terence, this is stupid stuff HELP?

Question

i have to write a paper on terence, this is stupid stuff by a.e houseman. i am in need of a strong thesis statement. can anyone help me PLEASE?

heres the poem 

Terence, this is stupid stuff

  "Terence, this is stupid stuff:
 You eat your victuals fast enough;
 There can't be much amiss, 'tis clear,
 To see the rate you drink your beer.
 But oh, good Lord, the verse you make,
 It gives a chap the belly-ache.
 The cow, the old cow, she is dead;
 It sleeps well, the horned head:
 We poor lads, 'tis our turn now
 To hear such tunes as killed the cow.
 Pretty friendship 'tis to rhyme
 Your friends to death before their time
 Moping melancholy mad:
 Come, pipe a tune to dance to, lad."

  Why, if 'tis dancing you would be
 There's brisker pipes than poetry.
 Say, for what were hop-yards meant,
 Or why was Burton built on Trent?
 Oh, many a peer of England brews
 Livelier liquor than the Muse,
 And malt does more than Milton can
 To justify God's ways to man.
 Ale, man, ale's the stuff to drink
 For fellows whom it hurts to think:
 Look into the pewter pot
 To see the world as the world's not.
 And faith, 'tis pleasant till 'tis past:
 The mischief is that 'twill not last.
 Oh I have been to Ludlow fair
 And left my necktie god knows where,
 And carried half-way home, or near,
 Pints and quarts of Ludlow beer:
 Then the world seemed none so bad,
 And I myself a sterling lad;
 And down in lovely muck I've lain,
 Happy till I woke again.
 Then I saw the morning sky:
 Heigho, the tale was all a lie;
 The world, it was the old world yet,
 I was I, my things were wet,
 And nothing now remained to do
 But begin the game anew.

  Therefore, since the world has still
 Much good, but much less good than ill,
 And while the sun and moon endure
 Luck's a chance, but trouble's sure,
 I'd face it as a wise man would,
 And train for ill and not for good.
 'Tis true, the stuff I bring for sale
 Is not so brisk a brew as ale:
 Out of a stem that scored the hand
 I wrung it in a weary land.
 But take it: if the smack is sour,
 The better for the embittered hour;
 It should do good to heart and head
 When your soul is in my soul's stead;
 And I will friend you, if I may,
 In the dark and cloudy day.

  There was a king reigned in the East:
 There, when kings will sit to feast,
 They get their fill before they think
 With poisoned meat and poisoned drink.
 He gathered all that springs to birth
 From the many-venomed earth;
 First a little, thence to more,
 He sampled all her killing store;
 And easy, smiling, seasoned sound,
 Sate the king when healths went round.
 They put arsenic in his meat
 And stared aghast to watch him eat;
 They poured strychnine in his cup
 And shook to see him drink it up:
 They shook, they stared as white's their shirt:
 Them it was their poison hurt
        - I tell the tale that I heard told.
 Mithridates, he died old.

-- A E Housman

Anonym · Accepted Answer

"Terence Hearsay" was the original pseudonym that Housman intended to publish the volume of poetry that was eventually published as “A Shropshire Lad” under. “Terence, this is stupid stuff…” is an apologia for the depressing subject matter of the poems in “Shropshire Lad.” (An apologia, it should be noted, is not an apology, it is actually a formal written defense of something you believe in strongly).

In this poem, “Terence” (Housman) is being chastised by his friends for writing such depressing poetry. They’re saying “You eat fine (typically when something is troubling a person, they don’t eat well), so what could be so bad in your life that you write such sad and morbid poetry?” They wonder why he can’t write nice, upbeat poetry for purposes of entertainment. He retorts that if it’s lighthearted entertainment that they seek, then there are better places to look than in poetry – namely, alcohol. Housman used to drink quite a bit in an attempt to dull his painful thoughts (Housman was, by the way, a repressed homosexual at a time when homosexuality was a criminal offense). Most of the second stanza describes the ways that alcohol distracts a person from the harsh realities of daily life. This line is a particularly good example of this concept:
“Ale, man, ale’s the stuff to drink / For fellows whom it hurts to think: / Look in to the pewter pot (the vessel that the ale was served in) / To see the world as the world’s not.”

The third stanza is a defense of his pessimism. He concedes that the world can be a good place sometimes, but more often it is not. Troubles are certain, but “Luck’s a chance (uncertain).” Therefore, he lives his life as he believes a wise person should – expecting and preparing for hardship and letting the good times come unexpectedly. He says that his poetry is valuable in that it will serve its purpose when his readers find themselves facing tribulations – this was very prophetic, as his poetry reached the height of its popularity at the outbreak of WWI, when people could finally, REALLY identify with the subjects of love that cannot be and loss/death. He’s saying that though his poetry may now seem sour, it will become a sweet, understanding, empathetic companion in times of hardship.

The final stanza sums up the merits of expecting the worst and being cautious and guarded in daily life. He tells the tale (besides a poet, Housman was a very well-known classics scholar) of an ancient king to illustrate his point. The tale is that of Mithridates, a ruler who lived in a time and place where kings were often poisoned. He chose not to trust people, even the guests at his own dinner table, and so he avoided being poisoned like so many of his counterparts and lived to an old age, which was quite rare at the time. This is a somewhat narrow interpretation (I could go much more in-depth), but it ought to help with developing a thesis, and hopefully enrich the content of the paper as well.

Anonym · Answer

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terence, this is stupid stuff HELP?
i have to write a paper on terence, this is stupid stuff by a.e houseman. i am in need of a strong thesis statement. can anyone help me PLEASE?

heres the poem 

Terence, this is stupid stuff

  &quot;Terence, this is stupid stuff:
 You eat your victuals fast enough;
 There can&#39;t be...

Martha · Answer

The "doctored email" is a lame excuse for poor leadership. Obama and company want everyone to forget about the true issue and focus on an email.

Muhammed El Glitteri · Answer

well i'm scratchin me head like you on this... guess i must be a dim fucca

terence, this is stupid stuff HELP?

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