In the first stanza Nemerov introduces the blue swallows' flight as a sort of whimsical experience. He refers to their path as kaleidoscopic and overall entirely too much for the human mind to trace and remember. Carrying on to the next stanza, he states "“History is where tensions were/Form is the diagram of forces." Although, I am not fully comprehensive of what he means by this I can assume that it is related to the birds' path as he continues to talk about its magnificence and organic nature. He is viewing the birds from above and comments on how peculiar it is to be above the birds, being that they are always flying above us. He begins to draw on the idea that the birds' flight mimics writing. The speaker's observation of the birds' flight is a reflection of his admiration for the beauty that lies in nature.
He begins to ridicule his thoughts for wandering so far off, but not so much in a condescending way. He comments on the philosopher William of Ockham calling him a villain, and adds that when one is truly awakened then they too will see what the birds are writing in the air. As the observation unfolds so does his understanding of Self and "the point" of life.
Overall, the poem ends with the idea that if we take the time to adore nature (and in essence life's simple treasures) we can find the peace that will render the end of tears.
The Blue Swallows in the poem are definitely a symbol in the poem for Nemerov's somewhat strained relationship with writing. However, I would've taken this interpretation just a step further; that is, the Blue Birds are a representation of the literary tradition as a whole. When looking at the simple beauty of the birds, Nemerov wonders why poets of the past and present seek to apply some form of deeper meaning behind the invisible ink that the swallows use to write through the sky. This is the purpose served by the reference to Occam's Razor; while flowery language and deeper meaning may look impressive, in the end, a bird flying through the air is just a bird in flight.
ReplyDeleteGreat analysis! I agree with your post though I think it's important to recognize poetry's importance in the final lines his argument isn't simply that we need to look to nature but rather that poetry gives us a lens through which we can experience the mundane in new and exciting ways. At least that's how i came to understand the final stanza. the line "Because the mind’s eye lit the sun." in particular suggest that the brains interpretation of nature is as important to the experience as nature itself.
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