Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Lawrence Ferlinghetti's poem "Pictures Of The Gone World: 3" reflects on the legacy of the ancient Greek sculptor Praxiteles and the timeless nature of art. By blending mythology, history, and modern artistic insights, Ferlinghetti explores the tension between artistic immortality and the inevitable decay of the human form.

The poem begins with the phrase "In hintertime," suggesting a distant past where Praxiteles, one of the most renowned sculptors of ancient Greece, worked. He "laid about him with a golden maul / striking into stone / his alabaster ideals," implying that his hammering was not mere carving but the crafting of ideals. The "golden maul" adds a mythical quality, as if his sculpting were an almost divine endeavor. "Alabaster ideals" evokes pure, unblemished beauty, while "striking into stone" represents the physical act of embodying these ideals in marble.

Ferlinghetti describes Praxiteles as "uttering all / the sculptor's lexicon / in visible syllables." The sculptor speaks through his work, each chisel stroke like a syllable that creates a visible language. This "lexicon" includes "bronze trees," "a chameleon," and "stone doves" that fly, blending the natural and mythical worlds.

Praxiteles’ meticulous craftsmanship is highlighted through the use of "calipers," which "measured bridges and lovers / and certain other superhumans." This metaphor connects his art with precision and engineering, suggesting that his sculptures are not just artistic but also almost mathematical in their perfection. The "superhumans" he caught "upon their dusty way to death" never reach their destination, as they are preserved forever in stone. Their "breath" can "almost" still be seen, while their "stone eyes staring / thru three thousand years / allay our fears of aging."

The timelessness of Praxiteles’ art offers reassurance about mortality and the passage of time, as the stone figures remain ageless. However, the sculptor himself was not immune to death. Ferlinghetti notes that "Praxiteles himself / at twenty-eight lay dead," reminding us that even the greatest artists are subject to mortality.

The final lines reference another famous sculptor, Constantin Brancusi, who declared, "sculpture isn't for young men." Brancusi, known for his modernist sculptures, recognized the grueling nature of sculpture, which requires both physical and emotional maturity. The inclusion of Brancusi's statement underscores the contrast between the youthful ideals represented in Praxiteles' sculptures and the harsh reality of the sculptor's own mortality.

In "Pictures Of The Gone World: 3," Ferlinghetti meditates on the legacy of art and the artists who create it. By blending historical and mythological imagery with the reflections of a modern sculptor, he explores how art captures the ideals and aspirations of humanity, transcending time even as the artists themselves fade away. Ultimately, the poem reveals how art can be a form of immortality, offering reassurance and solace in the face of mortality.

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