Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"First Book of Odes: 13. Fearful Symmetry" by Basil Bunting presents a vivid, satirical portrayal of the public's fascination with the exotic and dangerous, embodied by a tiger imported from Kuala Lumpur. Through this depiction, Bunting explores themes of beauty, brutality, and the commodification of nature, challenging societal perceptions and values.

The title, "Fearful Symmetry," echoes William Blake's "The Tyger" from "Songs of Experience," which meditates on the duality of creation and the coexistence of beauty and terror. Bunting's ode, however, takes a more cynical view, focusing on the spectacle created around the tiger and the superficial appreciation of its majesty and power.

The opening description of the tiger, with "Muzzle and jowl and beastly brow, / bilious glaring eyes, tufted ears," immediately sets a tone of awe mixed with fear, emphasizing the animal's fierce and untamed nature. The phrase "recidivous criminality in the slouch" humorously attributes human qualities of lawlessness to the tiger, suggesting a judgemental perspective that fails to recognize the tiger's behavior as natural rather than morally wrong.

The satire sharpens as Bunting describes the attention the tiger receives: "7 photographers, 4 black-and-white artists and an R.A. / are taking his profitable likeness; / 28 reporters and an essayist / are writing him up." This frenzy of activity to capture and commodify the tiger's image for profit and entertainment underscores society's obsession with spectacle and the reduction of a majestic creature to an object of consumption.

Sundry ladies who find the tiger "a darling" especially during meal times represent the public's fascination with violence from a safe distance, romanticizing the predatory nature of the tiger without understanding its reality. The mention of replicas being sold "fullgrown on approval for easy cash payments" further critiques the commercialization of exotic animals, reducing living beings to mere decorations or status symbols.

The tiger, named Bobo, is ultimately depicted as indifferent to the circus around him, "indifferent to beauty or brutality." This line suggests that the tiger exists beyond human constructs and values, embodying a raw, indifferent nature that contrasts sharply with the human world's attempts to categorize and control.

Bunting concludes with a nod to the tiger's rumored history of eating several persons, adding an element of danger and mystery that fuels the public's fascination. The skepticism in "but of course you can never be quite sure of these things" hints at the sensationalism and exaggeration that often accompany such stories, questioning the reliability of narratives constructed around the exotic and the dangerous.

"First Book of Odes: 13. Fearful Symmetry" serves as a critique of human attitudes towards nature, challenging the viewer to reconsider the ethics of captivity, commodification, and the shallow appreciation of beauty that ignores the deeper, more complex realities of the natural world. Through this ode, Bunting calls into question the societal values that prioritize spectacle and profit over genuine understanding and respect for the majesty and autonomy of wild creatures.

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