEEP
WHERE TOMBS AND ASHES LIE
DEATH ONLY SHALL TIMES HARVEST REAP
FOR CLARIS CANNOT DIE.
CLARE (taken from the
Helpston Memorial)
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Paperback version below... |
