G.K Chesterton is a famous British writer who was a man of strong Christian belief. Chesterton strongly displayed his religious and political views in his writings in many different ways. Chesterton influenced many great writers and led many people to follow the Christian belief in his writings. His book “The Everlasting Man” is credited for leading the famous Christian writer, C.S. Lewis to become a believer in Christianity. In G.K. Chesterton’s poem, “The Aristocrat”, he establishes the theme of deceit through the use of repetition, figurative language, rhyme scheme, and diction for the purpose of persuasion.
G.K. Chesterton uses repetition in the poem to emphasize ideas presented throughout “The Aristocrat”. Chesterton writes “The Devil is a gentleman” (Lines 1, 10, 22) three times in the poem in order to display the Devil as a refined man. A gentleman can be described as a man of good social position, he is also a person of great wealth and who lives a life of leisure, which is what an aristocrat is considered to be as well. Chesterton uses imagery to describe the Devil, as a gentleman in “The Aristocrat” in an effort to show that being a gentleman does not necessarily equate to being a good person. The Devil is portrayed as a gentleman in the poem because he possesses unlimited wealth on his estate and can do whatever he pleases. The definition of gentleman and aristocrat are very similar so Chesterton is trying to display that often aristocrats as people who are deceitful and want people to worship them rather than God. The Devil is referred to as an aristocrat and a gentleman in order to expose how he is deceitful in his intentions and how he uses his power to deceive and destroy the lives of anyone who visits him. Chesterton’s opening line of the poem is, “The Devil is a gentleman” (Lines 1, 10, 22) so the reader has a very clear picture that the Devil can be seen as a respected person upon an initial introduction and the he begins to show a shift in his personality throughout the poem. In line one Chesterton says, “The Devil is a gentleman, and asks you down to stay” (Line 1), and in line 2 he says, “The Devil is a gentleman, and doesn’t brag himself.”(Line 10), which both show common characteristics of a gentleman. However, in line 22 he writes, “For the Devil is a gentleman, and doesn’t keep his word.”(Line 22), which begins to show the shift in what the Devil’s actual personality traits are rather than what he portrays. A gentleman is generally considered to be a man who keeps his word but line 22 shows that the picture of who the Devil is changing because if his characteristics of being untrustworthy. Chesterton uses repetition in the aristocrat as well when describing the Devil’s estate as his “little place in What’sitsname”(Lines 2, 13). Chesterton refers to the Devils estate as What’sitsname to give the place a positive name although it has a very negative connotation. According to many the Devil lives in Hell so a reader could infer that Hell is being referred to as What’sitsname in the poem. Chesterton only refers to the Devils estate as What’sitsname in order to keep a positive tone in the story to display the Devils deceitful ways. He names it What’sitsname so that the reader will see it as hell, by doing this he allows the reader to compare the aristocrat’s estates and What’sitsname so clearly. Chesterton continues to use repetition in this poem by using the word “There” at the beginning of lines fifteen, sixteen, and seventeen in order to create a list of things that happen in the Devils estate. Chesterton uses this repetition to continue to give a clear picture of the estate because following each line that begins with the word “there” is a description of all that is a part of the Devil’s estate. It is due to Chesterton’s use of repetition that provides the reader with an idyllic picture of an estate that is so full of good things. In the first stanza it is easy to believe that this is as a happy place that a person may want to spend time at; however, in the second stanza the tone shifts and the devils estate is seen as a terrible place that people are trapped in forever.
G.K. Chesterton uses figurative language throughout his poem, which helps build upon the symbolism in the work. Chesterton uses metaphors in his poem to describe the devils characteristics. The first line in the poem compares the Devil to a gentleman, because he wants readers to easily draw the conclusion that the Devil shares many of the same positive characteristics that a gentleman possesses. The Devil is considered a gentleman because he is very welcoming of visitors on his estate, he doesn’t brag, and he seems very friendly. In the poem, the Devil covers his true personality and intentions to his “guests”; although, he appears to be a gentleman by his welcoming demeanor, this is only the method that he uses in order to lure people to what becomes a life full of pain. The Devil is naturally deceptive and his only desire is to ruin people’s lives and move them away from God. The Devil is very powerful as displayed when Chesterton writes “And blew his trumpet above heaven, and got by mastery/ The starry crown of God Himself, and shoved it on the shelf:”(Line 9). In the poem the Devil “doesn’t keep his word”(Line 22) so a reader could imply that the Devil is lying about his feat of overthrowing God. The first stanza feels as if it is the Devil is a master of deception and he is described as a man who presents himself and his estate so positively; however, the second stanza Chesterton begins to expose the reader to what the Devil’s estate is actually like. It is the first stanza describes the Devil as someone who has obtained all the anyone could ever need for happiness, but by the second stanza the reader realizes that the Devil is not as good as they previously believed and by the end of the poem it is revealed that the Devil is a liar that only desires harm to all that he comes into contact with. G.K. Chesterton often uses metaphors when he writes, one of the clear example in “The Aristocrat is when Chesterton writes: “And that is the Blue Devil that once was the Blue Bird:”(Line 21). A Blue Bird is often used to symbolize happiness and peace. According to biblical stories the Devil was one of Gods angels but became corrupt and turned against God because of his own greed and pride and was ultimately cast out of heaven. The Devil once possessed pure happiness when he was in a relationship with God but he became jealous of God and desired to be in total control, because of his rebellion against God he now symbolizes evil and darkness. Chesterton relates the devil to a bluebird in order to show that the only way one can be truly happy is if he follows God and resists the temptations that Devil places in man’s life and although all that the Devil has can seem desirable it actually comes and a high price and creates great pain. G.K. Chesterton is attempting to reveal how the Devil is a liar and deceives everyone without immunity, even those who seem to trust him the most. He is describing the Devil as someone who has everything, but even though he appears to possess all that the world esteems, it is very clear that even the symbolic embodiment of evil is not happy or fulfilled without a relationship with God.
Chesterton is using this poem to move people towards Christianity and help them see the dangers of beings drawn to worldly things that are controlled by the Devil. Chesterton uses this literary device to change the tone throughout the poem. In the first stanza when he relates the Devil to a gentleman, the reader easily identifies with this description because it is a very familiar comparison due to the common definition of a gentleman. In the second stanza Chesterton begins to be subtler in the ways that he describes the Devil, this shows a transition of the Devil being mannerly to a deceiving being. He compares life to a vulture when he writes “And life droops like a vulture that once was such a lark:”(Line 20). The line uses vey negative words such as “droops”(Line 20), “vulture”(Line 20), and “lark” to establish a negative tone in the poem. Chesterton compares life to a vulture in the Devil’s estate because vultures are scavengers and are birds that feed on dead things. Vultures traditionally are thought of very negatively and Chesterton is trying to persuade readers not to fall for the Devil’s deceitful tricks. He personifies life by saying it droops to appeal to the reader’s sense of sight and to see life turning for the worst.
In addition to figurative language, Chesterton uses rhyme scheme to connect lines together. For instance in lines one and two he writes “The Devil is a Gentleman, and asks you down to stay/ At his little place in What’sitsname (it isn’t far away)” (Lines 1 and 2), These lines are intended to go together because Chesterton informs the reader of the Devil’s estate and then allows the reader to understand that it is not far away. Both of the lines are describing what the story is going to be about. Chesterton uses this rhyme scheme throughout the entire poem and He rhymes two lines together; however, he does not rhyme any other lines. In lines three and four he writes “They say the sport is splendid; there is always something new,/ And fairy scenes, and fearful feats that none but he can do;”(Lines 3 and 4). These lines are both addressing some of the amazing feats that only the devil can accomplish. These lines belong together because they are both about the same thing. Chesterton does this so he can shift the tone easily and to emphasize the lines that belong together, and to emphasize the importance of the lines that don’t follow this rhyme scheme. The only lines in the poem that don’t follow this rhyme scheme are lines seven and eight, these lines say “He scaled amid the staggering stars that precipice, the sky, / And blew his trumpet above heaven, and got by mastery”(Lines 7 and 8). Chesterton did not rhyme these lines because he wanted to emphasize that the Devil claims to have overthrown God and Chesterton does not rhyme on these lines because he wants the reader to pay attention and as an effort to show urgency. Chesterton knows the true nature of the Devil and he wants the reader to see all that the Devil has done to deceive mankind and the Devil’s rebellion against God. The Majority of people in Britain at the time this poem was written were Christian so the Devil was a very stereotypical villain and could represent the darkness in everyone’s lives. The Devil represents the reader’s worldly objects and how living for these things will inevitably pull people away from God.
Another device that G.K. Chesterton uses is diction. Chesterton uses diction to shift the tone of the poem from positive in the first stanza, to negative and much darker in the second stanza. In the first stanza he uses words such as: “splendid”(Line 3), “fairy”(Line 4), “stars”(Line 7), “heaven”(Line 8), and “mastery”(Line 8), so that he can display a positive, happy message at the beginning of this poem. While in the second stanza, Chesterton uses words such as: “break”(Line 11), “hack”(Line 11), “lose”(Line 12), “worse”(Line 14), “vain”(Line 15), “sick”(Line 16), “pain”(Line 16), and “drearier”(Line 18) to show the Devil and his estate as much more destructive and dangerous to all who go to visit. Chesterton changes the type of words he uses in the first and second stanza so that he is able to change the tone of the entire poem. When Chesterton writes “Where the splendor of the daylight grows drearier than the dark”(Line 19) he is trying to show the progression of the tone shift in the poem in one line by starting the sentence using the word “splendour”(Line 19) and ending with the word “dark”(Line 19). Just like the overall tone of poem, the line begins positively and full of life, it then transitions into something that is dark and full of pain.
G.K. Chesterton uses repetition, figurative language, rhyme scheme, and diction in his poem “The Aristocrat” in order to persuade the reader to not fall for the Devils deceitful tricks. He uses each of these devices to help the reader comprehend the true nature of the Devil as a being who is a liar and seeks to destroy everything. Chesterton desired for everyone to refrain from believing the lies of the Devil and to turn their heads to God.