Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Stanley Jasspon Kunitz’s poem “Words for the Unknown Makers: Sacred to the Memory” is a somber elegy that mourns the loss of Polly Botsford and her children while also reflecting on the grief of those left behind and the transient nature of life. Through detailed imagery and a contemplative tone, Kunitz evokes the universal themes of loss, mourning, and the passage from life to the unknown.

The poem begins by naming the deceased: “Mourn for Polly Botsford, aged thirty-nine, and for her blossom Polly, one year old, and for Gideon, her infant son, nipped in the bud.” The specificity of names and ages immediately personalizes the loss, making it tangible and poignant. The phrase “nipped in the bud” for Gideon underscores the abruptness and cruelty of death, especially for the young.

Kunitz then shifts focus to the mourners: “And mourn for the mourners under the graveside willow, trailing its branches of inverted V's.” The willow tree, often a symbol of sorrow, with its drooping branches forming inverted V’s, visually represents the mourning and the weight of grief. The mourners, described as “women propped like bookends on either side of the tomb,” create a visual tableau of sorrow and support. This image of women as bookends signifies their role in holding together the fragments of life and memory, ensuring that the narrative of the deceased remains intact.

The children are depicted with touching innocence: “that brace of innocents in matching calico linked to their mother's grief with a zigzag clasp of hands, as proper in their place as stepping-stones.” The “matching calico” clothes symbolize their unity and shared loss, while the “zigzag clasp of hands” reflects both their connection and the irregular, unpredictable path of grief. The comparison to stepping-stones suggests that these children are part of a larger journey, each small life contributing to the larger narrative of the family and community.

Kunitz extends his mourning to the “nameless painter of the scene who, like them all, was born to walk a while beside the brook whose source is common tears.” This acknowledgment of the painter emphasizes the collective experience of grief and the shared humanity of those who document and remember the departed. The metaphor of walking beside a brook of “common tears” suggests that sorrow is a universal experience, one that binds all people together.

The poem concludes with a meditation on the inevitable passage from life: “till suddenly it's time to unlatch the narrow gate and pass through the church that is not made with walls and seek another home, a different sky.” The “narrow gate” symbolizes the transition from life to death, a passage that all must take. The “church that is not made with walls” represents a spiritual realm beyond the physical world, suggesting a return to a more ethereal, perhaps eternal, home. The “different sky” implies a new, transcendent existence beyond earthly suffering and grief.

In summary, “Words for the Unknown Makers: Sacred to the Memory” by Stanley Jasspon Kunitz is a moving elegy that captures the deep sorrow of loss and the shared human experience of mourning. Through vivid imagery and reflective language, Kunitz honors both the deceased and those who grieve, acknowledging the universal journey from life to the unknown. The poem invites readers to contemplate the transient nature of life and the enduring impact of memory and shared sorrow.

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