Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Lawrence Ferlinghetti’s poem "Queens Cemetery, Setting Sun" portrays a striking juxtaposition between life and death, capturing the passage of an airport bus through Queens, New York. The poem is steeped in vivid imagery and historical context, providing a snapshot of the city’s immigrant heritage while also conveying a poignant reflection on mortality.

The poem begins with a straightforward description: "Airport bus from JFK / cruising through Queens." This opening situates the reader immediately in a specific location and sets the scene for the journey through the cemetery. The bus is "passing huge endless cemetery / by Long Island’s old expressway," noting how the expressway was "once a dirt path for wheelless Indians." Ferlinghetti acknowledges the precolonial past of the region, hinting at the layered history beneath the modern landscape.

Ferlinghetti describes the cemetery as a field of "myriad small tombstones tilted up / gesturing statues on parapets / stone arms or wings upraised / lost among illegible inscriptions." The imagery suggests a chaotic yet serene resting place where the headstones are "tilted up" and the statues gesture upwards as if reaching toward the sky. The inscriptions on the headstones are "illegible," symbolizing the fading memory of those buried there.

The setting sun plays a crucial role in the poem’s atmosphere, as it paints the headstones with "an ochre brush." The sun illuminates the tombstones on "one side only," emphasizing the passage of time and the transience of light. The "rows and rows and rows and rows / of small stone slabs" are "tilted toward the sun forever," signifying a timeless and eternal embrace of the sunlight, even as darkness approaches.

In the distance, "Mannahatta’s great stone slabs / skyscraper tombs and parapets" loom on the horizon, casting "long black shadows / over all these long-haired graves." The skyscrapers are described as "tombs," highlighting the contrast between the living city and the cemetery. Their shadows stretch over the graves, emphasizing the urban encroachment on the cemetery and the inescapable reality of death.

Ferlinghetti then turns his attention to the diverse inhabitants of the cemetery, describing them as "the final restless places / of old-country potato farmers / dustbin pawnbrokers / dead dagos and Dublin bouncers." This list continues, encompassing a wide range of professions and ethnicities, from "tinsmiths and blacksmiths and roofers" to "house painters and house carpenters / cabinet makers and cigar makers." The inclusion of various working-class professions and immigrant groups underscores the melting pot that is New York City.

The poem further lists "garment workers and streetcar motormen / railroad switchmen and signal salesmen / swabbers and sweepers and swampers / steam-fitters and key-punch operators." The repetition of different professions builds a rhythm that mimics the relentless passage of time and the endless procession of people who shaped New York's history.

Ferlinghetti introduces more colorful characters, such as "ward heelers and labor organizers / railroad dicks and smalltime mafiosi / shopkeepers and saloon keepers and doormen / icemen and middlemen and conmen." These figures are balanced by "housekeepers and housewives and dowagers / French housemaids and Swedish cooks / Brooklyn barmaids and Bronxville butlers." Each group represents a facet of the city’s multicultural heritage.

The poem shifts to encompass artistic and religious figures like "opera singers and gandy dancers / pitchers and catchers / in the days of ragtime baseball / poolroom hustlers and fight promoters / Catholic sisters of charity / parish priests and Irish cops / Viennese doctors of delirium." These characters create a vivid portrait of the city’s eclectic and vibrant culture.

Ferlinghetti concludes the poem by acknowledging that these diverse individuals are now "all abandoned in eternity / parcels in a dead-letter office / inscrutable addresses on them / beyond further deliverance." They are "inscrutable," as their identities and stories have faded over time, leaving them like "parcels in a dead-letter office" without clear destinations. Meanwhile, "an America wheeling past them / and disappearing oblivious / into East River’s echoing tunnels / down the great American drain." The living world continues to move forward, oblivious to the legacy of those who came before.

"Queens Cemetery, Setting Sun" serves as a poignant meditation on the passage of time, the fragility of memory, and the continuity of life in the face of death. Ferlinghetti blends history, culture, and urban landscape into a vivid portrait that invites reflection on mortality and the impact of those who have gone before us.

Copyright (c) 2025 PoetryExplorer

Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!

Other Poems of Interest...