William Cowper's mainly religiously inspired poetry deals with Christian ideals and human kindness. Considering that he was one of the main read poets of his time, the themes and topics covered in his poems are epitomes of 18th century belief and worldview.
The Castaway
The story of the castaway starts with a storm in open sea during the night. The main protagonist is swept of his ship, left without hope in the open ocean. He had sailed with one of the best captains on the best ship, but both were now lost to him. The poem goes on describing his struggle, where he fights the waves and calls out for his friends on the ship to save him. However, no one comes to his aid, as the storm blows them away and they need to save themselves.
He is left alone in the dark ocean. He does not feel hate or anger towards his friends, as he knows that only their actions could save them as well, however death does not come lightly. A strong swimmer, he manages to keep afloat for quite some time, crying and searching for help. Although all is for naught and he finally sinks beneath the waves. He dies alone and forgotten. The poem ends in three stanzas describing that poetry did not cry for him, nor for countless other victims. It ends in a caution that in the end everyone dies alone.
The Negro's Complaint
The poem is written in first-person narration from the view of an African slave. The slave recounts his home he lost and how he was sold by Englishmen, only to make someone else richer. He goes on in explaining that a body might be owned, but never a mind, questioning what right the white man has to own him. Both white and black man are the same on the inside, even if their skin and hair might differ. The slave goes on to contemplate why plants (of the plantations where they are forced to work) are so hard to grow that only human tears and sweat seem to make them bigger. He compels the hard masters to consider their sugared confections from whence the sugar came.
Within the next part the slave urges the white slave owners to consider God's will in all of this. He asked rhetorical questions urging them to reconsider their position and the position of the black man. Is the destruction and slavery of black men God's will? No. He laments the pain and degradation he and his fellows have to endure to survive. The poem ends with a plea to reconsider the position of skin color in the world and to destroy the tarnish on the white's consciousness by freeing slaves and reconsidering the relationship.
