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Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained | |||
"Condition of the Working Classes: 1960" by Robert Bly is a poignant commentary on the socio-economic landscape of the United States during the early 1960s, reflecting on the cyclical nature of poverty, the inculcation of conservative values, and the militarization of American society. Through a series of transformative images, Bly captures the essence of a nation caught in the throes of industrial expansion, Cold War anxieties, and the burgeoning civil rights movement, illustrating how these dynamics impact the lives of the working class and their children. The poem begins with a stark image of "bricks trapped in thousands of pale homes," symbolizing the confinement and stagnation experienced by the working class, whose lives are literally and figuratively 'bricked in' by their socio-economic conditions. The reference to "pale children who in time will vote Republican" suggests the perpetuation of conservative ideologies through generations, perhaps as a result of economic aspirations or the internalization of values that prioritize individualism and material success, despite the odds being stacked against these very children. The motif of black stones beneath their pillows evokes a sense of heaviness and foreboding, implying the burdens and fears that accompany a life of economic uncertainty. This image seamlessly transitions into the surreal vision of cars ascending into the heavens, their fenders transforming into drifting clouds—an allegory for the escapism or transcendence that consumer culture promises, yet fails to deliver for many. Bly's use of metamorphic imagery continues as he describes the faces of children morphing into the doors of aircraft factories, symbolizing the direct connection between the innocence of youth and the machinery of war and industry. These factories, "far off the street, behind grass, with a blue door," represent the hidden, yet omnipresent, military-industrial complex that underpins American economic and political power. The transformation of doors into small holes in paper through which the blue sky is seen, and then into decks of cards and pine chunks beneath axles, further illustrates the fluidity and impermanence of the working-class condition. These images evoke a sense of entrapment and futility, with the aspirations and lives of the working class being gambled away or absorbed into the machinery of war ("missiles with warheads climbing up") and industry. The final transformation of axles into missiles and then into the aisles of a church, with church doors changing back into the faces of children beside new trees, captures the cyclical nature of hope and renewal amidst despair. The church and new trees may symbolize a search for spiritual solace or the potential for growth and change, even in the face of overwhelming societal forces. "Condition of the Working Classes: 1960" is a deeply evocative poem that critiques the American dream and the realities of the working class. Through its rich, transformative imagery, the poem reflects on the ways in which economic conditions, political ideologies, and the military-industrial complex shape and constrain the lives and futures of working-class families, all while hinting at the possibility of rebirth and transformation amidst these challenges.
| Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...ODE TO BIG TREND by TERRANCE HAYES AFTER WORKING SIXTY HOURS AGAIN FOR WHAT REASON by HICOK. BOB DAY JOB AND NIGHT JOB by ANDREW HUDGINS BIXBY'S LANDING by ROBINSON JEFFERS ON BUILDING WITH STONE by ROBINSON JEFFERS LINES FROM A PLUTOCRATIC POETASTER TO A DITCH-DIGGER by FRANKLIN PIERCE ADAMS IN CALIFORNIA: MORNING, EVENING, LATE JANUARY by DENISE LEVERTOV |
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