The Spleen - Anne Finch

Anne Finch was a writer during the time of Lady Mary Chudleigh, but she was not nearly as intense and aggressive of a writer as Lady Mary Chudleigh. Although, she was opinionated in her own way, as well as being knowledable about religion and politics.

I really enjoyed her poem "The Spleen" which is about anxiety and depression. During her time of writing, people truly believed that anxiety and depression was a problem that sparked from your spleen. Whenever someone was feeling sad, upset or down, they claimed that it was a problem with your spleen. I find this so interesting because they truly believed that this was true! Which of course nowadays we know that anxiety and depression is sparked from environmental factors, as well as chemical imbalances in the body.

"Trembling sometimes thou dost appear, Dissolved into a panic fear; On sleep intruding dost thy shadows spread, Thy gloomy terrors round the silent bed"

I find these lines interesting because as someone with anxiety, night time is a scary thought. Laying in a dark room late at night is 100% a huge trigger of anxiety for myself, as well as with many other people.

I really enjoyed this poem overall because I could relate my feelings to it in many ways!