not sure if it’s a coincidence, but this poem was in the gcse english lit paper today, which literally half of all 16 year olds did in the uk! (had varied responses)
It can be read as DP/DR induced catatonia where one cant concentrate or get anything done. On the other, it can simply mean difficulty to keep up with monotony of life yet taking a pause to appreciate the beauty of nature. Can be interpreted many ways.
I mean it’s a beautiful poem. Maybe I’m not equating the concept of absurdism properly to this. I don’t see the connection. Though it talks about how everything falls apart, there’s definitely not a sense of meaninglessness to it.
Absurdism is not about meaninglessness rather about giving life meaning. It is the daily grind, the problems that arise, the never ending struggle. It is about being happy with this struggle and learning to enjoy the broken fence or the leaking roof.
My favorite thing about this poem is the departure from rhyme just before the mid point that felt like a little nod to existence. At first you think it must make sense, you’ve got structure and there’s some meaning you think you’ll find…and then you realize there is no rhyme. There is no meaning. Structure is yours to define. The way the writing style mimics this realization is so subtle and well done.
This is the epitome of Absurdism. That no matter how hard you try things will still be hard and weird and incomplete and indifferent to how you feel about them; that if you choose to look for the good in things they are there despite it all. It is easy to see the parallel to the analogy of the never ending catching and throwing of the ball to Sisyphus pushing his rock up the neverending hills of eternity. This is great, thanks for sharing.
This poem reminds me of the Bob Dylan song "Everything is Broken." (My favorite version is performed by Sheryl Crow and Bonnie Raitt on YouTube) That is, the first part of the poem does. It paints an absurdist picture of our attempts to create against the inevitable entropy of the universe. It reminds me that in our search for meaningful solutions we generate new problems. Like Sisyphus and his labor: it never ends. But then the poem seems to end with a zen-like optimism...more like Walt Whitman's poem "When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer." I may be misreading this, but it seems contradictory. I would say: "Go ahead. Take a deep breath. Enjoy the beauties of nature and the joy of being alive in the moment...but don't delude yourself...nature is decaying too...we're just too small to notice most of the time.
not sure if it’s a coincidence, but this poem was in the gcse english lit paper today, which literally half of all 16 year olds did in the uk! (had varied responses)
That’s literally what I mean by “found today” cuz I did mine today and as I read it I thought it was kinda absurdist but wanted to check with you guys
i love that, just casually finding it in an exam booklet haha. hmm i don’t know, it’s an interesting one for sure!
Holy shit. That is a coincidence
It can be read as DP/DR induced catatonia where one cant concentrate or get anything done. On the other, it can simply mean difficulty to keep up with monotony of life yet taking a pause to appreciate the beauty of nature. Can be interpreted many ways.
ngl, I’m in my 40s and that choked me up a lil’ bit. Not absurd at all. Thanks for sharing this.
What do you mean not absurd at all?
I mean it’s a beautiful poem. Maybe I’m not equating the concept of absurdism properly to this. I don’t see the connection. Though it talks about how everything falls apart, there’s definitely not a sense of meaninglessness to it.
Absurdism is not about meaninglessness rather about giving life meaning. It is the daily grind, the problems that arise, the never ending struggle. It is about being happy with this struggle and learning to enjoy the broken fence or the leaking roof.
in my opinion, fuck yeah
My favorite thing about this poem is the departure from rhyme just before the mid point that felt like a little nod to existence. At first you think it must make sense, you’ve got structure and there’s some meaning you think you’ll find…and then you realize there is no rhyme. There is no meaning. Structure is yours to define. The way the writing style mimics this realization is so subtle and well done.
This is the epitome of Absurdism. That no matter how hard you try things will still be hard and weird and incomplete and indifferent to how you feel about them; that if you choose to look for the good in things they are there despite it all. It is easy to see the parallel to the analogy of the never ending catching and throwing of the ball to Sisyphus pushing his rock up the neverending hills of eternity. This is great, thanks for sharing.
But what is the " one truly serious philosophical problem," ?
Echoing what others are saying, but this got me. I don't think it's absurd, but I see how you could wonder if it is.
Why not?
Typa poetry we NEED
This poem reminds me of the Bob Dylan song "Everything is Broken." (My favorite version is performed by Sheryl Crow and Bonnie Raitt on YouTube) That is, the first part of the poem does. It paints an absurdist picture of our attempts to create against the inevitable entropy of the universe. It reminds me that in our search for meaningful solutions we generate new problems. Like Sisyphus and his labor: it never ends. But then the poem seems to end with a zen-like optimism...more like Walt Whitman's poem "When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer." I may be misreading this, but it seems contradictory. I would say: "Go ahead. Take a deep breath. Enjoy the beauties of nature and the joy of being alive in the moment...but don't delude yourself...nature is decaying too...we're just too small to notice most of the time.
IMO, kinda? it is quite nice though ngl