Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Robert Penn Warren’s "End of Season" is a reflective meditation on the inevitable passage of time, the fleeting nature of human relationships, and the search for meaning amidst the transitory pleasures of life. Through rich imagery, the poem delves into themes of loss, nostalgia, and the tension between memory and the present. The title itself, "End of Season," evokes a sense of finality and transition, signaling the close of a particular period in the speaker’s life, whether it is literal, emotional, or existential.

The poem opens with a call to "leave now the beach," which serves as a metaphor for the temporary and superficial pleasures of life. The beach, often a place of leisure and fleeting encounters, symbolizes a time and space where things come easily—beginnings are simple, and friendships seem effortless. The "perfect friendship" described in the opening lines arrives "late, late, almost too late," suggesting that while the friendship may have been meaningful, it emerged at a point when the speaker was already grappling with the inevitability of change. This friendship, "hair frosting, careful teeth," is marked by an artificiality that contrasts with the natural beauty of the setting, emphasizing the contrast between the deep, internal changes the speaker experiences and the superficial relationships around them. The friendship, like "a landslip," is something sudden and unexpected, a shift in the landscape of the speaker's emotional world.

The speaker also recalls moments of waiting on the beach, "bemused and pure among the bright umbrellas," where they observed the swimmer's shape, waiting for something or someone to emerge from the sea. This image of waiting, set against the backdrop of "blue mountains" and the cries of "dark boys," captures the speaker’s sense of yearning and anticipation. The beach, whether it is referred to as "spiagga, playa, plage, or spa," becomes a universal space, one that transcends geography and language, but ultimately remains a temporary refuge.

The poem then shifts to a personal reflection on the speaker’s grandfather, who visited "The Springs" in Arkansas to "purge the rheumatic guilt of beef and bourbon." This line introduces the idea of seeking purification and renewal, which echoes throughout the poem. The springs represent a place where guilt can be washed away, much like the beach, yet this act of cleansing is also tied to a deeper sense of history and inheritance. The grandfather’s act of "loll[ing] his old hams" in the water, likened to the mythical river Lethe, suggests an attempt to forget, to find peace in oblivion. This desire to wash away guilt is mirrored by the biblical reference to the "prophet, hairy and grim," who comes down to the Jordan River for a similar act of purification. The mention of these waters—whether they are the springs, the Jordan, or the river Lethe—highlights the recurrent theme of seeking absolution, whether for personal or ancestral sins.

Warren introduces historical and literary references, such as Ponce de León and Dante, to explore the broader human quest for meaning and redemption. Ponce de León, the Spanish explorer in search of the Fountain of Youth, represents humanity's futile desire to reverse or escape the effects of time. Dante's guide, the "duca," wiping "rushes, sea-wet" from the speaker’s brow, evokes the idea of navigating through life’s inferno and emerging, cleansed, into a new realm of understanding. These figures—whether historical or literary—embody the universal human struggle to find purpose and meaning in a world where time is relentless and change inevitable.

The poem also touches on the idea of transformation. The speaker acknowledges that after leaving the beach, they will "greet in town the essential face," which now wears "the mask of travel, smudge of history." This line suggests that both the speaker and those they encounter are changed by their experiences, their identities shaped by the passage of time and the weight of history. The speaker realizes that they will have to "learn a new language to say what is to say," but this language will never be useful "in schoolroom, customs, or café." This suggests that the lessons learned through personal experience—especially those related to love, loss, and time—cannot be easily communicated or understood through conventional means. The speaker’s inner transformation, the wisdom gained from the passage of time, cannot be translated into the everyday language of social interaction.

Warren emphasizes the fleeting nature of purity and perfection, describing them as "wordless," beyond the reach of language or intellectual understanding. The "bridegroom's sleep" and "the athlete's marble dream" represent moments of stillness and perfection, but they are ephemeral, existing only in a brief, suspended state before time inevitably resumes its course. Similarly, the "annual sacrament of sea and sun," which "browns the face and heals the heart," is temporary and leads only to silence, a reminder that time is the ultimate arbiter of all human experience.

The speaker grapples with the realization that all human conversation, all attempts to connect and communicate, are ultimately "index to our common crime." This phrase suggests that human beings are bound together by their shared mortality and the inescapable passage of time. The "common crime" may refer to the original sin of being born into a world where death and decay are inevitable, or it may speak to the guilt and regret that accumulate over a lifetime of choices and missed opportunities.

In the final stanza, Warren reflects on the end of summer, the metaphorical "end of season." The speaker contemplates swimming "far out" on the last day, if "the doctor permit." The reference to swimming styles—crawl, trudgeon, breaststroke—emphasizes the effort and determination required to move through life’s currents, while the image of diving "down the glaucous glimmer where no voice can visit" suggests a deep, introspective journey into the subconscious, into the places where words and language are no longer sufficient.

The closing lines present a final meditation on hope and time. The mail, lurking in the box at home, represents the mundane obligations and realities that await the speaker after their contemplative journey. Yet even amidst these daily concerns, the speaker is prompted to think "on the true nature of Hope, whose eye is round and does not wink." This image of hope as an unblinking eye suggests that hope, like time, is constant and unrelenting. It does not close or rest, even in the face of life’s inevitable changes and challenges.

In "End of Season," Robert Penn Warren captures the poignancy of life's transitions, the fleeting nature of joy and connection, and the deep, existential questions that arise as we confront the passage of time. The poem invites the reader to reflect on the impermanence of life’s pleasures and the enduring nature of guilt, memory, and hope. Through its exploration of personal and universal themes, the poem offers a meditation on the complex interplay between time, experience, and the search for meaning in an ever-changing world.

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