Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Homage to Emerson, on Night Flight to New York: 5. Multiplication" by Robert Penn Warren continues the thematic exploration of existentialism, reality, and perception, using the imagery of light and darkness to delve into complex emotional and philosophical territory. The poem juxtaposes grand, abstract concepts with intimate, visceral experiences, drawing a picture of a world that is both dazzling and enigmatic.

The poem opens with a striking simile: if the Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center were magnified a billion times and flattened out with a steamroller, but all the colored lights remained intact and blazing, that would represent the vastness and mystery of existence. This metaphor conveys the enormity and complexity of the world, suggesting that even when things are compressed or simplified, the essential brilliance and mystery remain. The image of the "billion times bigger" tree flattened "thin as paper" yet retaining its lights implies the persistence of wonder and intricacy, even in a world that often seems flattened by the weight of modern life.

This sense of vastness and darkness is further explored as the speaker recalls standing on a pier at Coney Island on a winter's night. The "empty darkness" howling "like a dog" conveys a sense of loneliness and the unknown, while the faint flashlight of a cop patrolling locked storefronts offers a fleeting glimpse of human presence in an otherwise desolate setting. The stars are described as "small and white," emphasizing their distance and the smallness of human life in contrast to the universe's expanse. The sound of the sea "sucking the piles of the pier" with a noise akin to "an old woman sucking her teeth in the dark" adds an eerie, almost haunting quality to the scene, reinforcing the theme of the incomprehensible vastness and quiet menace of the natural world.

The poem then shifts back to the interior of the airplane, where the "nose of the DC-8 dips," signaling a change in altitude and, metaphorically, a descent into deeper introspection. The man beside the speaker begins reciting the multiplication table audibly. This moment of mundane arithmetic contrasts sharply with the abstract imagery and existential musings, serving as a reminder of the simplicity and repetition of certain aspects of life amidst the chaos and complexity. It may also suggest a grasping for order or control in a world that often defies both.

Below, the individual lights of the city "throb like nerve ends," portraying the city as a living, breathing organism. Each light represents a life, unique and complex, but also fleeting and isolated. The speaker mentions having friends down there, whose lives have "strange shapes / Like eggs splattered on the kitchen floor." This visceral image captures the fragility and randomness of existence, suggesting that lives, though shining like "oil-slicks on dark water," are often messy, fragile, and difficult to comprehend. There is an expression of love or connection to these lives, indicating a shared human condition despite the apparent isolation each person experiences.

In the final lines, a telephone rings continuously "in a room, somewhere," emphasizing the idea of missed connections or unanswered calls. It symbolizes communication attempts that go unheard or unheeded, highlighting the isolation and disconnection that can pervade modern life. The persistent ringing of the telephone could also represent the unending quest for meaning, a call that remains unanswered, reinforcing the poem's existential undertones.

Overall, "Multiplication" explores the tension between the vast, often overwhelming complexity of existence and the individual's struggle to find meaning within it. Through a blend of abstract metaphors and concrete imagery, Warren delves into themes of isolation, connection, and the human desire to impose order on a seemingly indifferent universe. The poem encapsulates a sense of wonder mixed with existential dread, capturing the dual nature of human experience as one of both illumination and darkness.

Copyright (c) 2025 PoetryExplorer

Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!

Other Poems of Interest...