what if a much of a which of a wind
ee cummings
5 10 15 20 |
what if a much of a which of a wind gives the truth to summer’s lie; bloodies with dizzying leaves the sun and yanks immortal stars awry?° Blow king to beggar and queen to seem (blow friend to fiend:blow space to time) —when skies are hanged and oceans drowned, the single secret will still be man what if a keen of a lean wind flays° screaming hills with sleet and snow: strangles valleys by ropes of thing and stifles forests in white ago? Blow hope to terror;blow seeing to blind (blow pity to envy and soul to mind) —whose hearts are mountains,roots are trees, it’s they shall cry hello to the spring what if a dawn of a doom of a dream bites this universe in two, peels forever out of his grave and sprinkles nowhere with me and you? Blow soon to never and never to twice (blow life to isn’t:blow death to was) —all nothing’s only our hugest home; the most who die,the more we live |
somewhere I have never travelled, gladly beyond
ee cummings
5 10 15 20 |
somewhere i have never travelled,gladly beyond any experience,your eyes have their silence: in your most frail gesture are things which enclose me, or which i cannot touch because they are too near your slightest look easily will unclose me though i have closed myself as fingers, you open always petal by petal myself as Spring opens (touching skilfully,mysteriously)her first rose or if your wish be to close me,i and my life will shut very beautifully,suddenly, as when the heart of this flower imagines the snow carefully everywhere descending; nothing which we are to perceive in this world equals the power of your intense fragility:whose texture compels me with the colour of its countries, rendering death and forever with each breathing (i do not know what it is about you that closes and opens;only something in me understands the voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses) nobody,not even the rain,has such small hands |
Making Meanings
Poems of ee cummings
what if a much of a which of a wind
1. How did you react to the poem’s message? Did the message differ from the predictions you made in your
Quickwrite?
2. If the world is destroyed, what will still survive?
3. What images describe the seasons of the year in the first two stanzas?
4. Describe the rhyme scheme of the poem. How is slant rhyme used?
5. What common human fears does Cummings refer to in the first six lines of each stanza? How does he comment on those fears in the last two lines of each stanza?
6. What do you think Cummings means by the last two lines? Is he celebrating life or death?
somewhere I have never travelled,gladly beyond
1. Which line or image in the poem made the strongest impression on you? Explain.
2. What figures of speech does Cummings use to talk about his love? (How do they compare with your Quickwrite notes?)
3. The poem rises in intensity in stanza 4. Paraphrase this stanza, making clear what you think the speaker means by “death and forever.”
4. In line 2 the phrase “your eyes have their silence” is an example of synesthesia—the juxtaposition of one sensory image with another image that appeals to a different sense. Where else does Cummings use synesthesia?
5. A paradox is a statement that appears contradictory but that reveals a kind of truth. Find at least two paradoxes in the poem and explain what you think they mean.
Choices
1. Collecting Ideas for an Interpretive Essay
Cummings's style can be challenging because he uses a difficult syntax consisting of thought groupings that often don't have any punctuation or that use unusual punctuation. he also often uses verbs, adjectives, and adverbs as nouns. Go back over one of the two poems by Cummings, an determine where thought groupings begin and end. Paraphrase these thought groupings in a brief paragraph.
2. Snobs, Look Elsewhere
In Primary Sources (page 797), taken from the introduction to his collection New Poems (1938), Cummings makes several statements about poetry and his audience, and at the same time reveals an attitude toward life itself. In a brief essay, tell whether you find that any of these statements relate to the message in "what if a much of a which of a wind" or "somewhere I have never travelled,gladly beyond." Use specific lines to support your opinions.
3. That Which Survives
In a brief essay, compare "what if a much of a which of a wind" with Robert Frost's "Once by the Pacific" (page 564). Consider in your essay the theme or message, imagery, tone, and structure of the poems.
4. A Poem Is a Song
Create a melody to accompany either poem by Cummings. Then, with two or three classmates, perform the song for your class.