Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

James Schuyler's poem "Dec. 28. 1974" presents a meditation on the fleeting nature of perception, the interplay between the external world and internal experience, and the way in which art, light, and sound converge to create a moment of intense self-awareness. The poem unfolds as a series of observations, each capturing a moment of stillness that is simultaneously ordinary and profound.

The poem begins with a simple description of "plants against the light," setting the stage for a meditation on how light affects perception. The light, described as shining "right on my chair," symbolizes a moment of clarity, yet it also blinds the speaker, reducing the vibrant green of the plants to "silhouettes, barely green, / growing black as my eyes move right." This interplay between light and darkness, visibility and blindness, establishes a tension between what is seen and what is hidden, a recurring theme in Schuyler's work.

As the speaker's gaze moves toward the sun, they are "blinded by a fiery circle," a metaphorical moment that highlights the paradox of seeking clarity only to be overwhelmed by it. The act of looking directly at the sun, an image of overpowering light, represents an attempt to confront something beyond the mundane, but it results in a temporary blindness, a common human experience when facing the sublime or the overwhelming.

The poem then shifts to a more grounded moment, where the speaker notes the sounds of a man descending "iron stairs" and picking up brushes. The sound of the brushes against Scriabin's sonata evokes the blending of the sensory experiences of sight and sound, the visual rhythm of the man's movements paralleling the auditory rhythm of the music. Schuyler's use of sound imagery, like the "rattle like wind in a bamboo clump" and the "wooden sound" of footsteps, enhances the sensory richness of the scene, grounding the abstract experience of light in the tangible world.

Schuyler then reflects on the experience of being "encubed in flaming splendor," a phrase that captures the duality of being both entrapped and illuminated by the brilliance of the sun. This image is both exalting and confining, as the speaker is surrounded by the intensity of light while being anchored by the "Chinese rug" beneath his feet. The tension between the desire for emotional release—"I want to cleanse it in an icy wind"—and the self-mockery of "And what kind of tripe is that?" reveals an inner struggle between the yearning for transcendence and the grounding reality of self-awareness.

The poem also touches on the speaker's resistance to the idea of openness in poetry. The dismissive comment from "a clunkhead" that his poems "have grown more open" prompts the speaker to assert that he does not seek openness but rather to "say, to see and say, things / as they are." This statement reflects Schuyler's poetic ethos, where the accurate representation of lived experience is more important than any forced transparency or emotional revelation. The speaker's desire is not to bare his soul but to capture the reality of the moment, whether it be the presence of a "wicker table" or the "palely brown" fields that glow with an "inward glow."

The poem concludes with a return to the external world as the sun moves off to the right, preparing to set "beyond the dunes, an ocean on fire." This final image is both literal and symbolic, encapsulating the passage of time and the inevitable decline of day into night. The "ocean on fire" suggests both the beauty and the destructiveness of nature, a reminder of the ephemerality of all things, including the intense moment of reflection the speaker has just experienced.

"Dec. 28. 1974" is a poem that captures the fleeting nature of experience and the tension between the external world and internal consciousness. Through his precise observations and vivid imagery, Schuyler creates a moment of introspection that is at once deeply personal and universally resonant. The poem exemplifies his ability to find significance in the ordinary, to transform a simple afternoon into a meditation on perception, art, and the passage of time.

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