Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

In "The Curse," John Hollander juxtaposes the external, mechanical world of the city with the intimate, emotional world of a couple, creating a layered narrative that explores themes of anticipation, hope, and the cyclical nature of fear and reassurance. Through vivid imagery and contrasting settings, Hollander delves into the complexities of human experience, capturing the tension between external appearances and internal realities.

The poem opens with a "delicate arch of steel" rising above "desolate streets," immediately setting a scene of urban isolation. The arch, possibly a bridge or an architectural structure, stands as a symbol of human ingenuity amidst the desolation of the city. The "river's long-since-fallen water" lies "darkly quiet," reflecting "golden lights from rewarding shores." This imagery of the river holding lights in its "broad lap" suggests a contrast between the still, dark water and the distant, unattainable rewards symbolized by the golden lights. The river, influenced by the moon's pull, represents the inexorable flow of time and change, tugging everything "downward" and unstopped out of the bay, mirroring the inevitability of life's movements and transitions.

Inside the subway, the atmosphere is one of anticipation and uncertainty. The "yellow lights of the hopeless IRT" flicker and die momentarily as the train moves, echoing the transient and unpredictable nature of the couple's situation. The couple stands at the front window, watching the tunnel "crash into their faces," a metaphor for the unavoidable confrontation with their reality. The woman's delay in her menstrual cycle heightens their anxiety, encapsulating their fear and hope as they "wait to stop waiting / For something inside to happen."

On the surface, the poem suggests a forthcoming blessing, "falling on her one morning / When they are separate." This anticipated relief is imagined as a moment of reassurance when they meet in the evening, under the "fluorescence from the grocer's," where she will tell him, "It's all right now," to which he responds, "I thought so." This exchange, filled with relief and the affirmation of normalcy, leads them to "scamper / Uptown toward a shining corner," symbolizing a momentary escape from their anxiety.

However, the poem complicates this seeming resolution by questioning whether they are "Blessed? Cursed? Or merely / Commanded to be?" This ambiguity underscores the cyclical nature of their experience. Emerging "from love's subway" to "reclaim a world / Not lost, but checked at an entrance" suggests that their fears and hopes are constantly revisited, merely paused rather than resolved. The "delayed mundane omen" of her period becomes a metaphor for the ongoing uncertainty and the repetitive nature of their emotional journey.

Hollander's imagery of moving "from depth to surface, / Over the skin-deep avenues" captures the superficiality of the external world compared to the profound depths of their internal experiences. The repetitive phrase "And so on. And so forth." emphasizes the endless cycle of their fears and reassurances, suggesting that such experiences are an inherent part of their existence.

The poem's conclusion returns to the imagery of light and darkness, with the light being "revoked" as "the moon's dark falls / Across the tar of rooftops." The gathering shadows of a "long fortnight past" indicate the recurring nature of their anxieties. In the "wheal and flare / Of another underground / Tube," the shadows mold their cheeks and bright, unhollowed eyes, symbolizing the persistent and unavoidable presence of their fears even as they continue to navigate their lives.

"The Curse" ultimately captures the tension between hope and fear, the mundane and the profound, and the cyclical nature of human experience. Hollander's use of contrasting imagery and settings deepens the emotional resonance of the poem, highlighting the complexities of the couple's journey through love, anticipation, and the relentless passage of time.

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