- E. Cummings
Few people can write poems with such intensity and passion, as does E. E. Cummings. His poems are easy to relate to since they largely speak of common things and ideas. Although he largely uses ordinary language, the way he chooses to place words in his poetry is nothing but ordinary. He has a unique way of placing and spacing words. Cummings has written many poems with different themes. The themes of love and death are richly explored by different authors throughout the ages. While the idea of love and death are worlds apart, the two themes are sometimes not separable. Some authors consider love as the main cause of death. One just has to look at the classic Romeo and Juliet to see this. Other people consider love as the element that prevents death. They see it as the ultimate victory and one that conquers everything.
Cummings is a poet who seems to treasure love. He seems to believe in an ideal love, one that is pure and undefiled; one that should be kept in the safest place (Mcafee 2). In his case, the safest and best place to keep this love is in his heart. There, no one can penetrate and no one can defile that love. This is clearly seen the poem, “I Carry You in My Heart”. In this poem, Cummings exemplifies love in his own way, using different poetical elements such as imagery and personification. The poem shows the romantic side of him. It is as if he has been holding this secret for a long time and he has a chance to let his loved one know how much he loves her. He speaks someone who makes him whole, someone who does not leave his side regardless of the situation. The love that he has for that person is such that he cannot manage to be apart from her for any length of time. Wherever he goes, that person is by his side. The two lovers are in such intimacy that they seem conjoined (Sadish 5).
Love gives him strength since he has nothing to fear. In the poem, he states, “I fear no fate, for you are my fate.” He seems to believe that his love can help him conquer and endure anything that fate will bring. Cummings sees love as his source of satisfaction and this is clear in the second verse when he states, “I want no world for beautiful you are my world, my true.” He is of the opinion that with his love by his side, the world has nothing else to offer him. Love is his source of light. Although many people might have the same sentiments about love, they do not readily agree that it exists in the same manner. They may not agree with the idea of love being the light that reflects the way in the darkness and hence guides someone and prevents them from losing direction. Cummings seems to think of love in these terms because he states, “you are whatever a moon has always meant and whatever a sun will always sing”.
This poem is devoid if sexual connotations, meaning that Cummings did not see love in that particular manner, at least not as represented in this poem. In contrast with a majority of the poems, the love exemplified in this poem does not seem to be one that causes conflict and confusion. The people in this poem seem to be clear about their intentions for each other since there is no contradictory information. Cummings seems to be saying that love can be a simple thing. It does not have to involve a lot of intrigues and complexities. It should be taken as it is, in its simplest and purest form.
He sees love as more than an infatuation; more than a momentary thing. As one reads the poem, he is captivated by the language and the emotion that is set in the poem. Some people have a tendency of seeing love as something that it is to be repaid. This is not the case with Cummings. He seems comforted and joyous in the idea of loving. The poems does not mention any inclusion of gifts and this makes today’s reader note that there is such a big difference between the way love was considered during Cummings’ time and how that love is considered today. Today, love seems incomplete without the inclusion of gifts. It defies every possibility of knowing the person for who she or he is and thus people miss great opportunities. This adds further to the simplicity of love and all it represents.
In the poem, “Dying is good, but Death”, Cummings brings out the difference between death and dying. The poem does not follow any written order of poetry. He does not place punctuations wherever the reader expects them to be. Sometimes this may be a bit challenging to the reader. After closer observation however, one realizes the advantage of spacing sentences in the way that Cummings has done. With each space left, Cummings gives the reader a chance to reflect on what he has read as he anticipates what is to come. The spaces enhance the mood of the poem. In the poem, Cummings has capitalized the word death every time he has used it, while he has used small capitals when he is talking about dying, even when he is beginning a sentence. He seems to place major emphasis on death and he directs the reader’s attention towards it. He seems to be saying that there is something particularly wrong with death, while dying is just an ordinary and natural experience that should not be given mush thought.
He contrasts the death and dying and he seems to glorify one, while denouncing the other. Many people do not like the mention of death and they will try to avoid it as much as possible. It is not easy for many to distinguish between death and dying and to note the advantages of one process over the other. The mention of both words provokes different emotions in people. Most of them feel helpless when they are faced with a life-threatening situation, since they do not have any control over it. They do not know what to react when death approaches. Cummings seems to have the answer to this, as he tells the readers to avoid death by not living to their fullest, while at the same time, they should embrace dying as a natural process. Cummings is not opposed to the idea of dying because he considers it a natural process. He even goes as far as declaring it a miraculous and lively process. Cummings sees dying as a process of life (Gaby 7).
Cummings states, “Death is strictly scientific & artificial & evil and legal”. This statement brings many aspects to play. He sees science, religion or lack of it and law as the causes of death. In the last line he states, “Forgive us, o life/ the sin of Death. Cumming’s influence on religion is obvious in this statement. He considers death a sin, which one needs to ask for forgiveness. He might see it as something humans bring on themselves through the law or science. This means then, that it is something that can be avoided. Death is seen as end to contribution. During the process of dying, one can still think and apply his intelligence. Death is seen as the ultimate thing. When death happens, everything else ceases to exist. He says of death that “for when (instead of stopping to think) you begin to feel of it.” Death drains one of emotion and increases ones thoughts towards it. As the thoughts increase, so do the feelings of death.
While people have the opportunity to do something creative through the knowledge and different skills they have acquired, they sometimes fail to do this, and their talents and the knowledge they have acquired remains unused. Cummings seem to be urging the people to avoid immature death; when one goes to the grave without having accomplished all that he or she can accomplish. Instead of utilizing science for constructive purposes, people seem to have created new ways of causing death. Cummings sees this as extremely wrong and he has gone as far as seeking forgiveness for the sake of the people. Although Cummings is strongly opposed to death, he does not use strong language to show any hatred towards it. What seems to concern him the most is that death is not a natural process.
He perceives it is artificially created, meaning that it is caused by humans and therefore they are capable of stopping it. In trying to come up with life’s answers, people seek it from different corners but they sometimes do not find it. Nature has however given people the chance to explore and find the answers they need. People have to find ways to make their lives worth living since everyone will die. Cummings agrees that sudden death is scary, but worse than this is the fact that death will happen when one has actually not lived. Although Cummings wrote this poem a long time ago, it remains relevant today. He lived at a time when people when science was evolving and people cared mush for the law. The people concentrated their efforts on doing what seemed right in other people’s eyes and by doing this, they failed to live and maximize their maximum potential. Today, people are still concerned about what others think about them just as they were during those days. They are therefore not able to define themselves in their own terms and they expect others to define them. This is actually death, since they have stopped contributing. Therefore, instead of them actually living as they wait for the dying process, they have chosen death, without realizing the actual meaning of life.
Love and death are some of the favorite topics for poets, although they each present it differently. Some see love as a beautiful, peaceful and soulful thing, which connects two people. They see love in its simplicity by avoiding its intricacies. Others however seem to have been dealt a huge blow by the people they love, and they exemplify it as something that brings complexities sin somebody’s life. Cummings has illustrated that one can enjoy love in its most basic and simple form, without expecting a reward from it. One does not necessarily have to be loved back by the one they love, so that they can continue loving. On the topic of death, Cummings has clearly illustrated the difference between death and dying. The poem shows how one can claim to be alive, and is actually dead, because he does not live his life to the fullest. The poem shows how Cummings embraced the process of dying as he saw it as a natural process. He urges people to see death for what it really is, a scientific and artificial process, meaning that they can avoid it if they wanted to.
Works Cited
Cummings, E. E. Dying is Fine, but Death. Jan 31 2004. Web. 12 July 2011
Cummings, E. E. I Carry You in My Heart. Jan 31 2004. Web. 12 July 2011
Gaby. Shape: Dying is Fine) but Death. Mar 25 2009. Web. 12 July 2011
Mcafee, Justin. Poetry Analysis: A Look at the Theme of Love in the Poetry of EE Cummings. Jan 10 2009. Web. 12 July 2011
Sadish. “I Carry Your Heart with Me…”- A Poem of Love. Sep 8 2008. Web. 12 July 2011
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