Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Robert Wrigley’s "Sinatra" is a reflective and poignant meditation on identity, aspiration, and the shaping power of cultural icons. The poem uses the figure of Frank Sinatra as a lens through which the speaker explores his youthful illusions, the trials of adulthood, and the enduring allure of myth. Through vivid storytelling and introspective detail, Wrigley captures the tension between idealized masculinity and the reality of growing up.

The poem begins with a striking description of Sinatra as "That skinny fuck-up, all recklessness and bones," immediately establishing the icon’s duality: flawed and charismatic, defiant and alluring. The speaker recalls watching Sinatra portray Maggio in From Here to Eternity at a drive-in movie, an experience that solidified Sinatra as a model of the man the speaker aspired to become. The "magical drive-in dark" evokes a sense of youthful enchantment, a space where cinematic fantasy intersects with personal longing. In Sinatra, the speaker finds "the man I?d aim to be," a figure who embodies toughness, vulnerability, and style.

The poem’s early stanzas capture the intoxicating power of music and film in shaping identity. The speaker recalls discovering Sinatra in his father’s "dazzling collection of records," his image on the album cover exuding "steel in his blood, with style." The songs, "blue with heartbreak," resonate deeply with the speaker, teaching him that "weakness was ruin" and that love was both essential and dangerous. This conception of masculinity, rooted in the archetypes of the time, becomes a formative influence, blending the romanticized with the real.

As the speaker ages, the gap between fantasy and reality widens. In a pivotal moment five years later, the speaker’s youthful bravado—bolstered by his imagined alignment with Sinatra—leads him to a confrontation outside a nightclub. The use of a "fake ID" and the subsequent encounter with the bouncer are vivid and humiliating: "the bouncer... hit me once so hard in the gut / that I knelt among the sidewalk crowd and cried." This moment of defeat contrasts sharply with the confident, untouchable image of Sinatra, highlighting the speaker’s vulnerability and the disparity between his aspirations and reality.

The poem shifts to the present, where the speaker reflects on the passage of time and the persistence of Sinatra’s influence. The line "Sinatra and I have both outlived those early days" acknowledges the distance from youthful dreams while also tying the speaker’s narrative to Sinatra’s enduring cultural presence. The imagery of "whole weeks now / when I?m trapped inside the stereo?s thrall" suggests a lingering attachment to the myths of the past, with Sinatra’s songs evoking both comfort and regret. The "solitaire, whiskey, and comfort" offer a semblance of solace, yet the speaker confesses to waking up "empty," haunted by questions of identity: "what sort of man I might?ve been, what sort I?ve become."

Wrigley’s free verse structure mirrors the fluidity of memory, moving seamlessly between past and present. The conversational tone and candid language lend authenticity to the speaker’s introspection, while the vivid imagery—of drive-ins, records, and the bruising nightclub encounter—grounds the poem in specific, evocative details. The contrast between the youthful energy of the earlier stanzas and the subdued resignation of the later ones underscores the poem’s central themes of loss and reflection.

"Sinatra" is ultimately a meditation on the complex interplay between aspiration and reality, between the myths we inherit and the selves we construct. Through the figure of Sinatra, Robert Wrigley examines how cultural icons shape our understanding of masculinity and identity, while also acknowledging the inevitable disillusionment that comes with age. The poem resonates as both a tribute to Sinatra’s enduring mystique and a deeply personal exploration of the speaker’s own journey, leaving readers to reflect on the myths and memories that define their lives.

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