Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Pictures at an Exhibition; for Pamela Stewart" by Norman Dubie is a poetic meditation that intertwines themes of mortality, art, and personal reflection within the framework of a vividly depicted scene. Dubie's poem draws inspiration from Modest Mussorgsky's famous piano suite "Pictures at an Exhibition," which itself was inspired by a visit to an art exhibition. The suite, like the poem, uses music—or in Dubie's case, imagery—to evoke the experience of moving through an exhibition of artworks.

Dubie sets the scene with "the great gates of Kiev," a reference to one of Mussorgsky's compositions. He describes a moment of stillness and anticipation among a crowd, where even the children fall silent due to an approaching storm. This silence and the incoming storm serve as metaphors for the overshadowing presence of fate or destiny that affects all lives.

The poem vividly describes various characters and elements that seem to come out of a fantastical or surreal exhibition: jugglers, dwarves, priests, and an old troubadour, each contributing to the carnival-like atmosphere. However, this lively scene is set against the backdrop of an impending storm, adding a layer of tension and foreboding.

A significant aspect of the poem is the imagery of skulls "illuminated from within themselves," suggesting that there is something inherently luminous or enlightened about the skeletal remains, perhaps symbolizing wisdom or insight gained through death. Dubie suggests that in death, all distinctions are erased ("all of the skulls are grinning"), pointing to a universal human experience that transcends individual differences.

Dubie's narrative moves from the public spectacle to the personal, indicating that while the poem may start with an exhibition, it delves into the deeply personal realms of belief, existence, and the interplay between life and death. He writes, "It is not personal music that believes in one soul, or two twined for or against mystery, this is misery..." Here, Dubie acknowledges the suffering that comes with profound existential realizations, yet he also acknowledges the shared human experience through art and communal expressions of emotion, like those evoked by the exhibition.

Ultimately, the poem itself acts as a sort of exhibition, displaying not only images and scenes but also the emotions and philosophical contemplations they evoke. Dubie closes on a reflective note, musing on the transitory nature of life ("All motion is a little arc between two deaths") and questioning the potential for justification through enlightenment or understanding ("And if you think you are justified by light then you have rolled"). This ending leaves the reader contemplating the complexities of human life, art, and the inevitable conclusion of death, mirroring the emotional and intellectual journey one might experience walking through an art exhibition.

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