“The Body Deformed by Tidal Forces”
Link (from the Feminist Wire): http://www.thefeministwire.com/2011/06/featured-poet-lillian-yvonne-bertram/ The poem I’ve chosen to discuss today is from a true contemporary language artist: Lillian-Yvonne Bertram. “The Body Deformed by Tidal Forces,” from Bertram’s 2012 publication But a Storm is Blowing from Paradise, is a moving metaphorical piece that describes the Earth as it phases into spring. Bertram writes about the never-ending transition from winter to spring by personifying the season and planet as romantic “partners”: the Earth is a body that is loved by a passionate spring. However, the particular springtime she writes about is “uneasy” and “un-gripping;” the season is described as having “[a] Bored mouth...Bored fingers,” which indicates that the season has lost fervor over the years. She connects this decreasing passion with the modern issue of global warming. She suggests that the Earth is, in a way, impure and deformed, and she is troubled when she compares the earth to the rest of the cosmos. The final line, “All planets but this one were named after gods,” is particularly powerful, as Bertram alludes to the increasingly bleak future of planet Earth and the effects of humanity on its original divine beauty. I’m greatly intrigued by this poem’s analysis of nature as time progresses. She presents a description of the model solar system, where all planets twirl in synchronous and have a purpose in the structure of space, much like that of the connections in a spider web. With each passing season, the decreasing romanticism of springtime harms the Earth’s physique and wears it down. Environmentalism is something that I hold dear to my heart, but I’ve never seen this perspective on the consequences of human-Earth interactions before. I eagerly look forward to reading and analyzing more works from But a Storm is Blowing from Paradise, and getting to know Lillian-Yvonne through her words.
4 Comments
Kerston from Best Virginia
10/6/2016 10:56:45 am
Your analysis was very interesting! I can tell you are very interested in enviromentalism by your analysis. I also enjoy the final line about the Gods and how you interpreted it.
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Davis from Smithfield
10/7/2016 07:42:25 am
Hi Alecia, I really like your analysis of The Body Deformed By Tidal Forces. The way you breakdown the poem and explain what the author really means is extremely interesting. I like the ideas presented in the poem about how Earth wasn't named after a God and how this will lead to our end. Can we save our planet or is it already too far gone for us to do anything? I think this poem gets its meaning across very well because it uses the seasons to explain how our earth is being destroyed. I think by doing this instead of just coming out and saying the issues the author uses a deeper metaphor to express his worries. Overall a very good analysis and I look forward to reading more from this author.
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Alecia G
10/7/2016 09:35:10 am
Thanks for commenting Davis!
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Hannah Mullen-Fox
11/4/2016 10:43:05 am
I really liked your analysis! The way you explain this poem really gives a descriptive viewpoint. I enjoyed your word choice, and your analysis makes me want to look more into the author and the topic.
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AuthorHello everyone! My name is Alecia Guishard. Welcome to Reader's Delight, a site that fosters an open discussion on literature, as well as provides an avenue for my own thoughts on various reads. Archives
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