William Mcgonagall
"Oh! Ill-fated bridge of the silv'ry Tay,
I now must conclude my lay
By telling the world fearlessly without the least dismay,
That your central girders would not have given way,
At least many sensible men do say,
Had they been supported on each side with buttresses
At least many sensible men confesses,
For the stronger we our houses do build,
The less chance we have of being killed."
Poetry, even more than other literary forms, is subjective. Different techniques include intentional dissonance and circular and purple prose. All of these techniques, when implemented precisely, can lead to tasteful beauty, despite eccentricity. The implication of the poem's subjectivity is that, even as William McGonagall was ostracised by his peers, he benefited from that sleet, as his popularity grew beyond what mere skill could impart. His ungainly cadence and queer vocabulary cemented him in the history of poetry as an infamous cautionary tale. The paragraph above is the conclusion of one of his most famous poems and demonstrates how much quality he sacrifices to convey his complete perspective. This is, in my opinion, the true ability he lacks: the capacity to withhold information. If you do not include inferences —if you tell your reader every thought in your mind, leaving nothing to interpretation —then you invite more objective complaints.
Another attribute of his style that his peers judged harshly was his inability to consistently achieve a truly somber tone, even when addressing the most somber subjects. He extends sentences, stretching them beyond their meaning, forcing him into word choices that do not fit the situation.
’Twas in the year of 1898, and on the 19th of May,
When his soul took its flight forever and aye,
And his body was interred in Westminster Abbey;
But I hope his soul has gone to that Heavenly shore,
The Chase Verdict is that William McGonagall is a fun rabbit trail to explore. Although it is true that he is not a good poet, the general stigma surrounding his work is hyperbolic, and it is amusing to see the lengths contemporary authors go to knock him down just one more peg.