Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

In "Summer," Robert Creeley captures the languid, almost desolate atmosphere of a season that’s often associated with vitality but, in this context, takes on a sense of emptiness and quiet contemplation. The poem’s sparse language and straightforward images evoke a feeling of listlessness and impermanence, hinting at a season marked by moments of introspection, idle routines, and a sense of borrowed time. Unlike the typical associations of summer with warmth, life, and energy, Creeley’s summer seems subdued, an interlude of “pale days” that feels closer to stasis than celebration.

The opening line, “The last waltz,” suggests a bittersweet or even nostalgic tone, as if the season, or a period of life itself, is drawing to a close. The choice of a waltz—a dance both formal and flowing—implies a rhythm, albeit a slow one, that moves toward an inevitable end. This sense of an ending, or a final movement, sets the stage for the poem’s examination of time and transience. By positioning this line at the beginning, Creeley frames the summer as a fleeting experience, a dance that one knows will soon be over, with each day carrying the weight of its ephemerality.

“Pale days” and “jesus freaks” follow, two phrases that speak to the cultural and environmental landscape of the setting. “Pale days” may refer to the washed-out, almost weary quality of the summer days, as if they lack the vividness one might expect. This pale quality suggests a muted energy, a sense of time passing without the usual brightness or intensity. The reference to “jesus freaks” ties the poem to a particular era, perhaps the 1960s or 1970s, when religious movements and countercultural groups flourished. This detail places the poem in a specific social context, grounding the narrator’s experience in a period characterized by spiritual searching and social upheaval, yet here, these figures seem like just another part of the summer’s landscape, observed with a detached curiosity or even slight bemusement.

The line “empty hours / of sitting around / thinking and drinking” conveys the core of the poem’s atmosphere—a combination of idleness and introspection. The “empty hours” denote time that stretches without purpose, perhaps filled with introspection yet lacking direction. This period of time spent “sitting around” emphasizes inactivity, a suspension of life’s usual demands and structures. The pairing of “thinking and drinking” suggests a habitual yet almost apathetic attempt to fill the void, to make the hours pass without confronting the emptiness head-on. Drinking, often associated with socializing or escape, here seems more solitary and reflective, a means to blur the sharp edges of the empty hours rather than to enhance any revelry.

Creeley’s phrase “being home / in a rented house” captures a paradox of familiarity and impermanence. While “being home” should imply comfort and belonging, the fact that it’s “a rented house” undermines this sense of stability. The house isn’t truly theirs; it’s a temporary space, borrowed and fleeting, much like the summer itself. This detail subtly reinforces the theme of transience that pervades the poem. The idea of a rented home symbolizes a state of impermanence and passing ownership, as if the narrator’s very sense of place and identity is temporary, contingent upon external conditions rather than something solid and enduring.

The final lines, “for the summer only / while the folks are away / and we get to use it / so long as we pay,” reiterate this theme of borrowed time. “For the summer only” establishes the season as a limited, finite stretch, while the absence of “the folks” (likely the actual homeowners or perhaps parents) implies a kind of freedom tinged with responsibility. The narrator and their companions are granted access to this space, yet the freedom is conditional: “so long as we pay.” This phrase underscores the notion of cost, not just in a literal sense but perhaps metaphorically as well. There is a price for this freedom, and the inevitability of payment suggests an awareness of accountability or consequence, even amid the idle days of summer.

In "Summer," Creeley presents a layered portrayal of a season often mythologized for its liveliness, choosing instead to focus on its quieter, more introspective aspects. The poem’s minimalistic style and carefully chosen images evoke a nuanced meditation on time, freedom, and the awareness of impermanence. The rented house, the empty hours, and the conditional freedom all contribute to a sense of transitory existence, as though the summer itself is an interlude in life, a brief respite before responsibilities and the passage of time inevitably reassert themselves. Creeley’s summer is a time of quiet reckoning, a subdued acknowledgment of the fleeting nature of both the season and the experiences it holds.

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