The Dark Matter of Poetry and the <i>Confessio amantis</i>

Abstract This article examines the function and purpose of poetry in John Gower's Confessio amantis, suggesting that the diverse array of narrative evidence contained within the poem was intended to catalyse a process of self-analysis and, in accord with the principles of moral philosophy, involve its reader in an inductive response of ethical evaluation. The poem dramatizes the nature and problems of this kind of moral instruction, articulating a distinct psychology of reading, where the success or failure of poetry was dependent on the unique psychological reflexes, internal equilibria, and individual dispositions of the reader. Subsequently, Gower takes a sceptical view of the ability of poetic discourse to communicate securely the conditions for right action and, as a result, is suspicious of the possibility for any coherent or singular assertion of poetic authority.