Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Wallace Stevens’ "Things of August" captures the transitional mood of late summer, blending themes of cyclical change, the passage of time, and the persistence of human reflection. The poem, with its richly layered stanzas, evokes the season’s sensory details while probing philosophical questions about identity, nature, and existence. Stevens juxtaposes natural imagery with meditations on perception, language, and meaning, creating a work that oscillates between the tangible and the abstract.

The poem begins with the sounds of locusts and crickets, described as “instruments on which to play” both the old and the new. These sounds symbolize a bridge between past and present, memory and discovery. Stevens suggests that August, a month at the cusp of summer?s end, is emblematic of the soul’s transition. The locusts’ and crickets’ songs are likened to an “old and disused ambit of the soul” or “a new aspect, bright in discovery.” This duality of the familiar and the novel underscores the tension between tradition and renewal, a recurring theme in Stevens’ work.

The second section introduces the metaphor of the egg, a symbol of potential and containment. Within this egg, Stevens situates the natural and imaginative forces of summer, blending sensory richness with abstract concepts. The line “Spread sail, we say spread white, spread way” invokes a desire for liberation and exploration, pushing beyond boundaries and constraints. Yet, this freedom is tempered by the realization that existence itself is enclosed—“The egg of the earth lies deep within an egg.” This image encapsulates Stevens’ view of life as simultaneously expansive and bounded, where the act of breaking free is an existential necessity.

In the third section, Stevens contrasts "high poetry and low," exploring the coexistence of elevated thought and everyday experience. He refers to “the speech of truth in its true solitude,” a concept that aligns with his belief in the solitary nature of artistic and philosophical pursuits. The “broken statues standing on the shore” evoke both the remnants of civilization and the resilience of nature, suggesting that truth is found not in permanence but in the interplay of decay and renewal.

The fourth section deepens the meditation on decay with the image of lilacs, a flower often associated with memory and mourning. Here, the lilacs symbolize both fertility and transience, as their scent is described as “an exhumation returned to earth.” Stevens intertwines themes of life, death, and rebirth, presenting nature as a cycle of renewal that mirrors human experience. The stanza ends with a longing for an idealized season when the lilacs would emit “a warmer, rosier odor,” a poignant reflection on the impossibility of perfection.

Stevens’ characteristic blending of the personal and the universal continues in the fifth and sixth sections. In the fifth, he introduces the rabbi, a symbol of wisdom and clarity, whose lucidity contrasts with the enigmatic symbols that populate the poem. The rabbi’s “voluble intentions” suggest an effort to interpret the inscrutable, to extract meaning from the world’s chaotic beauty. In the sixth, Stevens shifts to a more existential perspective, describing the observer as “the possessed of sense, not the possessor.” This inversion highlights the interdependence of self and environment, where the individual is shaped by the world rather than mastering it.

The seventh section introduces a moment of descent, where the speaker moves from the lofty heights of abstraction to the tangible comforts of home. This transition from “the spun sky” to “the novels on the table” reflects Stevens’ recurring theme of balancing the imaginative and the mundane. The satisfaction found in “the nature of his chair” underscores the grounding power of the ordinary, suggesting that meaning is often discovered in the familiar.

In the eighth section, Stevens explores the integration of disparate elements into a unified self. The “archaic forms” that arise evoke a shared human heritage, a collective memory that transcends individual experience. These forms, described as “giants of sense,” represent a universal connection that binds individuals together through time and space.

The poem’s penultimate section reflects on the necessity of creating meaning in an inherently unintelligible world. Stevens writes of a “new text of the world,” emphasizing the role of human agency in shaping understanding. This text, born of courage and insight, serves as a foundation for existence, “a text of intelligent men at the centre of the unintelligible.” It is a testament to the human capacity to find coherence amid chaos.

The final section returns to the natural world, where the mornings grow silent and the trees reappear “in poverty.” This diminished state of nature mirrors the exhaustion of the “adult one,” a figure who embodies both vitality and decline. Stevens captures the bittersweetness of late summer, a time of beauty tinged with the inevitability of change.

"Things of August" is a masterful exploration of seasonal transition and its metaphoric resonance in human life. Through its vivid imagery and philosophical depth, the poem invites readers to reflect on the interplay between nature, perception, and meaning. Stevens celebrates the richness of the present while acknowledging the impermanence of all things, crafting a work that is both a meditation on the season and a timeless inquiry into existence.

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