Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

In Jane Hirshfield's "The Decision," the poem delves into the precarious, often fleeting moment of choice that precedes irreversible change. It speaks to the tension of potentiality, the instant where a decision hasn't yet hardened into outcome-a universal human experience that lends itself to myriad interpretations.

The poem opens with the imagery of "a moment before a shape hardens, a color sets," conjuring a vision of fluidity and malleability, whether in the form of clay before it is fired in a kiln, or ink before it dries on paper. This serves as an allegory for the decisions we confront, which have the power to shape our lives in meaningful ways.

The lines "The letter might still be taken / from the mailbox. / The hand held back by the elbow, / the word kept between the larynx pulse" offer palpable instances of such pivotal moments. Whether it's sending a consequential letter, touching someone, or speaking transformative words, the poem captures the suspense of decisions hovering on the verge of becoming actions.

These critical moments are illustrated as being incredibly narrow, even narrower than "the thorax of an ant." Despite this narrowness, the poem suggests an immense weight to these decisions, likening them to the "green coat on old copper." In this finely tuned balance between minuscule and heavy, the poem encapsulates the gravity and the nuance of the choices we make.

Yet, Hirshfield's poem transcends mere depiction to discuss what comes after-the change that "slips through it." Once the decision is made, change ensues, neither categorized as "exile" nor "hope," but simply as an irreversible alteration. The comparison of this change to a "sandy track-rut" becoming a "Silk Road" is particularly powerful, suggesting that decisions can transform something inconsequential into something monumental, something that "cannot be after turned back from."

Hirshfield presents the phenomenon of decision-making not as a grand, sweeping movement but as a subtler, quieter shift that nonetheless brings about a transformation. She explores the implications of choices made or not made, words spoken or held back, acknowledging both the gravity and the delicacy of these moments.

The poem doesn't judge the act of deciding one way or another; it simply observes the irrevocable nature of decision-making and how it shapes our lives, bringing about changes that are as permanent as they are undefined. In doing so, "The Decision" serves as a nuanced meditation on the complexities of human agency, capturing the essence of choices that are, once made, both binding and liberating.

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