Everyday Tragedies--was this phrase said in lecture or did I really make this up?
Why is it so bright out? I hate this time of year, except that school is coming to an end and I couldn't be happier, I am drained and in need of an extended break.
Looking on the metaphorical bright side of things, today's lecture was truly thought-provoking. Although, slightly intimidating when Jeremy was walking back and forth asking questions. I sometimes get nervous answering questions in larger groups, but I tried today and I suppose I am in a small way proud of myself for not screwing things up too badly when I shared my thoughts. But then things got uncomfortable in tutorial when I brought up the well-known saying, "man and women are one (in marriage) and the 'one' is the man" in reference to a line in Wallace Stevens' poem. Apparently no one appreciated my comment. Allow me to defend myself, firstly, it is satirical and it is well-known, but maybe only among those willing to admit to being feminists and those who have studied women's issues. This ideology is prevalent among the writing of women or writing dealing with women's issues as far back as the middle ages and of course, onwards, with authors such as, Christine de Pizan, Margaret Cavendish and even a man--William Thompson and countless others. I apologize if my comment was out of place. Also, I wasn't implicating that Wallace Stevens meant this, rather, I was pointing to the ubsurdity of the idea that two people ever become one, which is something I truly do not believe in, as romantic as it is. Apparently, not many others share my cynicism. Well, not to worry, only more one class left and I promise to keep my feminist ideology to myself.
On to more plesant things, "The Idea of Order at Key West" was written in 1936 by the 57 year old Wallace Stevens and is one of my favourite poems read this year in this course. There is an indescriable element to this poem that I so enjoy, and it may be for this reason that I like it so much. The mystery of the poem is captivating. As we discussed in lecture, the fact that the woman and sea are not described, the ambigious phrases, the complexity in imagery and theme, as well as, the layering of imaginative sceanrios that Sarah spoke of in tutorial all contribute to this idea of mystery I speak of. Of course, the eloquence in metre, strategic rhyming, alliteration and accessible language contributes to me liking this poem and liking it better than Eliot's. I bring this up, because the two authors were said to be contemporaries, but unalike in their style, although both modernists. In terms of character, the differences are obvious, Stevens' worked in the insurance industry by day, and wrote poetry by night, while Eliot devoted all his time to writing. Stylistically, Eliot was a strict Modernist, while Stevens' was a tradional modernist but also a romantic (but not in the "mushy" way as Jeremy Sharp described him, and lest I forget this description, "Stevens' was a real man poet"--I won't even touch this one, even though I know it isn't an entirely serious statement).
Anyhow, Stevens was interested in reality and imagination, something which Eliot and the other modernists tended to shun. This is the crucial stylistic difference and it seems to be the basis for "The Idea of Order at Key West". Imagination appears in this piece as the narrator (or author) imagines the woman as she is imagining a world beyond reality. This poem is not only about the woman, the narrator and his companion and what they see and imagine, but also about the construction of poetry (as all poems are), but this is obvious when I earlier spoke about imagination, which is a key factor in writing anything. This point can be seen throughout lines 10-14, where Steven's uses tentative language, indicating that he is struggling with efficacy, which I today learned means articulation (hooray for learning a new word!). Whatever difficulty Stevens had with writing, the poem comes together in a logical way (likely thanks to his background in insurance) in dealing with imagination and the creations of the unidentified woman. This theme comes full circle when the poem takes a turn at line 44 when the narrator asks his companion, Ramon Fernandez, why it is that he is able to experience the perspective of this woman if it is only her perspective. In tutorial this point was raised, but never quite answered. It seems to me that the answer to this question is in line 52 and on, it is the desire of order that the narrator sees, he shares this desire with the woman and thus they see things the same way.
What do you think the answer is?
Janice
Looking on the metaphorical bright side of things, today's lecture was truly thought-provoking. Although, slightly intimidating when Jeremy was walking back and forth asking questions. I sometimes get nervous answering questions in larger groups, but I tried today and I suppose I am in a small way proud of myself for not screwing things up too badly when I shared my thoughts. But then things got uncomfortable in tutorial when I brought up the well-known saying, "man and women are one (in marriage) and the 'one' is the man" in reference to a line in Wallace Stevens' poem. Apparently no one appreciated my comment. Allow me to defend myself, firstly, it is satirical and it is well-known, but maybe only among those willing to admit to being feminists and those who have studied women's issues. This ideology is prevalent among the writing of women or writing dealing with women's issues as far back as the middle ages and of course, onwards, with authors such as, Christine de Pizan, Margaret Cavendish and even a man--William Thompson and countless others. I apologize if my comment was out of place. Also, I wasn't implicating that Wallace Stevens meant this, rather, I was pointing to the ubsurdity of the idea that two people ever become one, which is something I truly do not believe in, as romantic as it is. Apparently, not many others share my cynicism. Well, not to worry, only more one class left and I promise to keep my feminist ideology to myself.
On to more plesant things, "The Idea of Order at Key West" was written in 1936 by the 57 year old Wallace Stevens and is one of my favourite poems read this year in this course. There is an indescriable element to this poem that I so enjoy, and it may be for this reason that I like it so much. The mystery of the poem is captivating. As we discussed in lecture, the fact that the woman and sea are not described, the ambigious phrases, the complexity in imagery and theme, as well as, the layering of imaginative sceanrios that Sarah spoke of in tutorial all contribute to this idea of mystery I speak of. Of course, the eloquence in metre, strategic rhyming, alliteration and accessible language contributes to me liking this poem and liking it better than Eliot's. I bring this up, because the two authors were said to be contemporaries, but unalike in their style, although both modernists. In terms of character, the differences are obvious, Stevens' worked in the insurance industry by day, and wrote poetry by night, while Eliot devoted all his time to writing. Stylistically, Eliot was a strict Modernist, while Stevens' was a tradional modernist but also a romantic (but not in the "mushy" way as Jeremy Sharp described him, and lest I forget this description, "Stevens' was a real man poet"--I won't even touch this one, even though I know it isn't an entirely serious statement).
Anyhow, Stevens was interested in reality and imagination, something which Eliot and the other modernists tended to shun. This is the crucial stylistic difference and it seems to be the basis for "The Idea of Order at Key West". Imagination appears in this piece as the narrator (or author) imagines the woman as she is imagining a world beyond reality. This poem is not only about the woman, the narrator and his companion and what they see and imagine, but also about the construction of poetry (as all poems are), but this is obvious when I earlier spoke about imagination, which is a key factor in writing anything. This point can be seen throughout lines 10-14, where Steven's uses tentative language, indicating that he is struggling with efficacy, which I today learned means articulation (hooray for learning a new word!). Whatever difficulty Stevens had with writing, the poem comes together in a logical way (likely thanks to his background in insurance) in dealing with imagination and the creations of the unidentified woman. This theme comes full circle when the poem takes a turn at line 44 when the narrator asks his companion, Ramon Fernandez, why it is that he is able to experience the perspective of this woman if it is only her perspective. In tutorial this point was raised, but never quite answered. It seems to me that the answer to this question is in line 52 and on, it is the desire of order that the narrator sees, he shares this desire with the woman and thus they see things the same way.
What do you think the answer is?
Janice