“Carrion Comfort” describes a struggle of faith that takes the form of wrestling with despair—or, more specifically, of the poet wrestling with God during a period of weakness. It is a Christian allegory of the dark night of the soul, including biblical allusions in images of struggle and winnowing. Despite its inclusion in the six “terrible sonnets,” it is actually a profoundly moving affirmation of God’s love of humanity and a promise of hope no matter how despairing a person might feel; it also introduces the powerful psychological truth that it is often through surrender, through giving up the struggle, that the greatest peace and victory is found.
It is very difficult, when discussing a Hopkins poem, to separate the meaning from the form, as Hopkins developed his own personal idiosyncratic means to best express the emotional struggles and theological truths he wished to convey. The problem Hopkins poses in the octave of the poem is that of the struggle with despair, even the contemplation of suicide, the greatest sin in the Catholic faith, as it implies a lack of faith, true despair, the rejection of the belief that God can and will solve all problems and forgive all sins. One is led to wonder why God would send such agony, such despair, and such pain upon those he claims to love.
The speaker then goes on to describe his suffering as a physical struggle, a sort of wrestling match, not with despair but with someone else not...
(The entire section is 487 words.)