Celan's "Deathfugue"

BLOG PROMPT: Interpret the theme of death and martyrdom in one of Paul Celan’s poems.

     The tragic weight of loss that Paul Celan experienced thematically defined his writing. After losing both his parents in Nazi prison camps and spending a great deal of time during WWII in a forced labor camp, Celan “managed to write poetry that spoke directly about the unspeakable” (1467).  Celan thematically focuses on death and martyrdom to not only express his own loss but also the loss of a civilization that would allow such atrocities.

     In “Deathfugue” one of Celan’s most hauntingly moving poems he describes the horrors of concentration life using a refrain of short rhythmic lines to symbolically convey the “Tango of Death” (“the dance music that an SS commander forced prisoners to play during marches and executions” (1468)). The reader moves through the poem taking aesthetic pleasure in the rhythmic movement of the refrain but being unsettlingly aware that the beautiful rhythm is representative of large scale chaos where not even music can lend itself to civility.  The rhythm and music become a symbol of how lost civilization has become, and how everyone plays a dark martyred role in maintaining the chaos; “Black milk of daybreak we drink you at night we drink you at midday Death is a master…we drink you at evening and morning we drink and we drink this Death is ein Meister…” (1470).

     In “Deathfugue” Celan also uses the symbolism of hair color to express a decayed civilization that defines roles of worth and worthlessness by arbitrary standards. “The poem contrasts the golden hair of the commander’s beloved Margareta (a typically German name) with the dark hair of the Jewish Shulamith, a prisoner in the camp” (1468). Margareta’s golden hair represents those ‘fortunate’ enough to be defined by roles of ‘worth’. Her hair symbolizes light and the opportunity for life and is supposed to awaken a dark Germany; “he writes when it grows dark to Deutschland your golden hair Margareta” (1469). This faulty logic is immediately revealed when contrasted with the dark hair of Shulamith. Shulamith’s hair is described as ashen which symbolizes the bodies burned in the concentration camps; “Your ashen hair Shulamith we shovel a grave in the air where you won’t lie too cramped” (1469). The darkness over Germany is revealed as the horrific acts perpetrated against the Jews. This contrast reveals that  Margareta’s light does not  remove the darkness over Germany but in fact creates it; “a man lives in the house your goldness Haar Margarete he looses his hounds on us grants us a grave in the air he plays with his vipers and daydreams der Tod ist ein Meister aus Deutschland” (1470). 

Works Cited 

Celan, Paul. “Deathfugue.” Trans. John Felstiner. The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 1650 to the Present. Ed. Martin Puchner. Shorter 3rd ed. New York: Norton, 2013. 1469. Print. Vol. 2 of The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2 vols.

Neruda's "Walking Around"

BLOG PROMPT: What view of the city emerges from Pablo Neruda’s “Walking Around”?

     In “Walking Around” Pablo Neruda portrays the city as a destructive and demoralizing place. Neruda focuses on the city’s destructive power where the city symbolizes society and its inherent inequities. This power works to prevent the formation of an individualized identity because individuality is replaced by the inequities that come from a society fueled by materiality. Neruda “was an advocate for social justice and a leading cultural figure on the Communist left” his desire for social justice is reflected in his critical examination of city life and its inherent inequities (1421).

     The poem opens by Neruda expressing his desire for escape from city life, but realizing that the city itself has worked into his own self-identity; “I want nothing but the repose either of stones or of wool, I want to see no more establishments…nor merchandise…It happens that I am tired of my feet and my nails and my hair and my shadow. It happens that I am tired of being a man” (1423).  As Chile’s national poet Neruda was a representative of the people, and he expressed a longing to eradicate societal inequities all the while realizing his impuissant ability to do so; “It would be beautiful to go through the streets with a green knife shouting until I died of cold. I do not want to go on being a root in the dark, hesitating, stretched out, shivering with dreams downwards, in the wet tripe of the earth, soaking it up and thinking, eating every day” (1424).

    Although Neruda desires change he feels powerless under the oppressive weight of the city. Neruda expresses the fear and realization that because he is part of society he is also part of its system of inequities regardless of his desire for social justice; “I do not want to be the inheritor of so many misfortunes, I do not want to continue as a root and as a tomb…” (1424). Neruda concludes with his realization that he is a powerless part of society and sadly accepts his fate and his powerlessness; “I stride along with calm, with eyes, with shoes, with fury, with forgetfulness, I pass, I cross offices and stores full of orthopedic appliances, and courtyards hung with clothes on wires, underpants, towels and shirts which weep slow dirty tears” (1424).     

Works Cited

"Pablo Neruda." 1650 to the Present. Ed. Martin Puchner. Shorter 3rd ed. New York: Norton, 2013. 1421-1422. Print. Vol. 2 of The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2 vols.

 

Neruda, Pablo. “Walking Around.” Trans. W.S. Merwin. 1650 to the Present. Ed. Martin Puchner. Shorter 3rd ed. New York: Norton, 2013. 1423-1424. Print. Vol. 2 of The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2 vols.

 

Whitman Marti and Dario

Whitman, Martí, and Darío

BLOG PROMPT: Walt Whitman’s work was much admired by Latin American poets José Martí and Rubén Darío. Take one poem from Martí and Darío and identify any similarities that might exist with Whitman’s work. Landscape would be an important element to consider.

     Whitman, Marti and Dario were highly influential writers within their historical and geographic contexts. These three writers helped redefine their poetic cultures by challenging poetic traditions and conventions. Their influence upon their respective poetic cultures worked to define each poetic culture with a sense of nationalism. This nationalism was not free from societal examination and critique, but rather emphasized the ability of a culture to support positive change. The language of each of these influential writers appealed to and reflected the language of the everyman creating artistic cultures that were both revelatory and accessible.

       Whitman’s work was profoundly influential to nineteenth century American poetic culture. Although Whitman challenged poetic and thematic conventions he also worked to create a sense of nationalism; “the nation was such a crucial focus for his work. He was deliberately writing a new, quintessentially American poetry, an art form that would leave European values and traditions behind to celebrate a modern pluralistic democracy” (647). Whitman worked to establish America as its own defining source of art and artistic merit. Whitman’s poetic language “aimed to include all of modern life” (647). He often wrote in a conversational style without regard for poetic meter conventions. This accessibility allowed his poems to be read and understood by a wide and appreciative audience. This language was also used to create and define a sense of American nationalism. In the poem “Song of Myself” Whitman writes, “One of the Nation of many nations, the smallest the same and the largest the same…” (649). This desire to forge a sense of a truly American poetic culture is best described by Whitman himself when he asserted that “The Americans of all nations at any time upon the earth, have probably the fullest poetic nature. The United States themselves are essentially the greatest poem” (647).

     Similar to the way Whitman challenged European poetic traditions to forge a new nationalistic centered poetic culture, Jose Marti deliberately rejected “conventional Spanish verse forms paving the way for Latin American modernism” (680). The language of Marti’s poetry was highly accessible. Marti rejected the thematic and format complexities of Romantic era sentiments that had previously defined Spanish poetry. By reflecting values of the common man Marti helped to define a unique Cuban poetic culture free from the Spanish poetic conventions. Marti was a revolutionary who used his poetry to define independent Cuban nationalism. Marti was committed to the efforts to free Cuba from “Spanish colonial rule” (680). The accessibility and desired independent nationalism is reflected in Marti’s poem “I Am an Honest Man”; “I am an honest man From where the palm grows And before I die I wish To fling my verses from my soul. I come from everywhere And I am going toward everywhere: Among the arts, I am art…” (681).

     Like Whitman and Marti, Ruben Dario helped to define a unique poetic culture. Dario helped to establish and define Latin American poetic culture, and he was one of the first modernismo poets who sought an independent nationalistic poetic voice. What separates Dario from Whitman and Marti is that he often embraced traditional literary forms and thematic references to Greek as well as indigenous antiquity. Although he used these conventions, his work was startlingly modern because he addressed modern societal issues and cultural values. Dario’s poetry focused on verse musicality which heightened the influence of his verse to various Latin American folk cultures. Dario “displayed a new poetic awakening to contemporary political and cultural concerns, as well as a somber interrogations of the poet’s own mortality” (691). In his defiant poem “To Roosevelt” Dario exemplifies his desire to use poetry to both establish Latin American poetic culture as well as establish this culture as a means for political and social challenge; “You are the United States future invader of our naïve America with its Indian blood, an America that still prays to Christ and still speaks Spanish” (693). Dario had a profound impact on Latin American poetry he was such an influential artist that many “historians have broken the story of Spanish language poetry into two periods-before and after Dario” (691).

Works Cited

Dario, Ruben. "To Roosevelt." 1650 to the Present. Ed. Martin Puchner. Shorter 3rd ed. New York: Norton, 2013. 695. Print. Vol. 2 of The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2 vols.

Martí, Jose. "I Am an Honest Man." 1650 to the Present. Ed. Martin Puchner. Shorter 3rd ed. New York: Norton, 2013. 681. Print. Vol. 2 of The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2 vols.

Whitman, Walt. "Song of Myself." 1650 to the Present. Ed. Martin Puchner. Shorter 3rd ed. New York: Norton, 2013. 648-653. Print. Vol. 2 of The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2 vols.

How Gender is Defined in "The Rod of Justice"

 

BLOG PROMPT •Gender is a major component of the relationships in “The Rod of Justice.”  Explore how gender relates to power in the story.

   There is a level of complexity in the way that gender inequities are portrayed in Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis, “The Rod of Justice.” “Machado…had a longstanding fascination with questions of authority and control” (911). The story centers on the main character Damiao who, seeking escape from his seminary obligations, requests the aide of his godfather’s mistress, Sinha Rita to wield her sexual powers over his godfather in efforts to support his escape. The complexity of Sinha Rita’s gender defined role is that she is portrayed as having a certain amount of power within the story. She is independent, she wields a sexual power over Joao Carneiro, and she has the power to change the course of action for Damiao. However, upon deeper reading Sinha Rita’s power is only surface level because she is limited by gender inequities and her gender defined role within a patriarchal society.

     The story immediately defines Damiao as the key manipulator of Sinha Rita’s power. He is aware of the sexual power she wields over his godfather and sets out to use this power to his advantage. Sinha Rita is manipulated into action by Damiao’s thought out challenge to this power she wields, “My godfather He’s even worse than papa, he doesn’t pay any attention to what I say, I don’t believe he’d pay attention to anyone…” “No?” interrupted Sinha Rita, her pride pricked. “Well, I’ll show him whether he’ll pay attention or not…” (913). The power Sinha Rita does wield over Joao Carnerio is defined by sexuality limiting the function of female gendered power to a form of manipulation. Machado also skillfully brings into question Sinha Rita’s existence as an independent business woman because she is a slave owner who teaches slaves the art of “lacemaking.” Her reliance on the instability of these societal power structures highlights the lack of independence Sinha Rita has because she has a dependency upon an unjust and unstable social system. Sinha Rita wields a violent and unforgiving power over the young slave girls. Machado portrays Sinha Rita in this way to highlight that her adherence to the oppressive societal system of slavery is also her acceptance of her own oppression. The power she wields over the slave girls contributes to the inequities of the societal systems that enforce her own gender defined limitations. Even during the end of the story Sinha Rita’s power is limited. Sinha Rita demands that Damiao hands her a rod so that she can hit a poor slave girl. Throughout the story the reader is privy to Damiao’s disapproval of Sinha Rita’s violent power over the slave girls. Damiao even makes the promise to himself that he will protect one of the young girls however, when his own freedom is challenged he quickly ignores past moral certitudes despite the young slave girl’s pleas for help. With this action Machado defines Sinha Rita’s power as a temptress. She becomes the moral downfall of Daimio’s virtuous character. Machado highlights that gender defined roles that limit the female to roles of seductress, and sin filled blame, really remove male ownership of wrongdoing as well as ownership of the creation of societal instability.

     In “The Rod of Justice” Machado offers a look into gender based social inequities that tie into the oppressive systems of slavery. What is revealed is that Sinha Rita’s power is but a lie, and the real power is both wielded and ultimately defined by an oppressive male-centric society, “Machado, more than any of his contemporaries, set out to expose the attitudes and the lies that sustained this lopsided society” (911).

Works Cited

"Joaquim Maria Machado de Assis." 1650 to the Present. Ed. Martin Puchner. Shorter 3rd ed. New York: Norton, 2013. 910-911. Print. Vol. 2 of The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2 vols.

  Machado de Assis, Joaqium Maria. "The Rod of Justice." 1650 to the Present. Ed. Martin Puchner. Shorter 3rd ed. New York: Norton, 2013. 911-916. Print. Vol. 2 of The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 2 vols.