Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

James Wright’s “A Way to Make a Living” engages with themes of mortality, the human connection to labor, and the transformative potential of imagination. Inspired by an epigram from Plato, the poem juxtaposes the prosaic and the sublime, using the metaphor of cemetery work to reflect on the life he could have lived and the poetic, ephemeral life he ultimately chooses. Wright?s meditation on the choice between a grounded, conventional existence and a transcendent, imaginative engagement with the world shapes the poem’s reflective and evocative tone.

The poem opens with a recollection from Wright’s boyhood, when a relative sought to secure him a job at the Weeks Cemetery. This cemetery becomes emblematic of a life spent in close contact with the physical realities of death and decay, yet also marked by a routine and orderly sense of stability. Wright presents the cemetery workers, represented by “old man Albright / The sexton,” as individuals who embody a life centered around “measure by seemly measure,” a phrase that underscores the precision and containment associated with such work. The cemetery, with its mown grass and measured rows of graves, reflects a world of classical order and permanence. However, Wright’s reflection is tinged with irony as he refers to the deceased as “flawless clerks-at-court, those beautiful / Grocers and judges,” drawing attention to how society elevates the dead into paragons of virtue while obscuring the imperfections of their lives.

The poet imagines himself staying at the cemetery, kneeling on the ground, humming, and pulling weeds from the graves. This image speaks to a life spent in submission to societal expectations and the quiet labor of tending to the past. However, Wright rejects this life, recognizing it as a “hell of / A way to make a living.” His refusal to remain tied to the physical and the mundane represents his rejection of a life spent merely preserving the status quo, where existence is reduced to repetition and conformity.

Instead, Wright turns toward the limitless possibilities of imagination and art. He contrasts the measured precision of the cemetery with the unpredictable, organic movements of the sea: “I am going to take my last nourishment / Of measure from a dark blue / Ripple on swell on ripple that makes / Its own garlands.” The imagery of the sea, with its dynamic and uncontainable nature, symbolizes freedom, creativity, and the ineffable aspects of life that defy categorization. Wright’s choice to take inspiration from the sea reflects his desire to live a life unbound by the rigid structures of conventionality.

The poet’s dead are no longer confined to neat rows in a cemetery but are instead “the secret wine jars / Of Tyrian commercial travelers.” By invoking the image of Tyrian merchants, Wright connects his dead to the ancient Mediterranean world, a realm of trade, exploration, and cultural exchange. This imagery imbues the dead with a sense of vitality and movement, as they drift through history like “wine jars” across the sea. The Mediterranean, with its deep historical and mythological resonances, becomes a metaphor for the richness and complexity of life and death, transcending the boundaries of time and space.

In the final stanza, Wright imagines a cosmic renewal as “the immortals” rise from beneath the sea. The immortals, delighted by the natural world and radiant in their ascent, embody the possibility of transformation and rebirth. Their emergence “under water, delighted by delicate crustaceans” suggests an intimate connection to the natural world, while their subsequent rise “into thirty-foot walls of radiance” evokes a sense of transcendence and awe. The imagery of the sea shining on their shoulders and fresh wine in their arms suggests a celebration of life’s sensory and spiritual pleasures.

The poem concludes with a poignant and tender image of the dead as “stars and snowflakes floating down / Into your hands, love.” Here, Wright reframes death not as an end but as a continuation of the cycle of transformation and renewal. The stars and snowflakes, ephemeral yet beautiful, represent the enduring impact of those who have passed, whose essence lingers in the lives of the living. Addressing the reader as “love,” Wright evokes a sense of intimacy and shared humanity, reinforcing the interconnectedness of all beings.

“A Way to Make a Living” is a meditation on choice, mortality, and transcendence. Through its vivid imagery and philosophical reflection, the poem explores the tension between the grounded, practical life symbolized by the cemetery and the expansive, imaginative existence represented by the sea. Wright’s rejection of a life confined to the cemetery in favor of the boundless possibilities of creativity and love underscores his belief in the transformative power of art and imagination. The poem invites readers to reflect on their own choices and the ways in which they engage with the world, urging them to embrace the beauty and mystery of existence.

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