{"id":"01KG8AJJ0F4YPABRZPF7D29GP2","cid":"bafkreiguihalecz3fbd267nm3ehr2ax33lq526ynxr7jxrbswokwnlhw7y","type":"chapter","properties":{"description":"# A UTILITARIAN VIEW OF THE _MONITOR’S_ FIGHT\n\n## Overview\n\"A UTILITARIAN VIEW OF THE _MONITOR’S_ FIGHT\" is a poem that appears as a chapter within the larger collection \"John Marr and Other Poems.\" It was extracted from the file `john_marr_and_other_poems.txt` and is part of the \"Melville Complete Works\" collection. The poem is situated between the chapters titled \"POEMS FROM BATTLE PIECES\" and \"MALVERN HILL.\"\n\n## Context\nThis poem is one of many works by Herman Melville, collected under the umbrella of \"Melville Complete Works.\" It is specifically included in the poetry collection \"[John Marr and Other Poems](arke:01KG8AJ5CWVMSM9AY2938E996H),\" which was sourced from the file \"[john_marr_and_other_poems.txt](arke:01KG89J19Y3FNVN5KWASY78BP4).\" The poem's placement within the collection suggests it is part of a series of poems related to historical events or reflections on conflict.\n\n## Contents\nThe poem, titled \"A UTILITARIAN VIEW OF THE _MONITOR’S_ FIGHT,\" reflects on the nature of warfare, contrasting the mechanical and calculated aspects of modern combat with more traditional notions of glory and passion. It describes a battle, likely referencing the engagement between the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia, as a \"blacksmiths' fray\" driven by \"crank, / Pivot, and screw, / And calculations of caloric.\" The poem suggests that war, while still present, has become less grand, with warriors reduced to \"operatives\" and the conflict itself stripped of its former pageantry. The text includes verses that emphasize the shift from heroic combat to industrial efficiency in warfare.","description_generated_at":"2026-01-30T20:48:12.628Z","description_model":"gemini-2.5-flash-lite","description_title":"A UTILITARIAN VIEW OF THE _MONITOR’S_ FIGHT","end_line":2631,"extracted_at":"2026-01-30T20:47:32.310Z","extracted_by":"structure-extraction-lambda","label":"A UTILITARIAN VIEW OF THE _MONITOR’S_ FIGHT","source_file":"01KG89J19Y3FNVN5KWASY78BP4","start_line":2591,"text":"A UTILITARIAN VIEW OF THE _MONITOR’S_ FIGHT\r\n\r\n\r\nPlain be the phrase, yet apt the verse,\r\n    More ponderous than nimble;\r\nFor since grimed War here laid aside\r\nHis Orient pomp, ’twould ill befit\r\n        Overmuch to ply\r\n    The rhyme’s barbaric cymbal.\r\n\r\nHail to victory without the gaud\r\n    Of glory; zeal that needs no fans\r\nOf banners; plain mechanic power\r\nPlied cogently in War now placed—\r\n        Where War belongs—\r\n    Among the trades and artisans.\r\n\r\nYet this was battle, and intense—\r\n    Beyond the strife of fleets heroic;\r\nDeadlier, closer, calm ’mid storm;\r\nNo passion; all went on by crank,\r\n        Pivot, and screw,\r\n    And calculations of caloric.\r\n\r\nNeedless to dwell; the story’s known.\r\n    The ringing of those plates on plates\r\nStill ringeth round the world—\r\nThe clangor of that blacksmiths’ fray.\r\n        The anvil-din\r\n    Resounds this message from the Fates:\r\n\r\nWar shall yet be, and to the end;\r\n    But war-paint shows the streaks of weather;\r\nWar yet shall be, but warriors\r\nAre now but operatives; War’s made\r\n        Less grand than Peace,\r\n    And a singe runs through lace and feather.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r","title":"A UTILITARIAN VIEW OF THE _MONITOR’S_ FIGHT"},"relationships":[{"peer":"01KG8AJ5CWVMSM9AY2938E996H","peer_type":"poetry_collection","predicate":"in"},{"peer":"01KG89J19Y3FNVN5KWASY78BP4","peer_type":"file","predicate":"extractedFrom"},{"peer":"01KG89HMDZKNY753EZE1CJ8HZW","peer_type":"collection","predicate":"collection"},{"peer":"01KG8AJJ0DPPYXBBTAHQ387QKQ","peer_type":"chapter","predicate":"prev"},{"peer":"01KG8AJJ09462PPQJHC7P3RQSP","peer_type":"chapter","predicate":"next"}],"ver":3,"created_at":"2026-01-30T20:47:35.439Z","ts":"2026-01-30T20:48:12.882Z","edited_by":{"method":"manual","user_id":"01KFF5C36SQEVDHC9CBNZZJH9K"}}