Hannah More’s “The Hackney Coachman: Or, The Way to Get a Good Fare,” is a lively poem compared to what we have been reading. The coachman takes pride in his work and wants to give his riders an enjoyable trip. He prides himself on being able to work saying, “To work all the week I am able and willing, / I never get drunk, and I waste not a shilling” (More 7-8). The coachman does exactly what he should to stay out of trouble and make money for his family. More writes a character worth emulating in real life because of his work ethic. Instead of warning her readers how not to act, More gives them an example of a man one should attempt to be like.
More comments on the better parts of the city rather than expressing any love for the country. The coachman is only one good aspect of the city, More focusing on the city is a departure from our other poets who loved the country and nature. Her use of the city to warn her readers becomes clear through the coachman’s words. The coachman works in the city filled with corrupt people, yet he goes to church every chance he can and avoids vices such as drinking and swearing (20,23, & 30). More instructs her audience to follow the advice of the coachman and be a better person, while also hinting at leaving the city sometimes to get away from the bad habits. The coachman is a good man and More wants her readers to know what a good man does to become a good man. More’s focus on the city is not a complete departure from the country, but it implies that being in the city often is not as great as it sounds.
Romantic--with a Capitol 'R'--Poetry 