Nobody's singing the jailbird blues in "Much Madness is divinest Sense—," but we are still talking about a type of confinement—a confinement of the mind. The speaker tells us that the Majority is like an old, cigar-smoking warden who locks people who dare to think differently up in chains. Okay, the speaker doesn't say anything about an "old, cigar-smoking warden" specifically, but you catch our drift.
Questions About Freedom and Confinement
- In what ways does the poem show madness as freeing? Confining?
- What does the symbol of the chain represent in the poem?
- If the Majority is so all-powerful, can a person ever be free? Why, or why not?
Chew on This
Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.
The poem points out how the mainstream plugs its ears to new ideas, creating a prison of thought for free thinkers.
The mental imprisonment of the "mad" is even worse because they're the only ones who truly understand how imprisoned they are.