Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Alice Fulton’s "Everyone Knows the World Is Ending" is a contemplative exploration of apocalyptic fears, environmental degradation, and the enduring power of memory and love. The poem juxtaposes the persistent belief in an impending apocalypse with personal and familial reflections, highlighting the complex interplay between collective anxieties and individual experiences.

The opening lines establish the pervasive sentiment that "everyone knows the world is ending," a belief that has persisted throughout history. Fulton portrays a vivid scene of fundamentalists presenting doomsday scenarios in darkened gyms, their "endtime mess- / ages of bliss, tribulation" flashing through trembling bleachers. This imagery captures the dramatic and often sensational nature of apocalyptic predictions, blending religious prophecy with modern technology, as Christ is envisioned coming "by satellite TV." The mix of ancient fears and contemporary mediums underscores the timelessness of such anxieties.

Fulton then shifts to the environmental crisis, where ecologists predict a withering planet due to the greenhouse effect and acid rains turning lakes cyanotic. This scientific perspective on the world's end contrasts with the religious prophecies, grounding the apocalyptic narrative in observable phenomena. The juxtaposition of these perspectives reflects the multifaceted nature of humanity's fears about the future, whether divine or ecological.

Amidst these collective concerns, the poem turns inward to the speaker's mother, who speaks in memories that become "a focused mote in the apocalypse's / iridescent fizz." Her stories, shifting with each telling, aim to restore a world to glory, yet it is the emotional core of these memories that resonates most deeply. The mother’s grief, "like radium / in lead," and her visible dumb love, "like water / in crystal," are powerful metaphors for the enduring and tangible nature of love and loss. These emotions are described as "at one with what holds it," suggesting an intrinsic, unbreakable bond between feeling and memory.

Fulton then reflects on the nature of memory itself, which entices because "ending is / its antonym." Memory, by preserving moments, defies the finality of endings, offering a semblance of permanence. The brain's selective nature is highlighted as it shimmers "to a hand on skin while numbing the constant / stroke of clothes," emphasizing how specific, significant moments are retained while the mundane fades away.

The poem intertwines personal memories with broader reflections, as the speaker recalls her mother's cherished dress, the poignant moment of waking to see her father walk down the drive, and the realization of his death. These intimate recollections are juxtaposed with the larger existential themes, creating a tapestry of individual and collective experiences.

Fulton's closing lines return to the theme of memory's endurance, stating that "so long as we keep chanting the words / those worlds will live." This repetition underscores the fragile persistence of memory, reliant on continuous recollection and retelling. The final lines suggest a deeper, more mystical continuity beneath the transient nature of life: "in the love, the grief, under and above / the mother tongue, a permanence / hums: the steady mysterious / the coherent starlight." This enduring hum represents an intrinsic order and continuity that transcends individual lives and apocalyptic fears, echoing the steady, mysterious coherence of starlight.

"Everyone Knows the World Is Ending" is a richly layered poem that navigates the intersections of apocalyptic anxiety, environmental concern, and the profound depths of personal memory and love. Through her masterful use of imagery and metaphor, Alice Fulton invites readers to reflect on the enduring aspects of human experience that persist despite the looming threats of catastrophe, celebrating the power of memory and the intrinsic bonds that hold us together.

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