You have to have your wits about you when reading a cummings poem! Like a bunch of other poets, Cummings never gave his poems titles, so editors just use the first line as the title of each poem.
Line 14 The speaker declares that his lover's power is greater than anything else. That said, "somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond" seems like a fitting title to us because the poem takes on such a surreal, yet strangely happy voyage into the weird world of the speaker and his lover. Think of the poet taking a deep breath, or lots of little ones, and discovering the intimacies of heart and mind, laid bare in difficult lines, upside down syntax and unique form.Little wonder fellow poet Randall Jarrell called him a in your most frail gesture are things which enclose me,you open always petal by petal myself as Spring opensnothing which we are to perceive in this world equalsThe theme is without doubt love, but which kind of love? Make them seen more mysterious and unknownable. Close Search A lustful love? It read like a poem, too. Please choose which areas of our service you consent to our doing so. Note the use of Whilst the majority of lines are hexameters - 6 beats per line, 12 syllables - one or two are pentameters, with feminine endings, de-stressed, where the voice tends to quieten.This poem was like a portal to my literary realm. It's this spirit of adventure that endears him so much to those who prefer to stay outside of the formal 'regulations' of poetry.E.E.Cummings spent some time in Paris and was influenced by none other than James Joyce and Ezra Pound, who encouraged him to break away from genteel mainstream verse and go for something a little more idiosyncratic.It's not difficult to see the stream-of-consciousness technique bubbling through the surface of his longer poetry at times. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. Perhaps the speaker has fallen under the spell of love and is trying to put into words what it feels like to look into a special one's eyes.And what an unusual and informal declaration we have here. ), the slightest look will open him up.To enhance the imagery a rose, the supreme flower associated with passionate love, is introduced and it is the season of Spring opening it petal by petal. Love for a friend?Some say the poem was written following the birth of his daughter, hence the reference to frail and fragility. Take time to follow the unusual rhythms and don't be afraid to slow down if you get caught up in the spontaneous chaos of his syntax.Note down any odd structural features - parentheses for example (brackets in the UK) - and metrical irregularities.The speaker is trying to convey something that transcends normality - probably love, or the idea of love - which could be construed as a journey/travel, beyond words almost, taking us straight to the silent eyes of the lover.Again the visual aspect of this love affair is emphasised, the speaker suggesting that, although he is closed, (like a tight fist? A romantic love? While expressing these feelings he applys synesthesia throughout the whole poem Others claim it to be an attempt to transcend sexuality, lust and love. Note the parentheses with the adverbs, a sort of fine tuning.In contrast, the speaker now says that he will end his life should she wish it; he will fade away somewhat like the rose when it feels the cold kiss of snow flakes.Note the separate i and my life and the two adverbs in tandem, The speaker, in Shakespearean fashion, compares his lover's fragility to all the things of the world, which can never measure up.
Additional information I feel is needed Invented and Reinvented Metaphors: Rose Similes Personifications Love and Man typical metaphors in poem Imagery Allowed to explore simplistic words with complex meaning Style Punctuation Spacing Capitalization Uses rhyme scheme and Because all eyes must be silent, they can not talk at all. Some insist it was an ode to his second wife, Anne Barton. Familial love? But e.e.cummings stuck to his guns and at the time of his death in 1962 he was second only to Robert Frost in popularity.Innovative, anarchic and playful, his poetry takes leaps and bounds where others dare to even tread. In each breath is death, and forever.So we have a profound mix of power, texture and colour combining metaphysically to force - compel - this lover into a kind of paradise rearranged.Again the parentheses appear which suggests immediacy and reflection. your slightest look easily will unclose me.