"The Widow's Lament in Springtime"
This poignant poem consists of a single stanza of short lines which are mostly enjambed. Williams is able to say so much with so few words and he combines the words in creative ways so as to make the words fresh again. Dickinson said that "A WORD is dead / When it is said, Some say." When words are overused they can loose power in the minds of those who read/hear/say them. Poetry such as that of Williams resuscitates old words so as to renew their power. Often poetry is written in a condensed language so that every word retains more of its essence and Williams was certainly a great writer of poetry with regard to that technique. The poem begins with;
"Sorrow is my own yard
where the new grass
flames as it has flamed
often before but not
with the cold fire
that closes round me this year."
(Lines 1 - 6).
This is a great introduction. The reader wants to keep reading as to ascertain the source of this persons sorrow. The references to cycles of time and memories of the past juxtaposed with the sincere declaration of sorrow subtly suggests that the speaker has a story to tell. In earnest, a reader could not know that the speaker was a widow based on the one indication in lines 7-8: "Thirtyfive years / I lived with my husband." It is only due to the title that we know for sure. With the closing lines, the widow explains that she would like to drown herself in the marsh. It would seem that her husband was her purpose for living to some degree and that in his absence, the world has lost its beauty.
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Edna St. Vincent Millay
"Spring"
This poem by Millay is written in free verse. It has little, if any metrical regularity. The speaker address the month of April and the arrival of Spring. Unlike the typical joy expressed upon the arrival of spring flowers, this poet expresses a disgust and weariness with the signs of Spring. The poet explains that the beauty of Spring only serves to conceal death and disintegration. In line 13, Millay concludes that "Life in itself / Is nothing,". The poet personifies Spring as "an idiot, babbling and strewing flowers." (Line 18). With this poem, Millay expresses an ironic disdain for that which would conceal or ignore the darker sides of life. The tone is cynical and the speaker seems jaded. The poem opens with a question; "To what purpose, April, do you return again? / Beauty is not enough." (Lines 1-2). The poem paints Spring with its flowers and renewal as something detestable, deceptive, and naive. The notion of personifying and questioning cosmic cycles of time is easy to connect to pagan ideas of the natural world but here we are presented with an ancient idea in a form which is quite modern.
This poem by Millay is written in free verse. It has little, if any metrical regularity. The speaker address the month of April and the arrival of Spring. Unlike the typical joy expressed upon the arrival of spring flowers, this poet expresses a disgust and weariness with the signs of Spring. The poet explains that the beauty of Spring only serves to conceal death and disintegration. In line 13, Millay concludes that "Life in itself / Is nothing,". The poet personifies Spring as "an idiot, babbling and strewing flowers." (Line 18). With this poem, Millay expresses an ironic disdain for that which would conceal or ignore the darker sides of life. The tone is cynical and the speaker seems jaded. The poem opens with a question; "To what purpose, April, do you return again? / Beauty is not enough." (Lines 1-2). The poem paints Spring with its flowers and renewal as something detestable, deceptive, and naive. The notion of personifying and questioning cosmic cycles of time is easy to connect to pagan ideas of the natural world but here we are presented with an ancient idea in a form which is quite modern.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
T.S. Eliot - "The Waste Land"
This post covers sections III - V of "The Waste Land."
Section III - "The Fire Sermon"
The title of this section refers to a sermon of the Buddha which urged devotees to steer clear of carnal passions in order to achieve nirvana. The section is the most sensual among the five sections and is overtly sexual. Rather than being sexual in a vulgar way, this section treats the topic of sexuality with some reverence for its confounding mysteries. This theme is not apparent initially. We are beholden to a scene of desolation in which "The nymphs are departed" and one cannot find any traces of "summer nights" (Lines 175, 179). Throughout this section, the theme of sexual intrigue is made apparent through its absence in the life of the speaker. Within lines 197-222, Eliot speaks of anticipation; the anticipation of the woman for her lover. The lines that follow give a detailed description of the ladies belongings in her boudoir. Here, the sexes are delineated. The woman must maintain the proper vestiges of her sex in order to attract men but in matters of copulation, she is relieved when the ordeal is over with (Lines 245-249). This stanza ends with the speaker describing himself in lowly and diminutive language as someone who has "walked among the lowest of the dead."The ideas conveyed by Eliot in this section are reminiscent of those within "The Love Song of Alfred J. Prufrock." As a man, the speaker is condemned to a passionate drive to be accepted and embraced by the woman while she is either indifferent towards or repelled by his advances. Beginning with line 266, the scene changes as does the form of the poem. We are taken to sea. Seafaring motifs recur throughout the poem. The section as a whole is devoted to repressed sexuality in favor of purity or due to lack of sexual opportunities.
Section IV - "Death by Water"
This is the shortest section of the poem and consists of three short stanzas. The brief section reads like a lament for the drowned Phlebas. It also functions as a cryptic, discretionary reference. The speaker warns his audience to "Consider Phelbas, who was once handsome and tall as you" (Line 321). Perhaps this is to remind the audience of the fleeting nature of youth and beauty.
Section V -
Section III - "The Fire Sermon"
The title of this section refers to a sermon of the Buddha which urged devotees to steer clear of carnal passions in order to achieve nirvana. The section is the most sensual among the five sections and is overtly sexual. Rather than being sexual in a vulgar way, this section treats the topic of sexuality with some reverence for its confounding mysteries. This theme is not apparent initially. We are beholden to a scene of desolation in which "The nymphs are departed" and one cannot find any traces of "summer nights" (Lines 175, 179). Throughout this section, the theme of sexual intrigue is made apparent through its absence in the life of the speaker. Within lines 197-222, Eliot speaks of anticipation; the anticipation of the woman for her lover. The lines that follow give a detailed description of the ladies belongings in her boudoir. Here, the sexes are delineated. The woman must maintain the proper vestiges of her sex in order to attract men but in matters of copulation, she is relieved when the ordeal is over with (Lines 245-249). This stanza ends with the speaker describing himself in lowly and diminutive language as someone who has "walked among the lowest of the dead."The ideas conveyed by Eliot in this section are reminiscent of those within "The Love Song of Alfred J. Prufrock." As a man, the speaker is condemned to a passionate drive to be accepted and embraced by the woman while she is either indifferent towards or repelled by his advances. Beginning with line 266, the scene changes as does the form of the poem. We are taken to sea. Seafaring motifs recur throughout the poem. The section as a whole is devoted to repressed sexuality in favor of purity or due to lack of sexual opportunities.
Section IV - "Death by Water"
This is the shortest section of the poem and consists of three short stanzas. The brief section reads like a lament for the drowned Phlebas. It also functions as a cryptic, discretionary reference. The speaker warns his audience to "Consider Phelbas, who was once handsome and tall as you" (Line 321). Perhaps this is to remind the audience of the fleeting nature of youth and beauty.
Section V -
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
T.S. Eliot - "The Waste Land"
This post covers sections I and II of "The Waste Land." The remainder of the poem will be covered in another post.
Section I. "The Burial of the Dead"
At times, Eliot's poetry is verbal collage. It is as if Eliot collected clippings from old books, periodicals, personal correspondences, and personal memoirs for use in his work. In the first stanza alone (18 lines), Eliot references "Satyricon" by Petronius, Dante's "Purgatorio," Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales," the personal memoirs of an Austrian countess, and the Bible. The poem is written in a semi stream of consciousness style in which several conversations and other events blend together in a dream-like sequence. The first two stanzas speak to the title and follow the seasons and cycles of the natural world with intermittent memories and a lament to desolation. The third stanza introduces a card reader called Madame Sosostris and her cards are described as if laid out for a reading given the audience by the clairvoyant. The reading is a bit grim but redeeming in its references to cycles and therefore to rebirth and renewal. The fourth stanza takes the audience to London's financial district where the speaker encounters an old shipmate. The reference here to Mylae is anachronistic. Eliot's poetry renders a world in which chronological time is meaningless. All times and places are here and now. Lines 71-76 detail the words or thoughts which the encounter with the old shipmate inspires. The imagery is macabre. We see a corpse buried and either nurturing and sprouting new life or disinterred by a "Dog" with a capitol "D." Perhaps this "Dog" alludes to Anubis, Opener of the Ways into the ancient Egyptian underworld.
Section II. "A Game of Chess"
The first stanza of section II begins with the 77th line of the poem. Here we find a Cleopatra-like woman enthroned. We know that she is a lavish and luxurious woman from the vivid depictions of her finery and the palatial throne room in which she sits. The depiction of the woman in her throne room is interspersed with uneasy words such as "strange," "synthetic," "troubled," "confused," "drowned," "sad." These words nuance the scene with a sinister and a desolate feeling. The woman is compared to Ovid's Philomela who transformed into a nightingale after her brother-in-law King Terseus raped her. Stanza 7 brings the audience into a nervous conversation. Perhaps it takes place between two lovers. One is shaken and nervous and the other implores to know his/her thoughts and complains that "I never know what you are thinking. Think." (Line 114). Line 139 begins the 13th stanza and carries the audience back into the present era. A very contemporary scenario is depicted through conversational ramblings. Eliot introduces new characters such as "poor" Albert, George, and Lou. What is conveyed is a sense of discontent with the goings-on of life for the young English who's lives are overtaken with war (presumably WWI) and with the activities of off-duty soldiers. "HURRY UP PLEASE ITS TIME" is the refrain repeated five times within this stanza. This is the closing time call of the English pub.
Section I. "The Burial of the Dead"
At times, Eliot's poetry is verbal collage. It is as if Eliot collected clippings from old books, periodicals, personal correspondences, and personal memoirs for use in his work. In the first stanza alone (18 lines), Eliot references "Satyricon" by Petronius, Dante's "Purgatorio," Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales," the personal memoirs of an Austrian countess, and the Bible. The poem is written in a semi stream of consciousness style in which several conversations and other events blend together in a dream-like sequence. The first two stanzas speak to the title and follow the seasons and cycles of the natural world with intermittent memories and a lament to desolation. The third stanza introduces a card reader called Madame Sosostris and her cards are described as if laid out for a reading given the audience by the clairvoyant. The reading is a bit grim but redeeming in its references to cycles and therefore to rebirth and renewal. The fourth stanza takes the audience to London's financial district where the speaker encounters an old shipmate. The reference here to Mylae is anachronistic. Eliot's poetry renders a world in which chronological time is meaningless. All times and places are here and now. Lines 71-76 detail the words or thoughts which the encounter with the old shipmate inspires. The imagery is macabre. We see a corpse buried and either nurturing and sprouting new life or disinterred by a "Dog" with a capitol "D." Perhaps this "Dog" alludes to Anubis, Opener of the Ways into the ancient Egyptian underworld.
Section II. "A Game of Chess"
The first stanza of section II begins with the 77th line of the poem. Here we find a Cleopatra-like woman enthroned. We know that she is a lavish and luxurious woman from the vivid depictions of her finery and the palatial throne room in which she sits. The depiction of the woman in her throne room is interspersed with uneasy words such as "strange," "synthetic," "troubled," "confused," "drowned," "sad." These words nuance the scene with a sinister and a desolate feeling. The woman is compared to Ovid's Philomela who transformed into a nightingale after her brother-in-law King Terseus raped her. Stanza 7 brings the audience into a nervous conversation. Perhaps it takes place between two lovers. One is shaken and nervous and the other implores to know his/her thoughts and complains that "I never know what you are thinking. Think." (Line 114). Line 139 begins the 13th stanza and carries the audience back into the present era. A very contemporary scenario is depicted through conversational ramblings. Eliot introduces new characters such as "poor" Albert, George, and Lou. What is conveyed is a sense of discontent with the goings-on of life for the young English who's lives are overtaken with war (presumably WWI) and with the activities of off-duty soldiers. "HURRY UP PLEASE ITS TIME" is the refrain repeated five times within this stanza. This is the closing time call of the English pub.
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