Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Robert Creeley's poem "The Three Ladies" presents a surreal and haunting meditation on desire, mystery, and the inevitability of mortality. Through dreamlike imagery and a narrative that blurs the lines between fantasy and reality, Creeley explores themes of temptation, introspection, and existential realization. The three ladies become emblematic of the allure of desire, yet they also seem to carry a warning or a premonition, blending intimacy with unease. The poem’s progression from fascination to a darker, contemplative tone reflects a journey into self-awareness, where moments of longing intersect with deeper truths about life and death.

The poem opens with the speaker recounting a dream: "I dreamt. I saw three ladies in a tree, / and the one that I saw most clearly / showed her favors unto me." This line introduces an almost fairy-tale-like quality, where three mysterious women occupy a tree, an image that suggests both natural beauty and mystery. The tree could symbolize the connection between the earthly and the ethereal, as it roots into the ground while reaching into the sky. The lady’s gesture of “showing her favors” introduces an element of seduction, a glimpse into the intimate or hidden. This phrase suggests a moment of connection or privilege, as if the speaker has been chosen or marked by one of the ladies. The image of “her leg above the knee” conveys a provocative intimacy, hinting at physical attraction and desire.

However, the tone shifts when the speaker says, "But when the time for love was come, / and of readiness I had made myself, / upon my head and shoulders / dropped the other two like an unquiet dew." Here, the speaker prepares for a moment of love or intimacy, only to experience an unsettling presence as the other two ladies descend upon him. The phrase “unquiet dew” suggests something delicate yet invasive, evoking a feeling of coldness or discomfort. This unexpected intrusion introduces an ominous quality, as if the presence of these two additional figures complicates or disrupts the expected moment of intimacy. Rather than a scene of mutual affection, the encounter becomes weighted with an inexplicable anxiety, hinting at a deeper, possibly ominous significance.

The question, "What were these two but the one?" suggests an attempt to understand the relationship between the ladies. The speaker observes, "I saw in their faces, I heard in their words, / wonder of wonders! it was the undoing of me / they came down to see!" This line implies that the two additional ladies share an enigmatic connection with the first, possibly representing different aspects of the same being or variations of a single desire or temptation. The phrase "it was the undoing of me" reveals the speaker’s sense of vulnerability or susceptibility to this encounter, as if the descent of these figures has unraveled his composure or control. This line captures a moment of existential recognition, where the speaker is forced to confront something unsettling or destabilizing within himself.

The following lines, "Sister, they said to her who upon my lap / sat complacent, expectant," introduce a dialogue among the ladies, which further complicates the speaker’s understanding. The address of “Sister” reinforces the idea of a shared identity or connection among the three, while the words “sat complacent, expectant” suggest a calm anticipation in the lady on the speaker’s lap. However, the sisters’ message is chilling: "he is dead in his head, and we / have errands, have errands…" The phrase "dead in his head" could imply a lack of awareness, an inability to fully grasp or comprehend the situation. It suggests that the speaker may be lost in his own illusions or misconceptions, failing to recognize the true nature of the encounter. The mention of "errands" suggests a purpose or task for the ladies, implying that they have a role to fulfill, perhaps even as agents of fate or harbingers of mortality.

The next lines, "Oh song of wistful night! Light shows / where it stops nobody knows, and two / are one, and three, to me, and to look / is not to read the book," further emphasize the poem’s theme of ambiguity and the limits of understanding. The phrase "song of wistful night" suggests a sense of longing or melancholy, as if the night itself holds secrets that cannot be fully comprehended. The mention of “light” stopping at an unknown point evokes a sense of limitation, implying that human understanding is finite and unable to penetrate the mysteries of existence. "Two are one, and three, to me," suggests that the boundaries between the figures are fluid, reflecting the interconnectedness of the three ladies and hinting that they might represent a single, complex force rather than separate individuals. The statement "to look / is not to read the book" implies that surface appearances are deceiving and that true understanding requires a deeper engagement with the self and the mysteries of life.

The final lines, presented in italics, echo a nursery rhyme-like chant: "Oh one, two, three! Oh one, two three! / Three old ladies sat in a tree." This closing refrain contrasts sharply with the preceding lines, injecting a sense of childlike rhythm that feels at odds with the poem’s dark themes. This singsong repetition gives the poem an eerie, haunting quality, as if the nursery rhyme masks a deeper truth about mortality, desire, or fate. By reducing the three ladies to "old ladies," Creeley may be hinting at the inevitability of aging and death, transforming the seductive figures into symbols of life’s transient beauty and the inexorable passage of time.

Through "The Three Ladies," Creeley delves into themes of desire, mortality, and the limits of human understanding. The ladies in the tree serve as figures of allure and mystery, drawing the speaker into an encounter that is both tempting and disconcerting. The dreamlike quality of the poem blurs the line between fantasy and reality, suggesting that desire and existential awareness are intertwined in complex, often unsettling ways. By the poem’s end, Creeley leaves readers with more questions than answers, emphasizing the enigmatic nature of human experience and the ultimate unknowability of life’s deeper truths.

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