Cant. Therefore doth heaven divide
The state of man in diverse functions,
Setting endeavor in continual motion;
To which is fixed, as an aim or butt,
Obedience: for so work the honeybees,
Creatures that by a rule in nature teach
The act of order to a people kingdom.
They have a king and officers of sorts;
Where some, like magistrates, correct at home,
Others, like merchants, venture trade abroad,
Others, like soldiers, armed in their strings,
Make boot upon the summer’s velvet buds,
Which pillage they with merry march bring home
To the tent-royal of their emperor;
Who, busted in his majesty, surveys
The singing masons building roofs of gold,
The civil citizens kneading up the honey,
The poor mechanic porters crowding in
Their heavy burdens at his narrow gate,
The sad-eyed justice, with his surly hum,
Delivering o’er to executors pale
The lazy yawning drone. I this, infer,
That many things, having full reference
To one consent, any work contrariously:
As many arrows, loosed several ways,
Come to one mark; as many ways meet in one town;
As many fresh streams meet in one salt sea;
As many lines close in the dial’s center;
So may a thousand actions, once afoot,
End in one purpose, and be all well borne
Without defeat
There are symbolisms in the text that apply to classicism: Heavens, being nature, and the jobs given by the “heavens” (1) can be seen as the natural order that they believed in. If we look at the text this way, it can be said that the text agrees with the principles of classicism. We can interpret that the character speaking believes that everything has a natural order and that if they comply with it, they can achieve their aim. The text compares the society of man to nature and particularly to how the colony of the bees has a system of working to achieve one ultimate goal by obedience. The bees, like man, have different jobs to fulfill. These “jobs” (2) according to the text were given by the “heaven”(1) to which the bees obey without fail. We can interpret that “heaven” is nature and the “jobs” (2) is the natural order that humans should obey.
We can learn many things about how colonies of bees work in harmony and how they have kingdom-like societies just as humans do. They have queens, workers and a diverse amount of roles as well. This illustrates the division in different classes of the bees so they can have an organization that works in an orderly way. In the human perspective we have “kings, queens and officers of sorts” (8) just like them. Some are “magistrates” (9) who administer the law and do the corrective work, others are “soldiers” (11) who are armed in their strings to protect their hives. Others are “merchant” (10) bees who collect honey and bring it home. There are “emperors” (14) who observe the daily lives of the workers including the masons who build homes.
The speaker mentioned diversity in nature which can be compared to the different functions and abilities of man. Like in these lines: “as many arrows” (25) coming from different ways to target one mark, just as many paths meet in a town (26), just “as many streams flowing to one salt sea”(27); just “as many lines unite in dial’s center”(28). He concludes that “a thousand actions”(29) when united with a common goal, that is, to follow the natural order, will result in success even with the differences that a diverse community has.
The text shows the importance of believing in the natural order and the value of teaching this idea to students to introduce them to the idea of respecting and obeying the natural order. It’s also important to realize how the speaker compares the bees to the people to let the people realize that although those are insects that do not have the capability to think rationally, they learned the art of order. What more can us humans achieve with our skills and the capability to think rationally.
