Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

In Robert Creeley';s poem "For W.C.W.", the poet pays homage to William Carlos Williams by reflecting on the fluidity and complexity of desire, language, and meaning. The poem is structured in a way that mimics the patterns of thought, where the repetition of certain words and phrases mirrors the recursive, often elusive nature of human wants and communication. Creeley’s minimalist style, combined with his attention to the way language shapes experience, reflects both his own aesthetic and an acknowledgment of Williams’ influence on modernist poetry.

The poem begins with a focus on "rhyme," but not in the traditional sense of sound or structure. Instead, Creeley notes that "The rhyme is after / all the repeated / insistence." Here, "rhyme" refers to the repetition inherent in language itself, particularly in how we express desires and make meaning. This is not a rhyme of words but of insistence—of saying the same thing over and over again in different forms, trying to capture the essence of what one means. The repeated attempts to articulate or define something is the central concern of the poem. In this sense, Creeley is engaging with the way language functions, not as a neat, ordered system, but as something full of repeated efforts to make oneself understood.

The next lines, "There, you say, and / there, and there," emphasize this repetitive nature. The use of "there" suggests a constant pointing toward something—a location, an idea, or a desire that is never fully pinned down. The speaker keeps returning to "there," but each repetition feels slightly different, as if the exact thing being indicated shifts each time. This reflects the instability of language and meaning: we can point toward something, but the act of naming or locating it is always in flux. This also ties into Williams'; own poetic practice, where simple words and everyday objects are loaded with shifting significance, depending on how they are framed in the poem.

The phrase "and and becomes / just so" introduces a subtle shift. The word "and" here is crucial—it acts as a bridge between ideas, but it also becomes the focus itself. "And" is a word of connection, of continuation, and yet Creeley presents it as something that can become fixed, "just so." This paradox highlights how even a word as simple as "and" can take on complex meanings in the act of trying to express oneself. It can be both a link and a limitation, connecting ideas while also fixing them in place. Creeley is playing with the idea that language, in its attempt to connect and explain, also inevitably narrows and confines meaning.

The line "And / what one wants is / what one wants" introduces the central theme of desire. This tautological statement—what one wants is simply what one wants—acknowledges the basic, undeniable nature of desire. Yet, Creeley immediately complicates this with "yet complexly / as you / say." Desire, while it may seem straightforward, is always entangled in complexity. The "you" in this line may refer to Williams himself, whose poems often explore the layered, multifaceted nature of human experience. Creeley suggests that even simple desires are never truly simple—they are caught in the web of language, thought, and the intricacies of human consciousness.

"Let’s / let it go" offers a moment of release, as if the speaker, after grappling with the complexities of language and desire, is ready to step back and relinquish the need to control or define. This line feels like an acknowledgment that, despite our best efforts to articulate our desires and thoughts, sometimes it’s best to simply let them be. However, this release is short-lived, as the next lines return to the central theme of wanting: "I want— / Then there is— / and, / I want." The repetition of "I want" underscores the persistence of desire, even after an attempt to "let it go." The dash after "I want" creates a pause, suggesting that what the speaker wants may be unnameable or difficult to express. This pause reflects the gap between feeling and articulation—the space where desire exists before it can be put into words.

The line "Then there is—" introduces something else—perhaps an acknowledgment of reality or a new object of attention—but it remains incomplete, trailing off with another dash. This suggests that whatever "there is" remains undefined, or that the speaker’s attention is constantly shifting. The final repetition of "I want" emphasizes that desire, in its most basic form, continues to assert itself, even when language fails to fully capture or explain it. The "and" that follows suggests an ongoing process, a continuation of this cycle of wanting, trying to articulate, and falling short.

Creeley’s choice to end with the unfinished "I want" leaves the poem open, suggesting that desire and language are processes that never fully resolve. This mirrors the modernist exploration of fragmentation and incompleteness, themes that Williams often engaged with in his own work. By structuring the poem in this way, Creeley reflects the inherent instability of language and meaning, showing that our attempts to express what we want or how we feel are always partial, always in flux.

In terms of structure, the poem is marked by its use of short lines and enjambment, which create a sense of fluidity and hesitation. The breaks between lines force the reader to pause, much like the speaker, who seems to be thinking through each phrase, trying to find the right way to express themselves. This mirrors the theme of the poem: the difficulty of articulating desire and the way language both enables and limits expression. The lack of formal rhyme or meter allows the poem to feel conversational, almost as if we are listening to the speaker';s thoughts as they unfold in real time.

In "For W.C.W.", Creeley honors William Carlos Williams by engaging with some of the same themes that preoccupied Williams: the complexity of language, the fluidity of meaning, and the persistence of human desire. The poem is both a reflection on the act of writing and a meditation on the nature of wanting, capturing the tension between what we feel and how we try to express it. Creeley’s minimalist approach allows each word and phrase to carry significant weight, creating a poem that, like Williams’ work, is deceptively simple yet rich in complexity.

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