Gerard Manley Hopkins Everyone is destined to be great for a moment in their lives. For Gerard Manley Hopkins this was difficult. Gerard was a poet that came way before his time and people didn't realize the power he had with words. Gerard Manley Hopkins was one of the most original poets to write in English at any time period. He only lived for 45 years and only had three of his poems published during his lifetime. Gerard was torn between his love of God and his love of poetry. Gerard Manley Hopkins, born on July 28 1844, was the eldest of eight children of a London marine insurance adjuster. Besides writing books about marine insurance G