Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

In "Song: 2" by E.E. Cummings, the poet delves into themes of love, beauty, and the complexities of human emotion through his distinctive use of language, imagery, and form. The poem, much like many of Cummings' works, is rich in sensory details and juxtaposes innocence with experience, vulnerability with strength, and beauty with sorrow.

The poem begins with a direct address to the beloved: "Always before your voice my soul." Here, the speaker's soul is compared to "some smooth and awkward foal," a young horse that is both elegant and clumsy. This metaphor sets the tone for the poem, highlighting the speaker's mixture of admiration and self-consciousness in the presence of the beloved. The "young moons" that "begin / the newness of his skin" suggest the fresh, tender, and almost otherworldly quality of this youthful, awkward soul.

As the poem progresses, the speaker continues to explore the disparity between their own perceived inadequacies and the beloved's idealized qualities. The speaker's youth is described as "the exquisite failure uncouth," suggesting a kind of beautiful but flawed naivety. This unrefined state of being is contrasted with the "strong silences" of the beloved's song, which carries a power and grace that the speaker feels they lack.

The poem shifts to another metaphor with "a single lamb whose sheen / of full unsheared fleece is mean / beside its lovelier friends." Here, the speaker likens themselves to a lamb that feels inadequate next to the more "lovelier" companions, symbolizing the speaker's sense of inferiority when compared to the beloved's thoughts, which are "more white than wool." This comparison furthers the theme of self-doubt and the speaker's sorrowful realization of their perceived shortcomings.

As the poem reaches its climax, the speaker's heart reacts to the beloved's words with "trembling thirds / of anguish," a musical metaphor that evokes the emotional impact of hearing the beloved's voice. The reference to "a flight of thirty birds" and the imagery of "the sudden fooled light" suggest a fleeting, almost chaotic beauty that startles and overwhelms the speaker.

The poem then shifts to a more somber tone with the arrival of autumn, symbolizing the passage of time and the inevitability of death: "It is the autumn of a year." The speaker reflects on "death's faultless eyes," which peer across the harvest and evoke a sense of inescapable fate. This image is haunting and cold, as death's gaze is described as "empty of surprise," indicating its inevitability and the finality it brings.

In the final stanzas, the speaker contemplates the mysteries that "very simply touch / me," despite feeling unworthy of such profound experiences. The poem concludes with a powerful musical metaphor: "The flute of morning stilled in noon—noon / the implacable bassoon—now / Twilight seeks the thrill of moon." Here, Cummings encapsulates the transition from the light and innocence of morning to the deeper, more complex emotions of twilight, ultimately leading to the "despair of violin" that resonates with the melancholy and longing that permeate the poem.

"Song: 2" is a deeply introspective and emotional work that captures the tension between the speaker's inner turmoil and their reverence for the beloved. Through rich metaphors and musical imagery, Cummings explores themes of love, inadequacy, and the passage of time, creating a poignant and layered meditation on the human experience. The poem's complex structure and vivid imagery invite the reader to reflect on the ways in which love and beauty can both uplift and unsettle, revealing the depth and vulnerability of the human soul.

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