Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Waterfall" by Eileen Myles examines the role and limitations of poetry as an expressive medium, while also delving into the complexities of human emotions and existence. The poem presents itself as a series of fragmented thoughts, resonating with themes of life, death, identity, and materiality.

The opening lines address the often-romanticized idea of poetry, describing it as "something precious." The speaker challenges this view, asserting, "I'm a poct everything I say is an / echo or something else." This statement brings into focus the intertextuality that is inherent in all forms of expression-nothing exists in isolation. In Myles' perspective, even the most unique poetic expressions are echoes of something preexisting, casting doubt on the notion of originality or the 'sacredness' often associated with poetry.

The speaker's mention of "dust" evokes both ephemerality and continuity-dust is both the end point of all matter and a substance that has existed for ages. "When I hold you I think of dust," the speaker confesses, linking love and intimacy with existential ideas of mortality and impermanence.

Another striking feature is the address to a "you" who is both "a boy and a girl / with cash in your / hands." This addresses fluidity-of gender, of identity, and even of material worth. Cash is another form of 'dust,' a placeholder for value, much like how poetry is a placeholder for emotion and experience. Both are simultaneously tangible and intangible, certain yet also fleeting.

The mention of "roaches" in the end possibly alludes to the primal, the basic forms of life that continue to exist despite human complicacies. In talking about roaches, the poem might be drawing attention to the raw, unadorned aspects of existence that often go unnoticed or are considered unworthy of poetic exploration.

"Waterfall" defies conventional poetic form to delve into questions about life's uncertainties and the role of poetry in making sense of them. Its fragmented style mirrors the fractured way in which we experience the world. By rejecting complete sentences and traditional structure, the poem itself becomes an example of the limitations and struggles it discusses. It challenges our concepts of what is precious by juxtaposing the lofty realm of poetry with the gritty realities of existence-dust, cash, roaches, and all.

While challenging the romantic notions that often surround the craft of poetry, Eileen Myles also imbues it with an urgency. The poem becomes a space where the high and the low meet, where the spiritual rubs shoulders with the corporeal, and where life and art are revealed as intricately linked and equally unfathomable. Thus, "Waterfall" serves both as a critique of poetic expression and an affirmation of its necessity, capturing the contradictory and multi-layered nature of human existence.

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