After having read all three poems, there seems to be a common theme of familiarity. In “On a Passenger Ferry”, the narrator relays a depiction of his or her experience on a ferry. There is a known sense of familiarity and recognition after the narrator speaks of having “seen [this mystery woman] before”.
In “Resignation” the narrator speaks of the personified feelings of birch trees. The author’s prose seems to gently float across the page, and words like “ensnared” and “tangled” nicely contrast against the soft tone. Again, the readers come to terms with the narrator’s level of familiar knowledge.
Lastly, in “Not for Chopin” the narrator is satirically referring to Chopin’s musical ‘ineptitude’. The narrator has fully analyzed many of Chopin’s pieces and again depicts a level of profound perception.
All three poems depict narrators who approach the subjects of the poems with a déjà vu-like reminiscence. By doing so, the level of understanding within the poem becomes universal and ultimately understood by the reader.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
this post brings up an interesting thought: whether or not the editors of the new yorker look for thematic coherence in their weekly choices in poetry. after having said that, i suppose that the thought is a glaringly obvious "YES. OF COURSE THEY DO." but then one must wonder how the themes are chosen and how many great poems have yet to be published because they don't fit in with the weekly theme. i will certainly be reading the poetry differently from now on...i'll look at them as a group as well as individually. thanks shan :)
Post a Comment