"Statement"
Link (scroll down!): https://www.poetrysociety.org/psa/poetry/crossroads/new_american_poets/lillian--yvonne_bertram/ The second poetry installment from the contemporary poet Lillian-Yvonne Bertram that I want to discuss is one with a less…dramatic title. “Statement” by Lillian-Yvonne Bertram is a contemplative and moving piece that has a very blunt title to go along with it. As I got into this poem, I began to understand why she chose such a frank word: The poem opens with a brief setting description, where she recollects standing in the Colorado Desert and observing “Jupiter and the moon rise together in that triumphant way that celestial bodies come into view” (Lines 2-3). She describes the majesty of the cosmic bodies, and how observing these ethereal beings can leave someone on Earth suspended in time. Bertram laments that human language is inferior when compared to the universe, that she is unable to find enough words to describe her experience. Awareness of one’s scale in the universe is a curse in Bertram’s eyes, and until you find the right words to capture the occurrence, you are forever trapped in “a crypt so utter that language is a joke” (Line 10). I can feel the tension that Bertram may have been suffering through when she realized that the only thing keeping her from connecting with the cosmos was a thin window, a “pane of glass” (Line 8), a language barrier. She understands that she will likely never be able to break out of this rut, but she keeps trying to. This is where I think the title choice for this piece came into play; she probably came to terms with the fact that humans will likely never be able to communicate (per say) with the celestial bodies because our language has diverged from the path to enlightened speech. She decided on “Statement” for the title of this poem because all words have the same inferiority: there’s no point in creating an elaborate name for a pointless cause. What really caught my attention is the last line of this poem. She takes a step back and thinks about what a poem truly is when used in an attempt to leave the crypt of language. Bertram questions whether the poem is “the cellar, the crack permitting light, or the light” (Lines 13-14). On her first point, it can be concluded that the search for acceptable words is futile, and that she will be doomed for all eternity by continuing her search for a pure language. Her second perspective proposes that writing poetry allows the glass pane to become clearer (temporarily) until new words are formed to accommodate the cosmos’ grandeur. I believe that Bertram’s third point is what she relies on to keep her going as an artist. This point establishes that poetry is comprised of bits and pieces of the cosmos itself, and allow humans to gradually lose awareness and connect with the universe wholly.
5 Comments
Eng
11/4/2016 08:57:37 am
I love that you are commenting even upon the title of the poem.
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Alecia g.
11/4/2016 09:05:57 am
Thanks for commenting, Mrs. Eng!
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Chaseton Ghee
11/4/2016 10:34:05 am
I really enjoyed your analysis and enjoyed with it for the most part. I really enjoyed your thoughts about our new language. Great analysis.
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Erica
11/4/2016 10:36:16 am
Hey Alecia,
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Christine A.
12/5/2016 11:09:17 am
I like the poem you chose. You did a great job anaylzing its contents and use great descriptive words to describe the tone of the poem. Do you think Bertram and her friends actually had abortions or do you just think she's using the term figuratively?
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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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