Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Robert Creeley’s poem "The Prejudice" is a brief, introspective meditation on longing, regret, and the passage of time. Through a few carefully chosen lines, Creeley explores the feeling of having missed out on certain experiences and the melancholy realization that some things in life remain forever unattainable. The speaker’s tone is one of quiet resignation, accepting the limits imposed by age and circumstance. At the same time, the poem subtly raises questions about the nature of desire and the inevitability of unfulfilled dreams, inviting readers to consider how certain experiences or ideals can take on an outsized importance simply because they remain beyond reach.

The poem opens with a somewhat humorous yet poignant confession: "There is a despair one comes to, / awkwardly, in never having known / apple-breasted women." The phrase "a despair one comes to" suggests a slow realization, a coming to terms with something that might have been ignored or downplayed in the past. The use of the word "awkwardly" adds a layer of vulnerability, as if the speaker is uncomfortable with admitting this particular regret. By referring to "apple-breasted women," the speaker employs a somewhat archaic, almost idealized image of femininity. This description seems to echo a traditional, even stereotypical, ideal of womanhood, perhaps alluding to a romanticized vision that feels distant or unreal. In expressing regret over not having "known" such women, the speaker acknowledges a sense of missed opportunity or a gap in life experiences that he now feels acutely.

The next lines, "But that time was inapproachable / when I was younger / and now am older," convey a sense of frustration and helplessness regarding the passage of time. The phrase "that time was inapproachable" suggests that there was never a moment when this idealized experience was realistically attainable. The speaker’s youth, for some reason, did not offer the opportunity, and now, in old age, it is too late. This sense of time slipping away, of never having been quite in sync with one’s desires, adds to the feeling of quiet resignation. The speaker seems to recognize the futility of longing for something that was always out of reach, yet the regret lingers, a subtle reminder of the limitations that age and circumstance impose.

The final lines, "O is that destiny, / she said to me," introduce a female voice, who offers a philosophical response to the speaker’s lament. Her question, "is that destiny," suggests a fatalistic perspective, as if she is proposing that the speaker’s experiences—or lack thereof—were predetermined. By framing his missed opportunities as "destiny," she implies that there is an inevitability to his life’s course, a path shaped by forces beyond his control. This notion of destiny contrasts with the earlier tone of personal regret, reframing the speaker’s unfulfilled desires as part of a larger, perhaps impersonal, design. Her comment seems to offer a degree of comfort or acceptance, encouraging the speaker to see his life in terms of what was meant to be rather than what he might have missed.

Structurally, "The Prejudice" is composed of short, enjambed lines that mirror the introspective nature of the poem. The simplicity of the language and the absence of elaborate metaphors or complex syntax lend the poem an almost conversational quality, as if the speaker is sharing a quiet confession. Creeley’s choice to end the poem with the woman’s question rather than an answer underscores the open-endedness of the speaker’s reflections, leaving readers to ponder the meaning of destiny and the role of personal desire within it.

Through "The Prejudice," Creeley examines the intersection of personal regret and existential acceptance, inviting readers to consider the ways in which unfulfilled desires shape one’s understanding of self and life’s purpose. The poem’s title, "The Prejudice," may hint at the speaker’s own biases or preconceived notions about what he should have experienced, as well as the broader human tendency to yearn for ideals that remain forever out of reach. In the end, the poem captures a moment of quiet resignation, as the speaker grapples with the inevitability of missed opportunities while contemplating the possibility that such absences are, in fact, part of a greater, unknowable design.

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