Hopkins' seminal poem "The Wreck of the Deutschland" is about the drowning of five nuns in a shipwreck, 7th December 1875. Biographer Paul Mariani reports that Hopkins' nickname at university was Skins.
Gerard Manley Hopkins
Skins could bang a mighty drum
when he wept the wreck
of sea-bound nuns.
Yes, he could toll a leaden bell
for wimples drenched
in waters chill.
He could uncipher suffering
and make the bones
of the dear dead sing.
Poetry by Uncle Meridian
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Written on 2021-10-29 at 04:29
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