17 pages • 34 minutes read
Robert SouthwellThe Burning Babe
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1595A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Background
Ideological Context
A Jesuit priest, Southwell adhered to Catholicism, one of the sects of Christianity. In Catholic tradition, Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God and is also one component of the Holy Trinity, was born in human form to die and save humanity from eternal damnation. In the Bible’s New Testament, the Gospel of Luke describes Jesus’ birth to Mary and Joseph: “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger” (Luke 2:11-12).
The poem expands on this dogma, conjuring a vision of a “pretty Babe all burning bright” (Line 4), the physical manifestation of the divine in the form of a baby. Just as in the Christian tradition Jesus suffers and is crucified for the salvation of all, so the infant in Southwell’s poem suffers the “excessive heat” (Line 5) and “flames” (Line 6) in order to save “men’s defiled souls” (Line 12) and “work them to their good” (Line 13).
In Catholicism, all people are born with original sin. However, their sins can be forgiven by God and all have the opportunity to gain eternal life. This eternal life can only be gained thanks to the Passion of Jesus, as his crucifixion is known, through the shedding of his blood. In this context, when the burning babe states “So will I melt into a bath to wash them in my blood” (Line 14), he refers to his imminent death. This religious context assists in clarifying various layers of reference and symbolism at work in the poem.
Historical Context
When Southwell wrote, 16th century England was ruled by Queen Elizabeth I. To ensure domestic peace and for a variety of economic reasons, Elizabeth put in place laws to ensure the Church of England remained the preeminent faith. This crackdown on Catholicism and loyalty to the Pope in Rome over the reigning English monarch was a response to the policies of Elizabeth predecessor—her half-sister Mary I, who persecuted Protestants in an attempt to reinstate “portions of the Roman Catholic Church that their father Henry VIII had broken away from ("Religion in Elizabethan England" Hartford Stage, 2022). Elizabeth enforced laws that prevented open Catholic worship. The Religious Settlement of 1559 made England’s state religion Protestantism, did away with Catholic worship rituals, and made it treasonous to deny that Queen Elizabeth was the Supreme Governor of the Church. As a compromise, the Settlement did keep some Catholic traditions, and turned a blind eye to private, non-evangelizing Catholic worship, as long as its adherents did not threaten her governance. These efforts were somewhat successful, though Elizabeth still had radical Catholics and Puritans plot against her. Southwell grew up during this era of religious repression, finding the Jesuit belief in spreading Catholicism at odds with England’s laws. His writing shows how much he wished to evangelize, and his eventual imprisonment and execution are the result of his efforts to do so.
