Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Jonathan Williams’ "A Vulnerary" is a layered and enigmatic poem dedicated to Robert Duncan, the influential poet associated with the Black Mountain and San Francisco Renaissance movements. A vulnerary—a substance used for healing wounds—becomes a metaphorical entry point for the poem’s meditation on language, love, and the resonances of nature. Williams’ use of spare, elliptical phrasing and evocative imagery reflects Duncan’s own poetic sensibilities, creating a work that is both homage and exploration.

The poem opens with a statement that situates language as something distant and approached cautiously: “one comes to language from afar, the ear / fears for its sound-barriers.” The imagery of sound-barriers evokes a sense of both fragility and resistance, suggesting that language, while integral to human connection, can also be a source of tension or difficulty. This duality sets the tone for the poem, where language serves as both medium and mystery.

Williams shifts quickly into the interplay between the speaker and language itself: “one ‘comes’; the language ‘comes’ for / The Beckoning Fair One.” The reference to The Beckoning Fair One, George du Maurier’s ghost story about obsession and spectral influence, adds a layer of complexity. Language here becomes both an alluring and haunting force, drawing the speaker into its orbit while retaining an air of the uncanny. This dynamic underscores the poem’s tension between presence and absence, a theme reinforced throughout.

The central section of the poem moves into a naturalistic register, blending observations of earth, air, and water with quiet yet resonant actions. The line “plant you now, dig you / later” introduces a seasonal rhythm, evoking cycles of growth and decay. The “plaint” that “stirs winter / earth” suggests a latent vitality beneath the surface, a reminder of life’s persistence even in dormancy. This interplay of planting and digging echoes the poem’s title, as the act of tending to wounds—whether physical or spiritual—requires both care and the willingness to confront what lies beneath.

Williams continues with a striking image of a hornet’s nest: “air in a hornet’s nest / over the water makes a / solid, six-sided music.” This juxtaposition of natural violence (the hornet) and harmony (the six-sided geometry of the nest) encapsulates the poem’s exploration of contrasts—sound and silence, form and emptiness, distance and intimacy. The “six-sided music” draws attention to the precision and beauty of natural structures, paralleling the disciplined yet intuitive nature of poetic form.

The phrase “a few utterly quiet scenes, things / are very far away” suggests a reflective stillness, emphasizing the spatial and emotional distances that permeate the poem. These “scenes” are not detailed but are instead left for the reader to imagine, an invitation to dwell in the openness of Williams’ language. The quotation “form / is emptiness” is a direct reference to the Buddhist Heart Sutra, a core text that speaks to the interdependence of form and formlessness. By invoking this concept, Williams situates the poem within a larger philosophical framework, where the material and the immaterial are seen as inseparable.

The closing lines bring the poem to an emotional and sensory culmination. The repetition of “comely, comely” evokes a sense of tenderness and beauty, while “love trembles” introduces a note of vulnerability and fragility. The phrase suggests that love, like language or nature, is marked by a dynamic interplay of strength and delicacy. The final image of the “sweet-shrub” is understated yet powerful. Known for its fragrant flowers, the sweet-shrub symbolizes renewal and sensory richness, leaving the poem on a note of quiet but profound resonance.

"A Vulnerary" is a deeply contemplative work that balances abstraction with vivid, tactile imagery. Its dedication to Robert Duncan underscores its connection to a lineage of poets who sought to push the boundaries of language while remaining rooted in the natural world. Williams’ fragmented, elliptical style mirrors the healing process itself—an act of piecing together disparate elements to create something whole. The poem’s brevity belies its depth, as each line contributes to an intricate tapestry of sound, image, and thought. Through its exploration of language, love, and the cycles of nature, A Vulnerary becomes a vulnerary in its own right, offering readers a balm for both the intellect and the spirit.

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