Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Alicia Suskin Ostriker’s poem "Daffodils" engages in a profound meditation on the coexistence of beauty and brutality, using the imagery of daffodils and the context of the Iraq War as its central motifs. The poem juxtaposes the serene and picturesque landscape of a park in Cambridge with the onset of war, creating a tension between the natural world's peacefulness and humanity's capacity for violence. This tension is explored through a complex interweaving of poetic reflection, historical allusion, and philosophical inquiry.

The poem opens with a reference to William Wordsworth’s famous poem "I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud," which celebrates the beauty and joy of daffodils dancing in the breeze. Ostriker borrows this idyllic image, placing it within the context of a Cambridge park, where the "yellow daffodils" with their "outstretched arms and ruffled cups" are "blowing in the wind of Jesus Green." This pastoral scene is rich with the imagery of life, growth, and natural beauty, as the daffodils, swans, and ducks move harmoniously under the "soft March Cambridge sky." The description is reminiscent of a children's book, where the world is simple, innocent, and untainted by the complexities of adult reality.

However, this tranquil scene is immediately undercut by the poem’s awareness of the war that is beginning simultaneously. The contrast between the peacefulness of the daffodils and the violence of war highlights the irony and tragedy of human existence. Ostriker acknowledges this tension, noting that the daffodils "do look as if they dance" and that their beauty compels those in the park to "want to dance" and "breathe deeply." Yet, this very ability to experience and appreciate beauty in the midst of global suffering is what Ostriker finds both a privilege and a burden.

The poem shifts into a more philosophical reflection on the nature of poetry and its role in responding to such paradoxes. Ostriker invokes the idea that poetry is born from the "tears" of going "to hell so many times," echoing Jack Spicer's notion that the difficulty and suffering of life are what give rise to poetry. The act of writing and reading poetry becomes a way to grapple with and make sense of the world's contradictions—where the existence of beauty does not negate the presence of pain but rather makes it more poignant and bearable. Ostriker suggests that the "cruel wars are good," the "stupidity is good," and even the "primates hiding in their caves" are good, in the sense that they contribute to the fullness of human experience, which in turn, explains poetry.

This idea culminates in the assertion that poetry is necessary because "life is hard / But better than the alternatives." The poem becomes a defense of the act of witnessing and recording beauty, even on the day "our masters start a war." The daffodils, with their vibrant yellow against the "emerald text" of the grass, represent a language of life that is "whole and alive, like an untorn language / That lacks nothing, that excludes / Nothing." This "untorn language" is a metaphor for poetry itself, which strives to capture the entirety of human experience—its joys, sorrows, and contradictions—without exclusion.

The poem concludes with a rhetorical question that challenges the reader to consider their responsibility in the face of both beauty and atrocity: "Don’t you think / It is our business to defend it / Even the day our masters start a war? / To defend the day we see the daffodils?" Here, Ostriker argues that the act of defending beauty, and by extension poetry, is an essential part of what it means to be human. To defend the day we see the daffodils is to affirm the value of life, art, and the possibility of hope, even in the darkest of times.

"Daffodils" is a deeply layered and thought-provoking poem that explores the intersection of beauty and violence, privilege and responsibility, and the enduring power of poetry to make sense of it all. Through her vivid imagery and philosophical musings, Ostriker invites the reader to reflect on the complexities of the world and the role of art in navigating its challenges. The poem serves as a reminder that even in times of war and suffering, the recognition and defense of beauty remain vital acts of resistance and affirmation.

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