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Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained | |||
"In the Month of May" by Robert Bly is a reflective and tender poem that captures the essence of love, growth, and interconnectedness within the natural world and human experience. Set against the backdrop of spring—a time of renewal and blooming—Bly uses the unfolding of leaves, the industriousness of bees, and the effortless existence of fish to illustrate the organic and supportive relationships that define the natural world. Through this lens, the poem delves into the nature of love, presenting it as an evolving, unfinished process that, like spring, is full of potential and change. The poem begins with the observation of the natural world in May, a time when life reawakens and thrives in mutual dependence. This setting serves as a metaphor for the growth and interconnection inherent in the act of loving someone. Bly notes how "all things lean on each other," a simple yet profound acknowledgment of the interconnectedness of life. This observation extends into a personal declaration of love, one that is valued not for its completeness or perfection but for its potential and its imperfections. The speaker loves with what is "unfinished" and "still changing," suggesting that love, like any living thing, grows and evolves over time. The imagery of monarchs flying high transitions the poem from the concrete observations of nature to the more abstract and spiritual realm of love and longing. This flight symbolizes the aspiration and transcendent qualities of love, elevating the emotion beyond the physical realm to something more profound and expansive. The speaker's acknowledgment of loving with parts of themselves that "have not found its body" speaks to the idea that love is not merely a physical or emotional state but a spiritual journey that encompasses the entirety of one's being, including the unknown and the yet-to-be-realized. Bly then introduces elements of the mystical and the miraculous, questioning why the divine should not partake in the humble offerings of the earth or visit the solitary old man. This blending of the earthly with the heavenly, the human with the divine, further emphasizes the poem's theme of interconnectedness and the sanctity of all aspects of existence. The mention of Gabriel, the angel who loves honey, being fed with "our own radishes and walnuts" is a beautiful image that underscores the unity of the sacred and the profane, the celestial and the terrestrial. The poem concludes with a reflection on the nature of lovers—those "whose holy bodies are not yet born"—suggesting that love's potential is infinite and transcends the physical boundaries of the here and now. The longing to spend the night in various places "along the roads" is a metaphor for the journey of love, filled with stops and starts, discoveries, and the continuous search for moments of connection and intimacy. "In the Month of May" is a celebration of love in its most unrefined and evolving state. It acknowledges that true love is not static but a dynamic force that grows, changes, and interconnects with the larger tapestry of life. Through the vivid imagery of the natural world and the invocation of the mystical, Robert Bly crafts a poem that is both grounded and transcendent, capturing the profound beauty of loving and being in a state of becoming. POEM TEXT: https://www.writersalmanac.org/index.html%3Fp=8099.html
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