Cubism in Cummings and Stevens
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- Category: English: Poetic Works
- Date Submitted: 12/08/2011 05:36 PM
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The Cubist Poetic Movement
The idea of cubism can not only be found in paintings, but in poetry as well. Cubism is best known from artists Braque and Picasso. In their art, they created something new and different from what previous artists had done. They wanted to portray several different views of the same subject in the same moment; they wanted people to see more than one meaning or view in their paintings. This idea inspired many poets who wanted to translate what cubist artists had done in drawings to words. Cubism easily translated into the world of poetry. E.E. Cummings and Wallace Stevens are two poets who exemplified the use of cubism in their poems by creating visual and psychological experiences to offer different viewpoints in their poems.
Cummings mainly created both a visual and psychological experience in “l(a”. Cummings’ poem “l(a” is simple, beautiful, and profound. It is written vertically and, when written horizontally, looks like this: “l (a leaf falls)oneliness” (L(a - A Poem by E.e. Cummings - American Poems). The poem depicts both the physicality of a leaf falling and the abstract feelings of loneliness. Those two things together give meaning to the poem: a single leaf falling is a symbol of loneliness. The shape of the poem is eye catching and gives the reader a visual experience. Because the poem is written vertically, it forces the reader to read it like they are watching a falling leaf; the reader’s eyes glide down the page. The elongated shape of the poem provides an aesthetically pleasing view of the leaf. The spacing of the words on the page also aid in providing meaning to the poem. The separation of the word “loneliness” gives even more meaning to the word as it shows that separation is the cause of loneliness. The separation of the word also highlights the fact that it includes the word “one”, furthering the feeling of loneliness the poem creates. The leaf falling and loneliness can also be seen as loneliness is...
The idea of cubism can not only be found in paintings, but in poetry as well. Cubism is best known from artists Braque and Picasso. In their art, they created something new and different from what previous artists had done. They wanted to portray several different views of the same subject in the same moment; they wanted people to see more than one meaning or view in their paintings. This idea inspired many poets who wanted to translate what cubist artists had done in drawings to words. Cubism easily translated into the world of poetry. E.E. Cummings and Wallace Stevens are two poets who exemplified the use of cubism in their poems by creating visual and psychological experiences to offer different viewpoints in their poems.
Cummings mainly created both a visual and psychological experience in “l(a”. Cummings’ poem “l(a” is simple, beautiful, and profound. It is written vertically and, when written horizontally, looks like this: “l (a leaf falls)oneliness” (L(a - A Poem by E.e. Cummings - American Poems). The poem depicts both the physicality of a leaf falling and the abstract feelings of loneliness. Those two things together give meaning to the poem: a single leaf falling is a symbol of loneliness. The shape of the poem is eye catching and gives the reader a visual experience. Because the poem is written vertically, it forces the reader to read it like they are watching a falling leaf; the reader’s eyes glide down the page. The elongated shape of the poem provides an aesthetically pleasing view of the leaf. The spacing of the words on the page also aid in providing meaning to the poem. The separation of the word “loneliness” gives even more meaning to the word as it shows that separation is the cause of loneliness. The separation of the word also highlights the fact that it includes the word “one”, furthering the feeling of loneliness the poem creates. The leaf falling and loneliness can also be seen as loneliness is...