Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Robert Wrigley’s "Appalonea (Appalonea Miller Voisin, 1840-1901)" serves as an ode to the power of names, memory, and the human desire to connect with the past. Through the intricate meditation on the titular name, Wrigley navigates themes of identity, legacy, and the ineffable resonance of language, creating a deeply reflective and almost musical tribute to an ancestor lost to time.

The poem begins by acknowledging the rarity and distinctiveness of Appalonea’s name, placing it alongside others like “Amethyst, Hortensia, and Emerald Maisie Hopes,” names that sparkle and draw attention but are now equally shrouded in obscurity. Wrigley’s choice of these names is deliberate, emphasizing their jewel-like brilliance while lamenting their ephemerality. This contrast sets the tone for a broader exploration of how names, no matter how luminous, can fade into history’s shadow.

The central idea, drawn from Chinese philosophy—that one is not truly dead until the last soul who remembers their name forgets it—imbues the poem with a sense of urgency and reverence. It underscores the fragility of memory and the poet’s personal quest to revive Appalonea’s presence through the invocation of her name. Despite the passage of time and the loss of any direct knowledge of her, the poet’s act of speaking and celebrating her name becomes a defiance against oblivion.

Wrigley marvels at the name’s phonetic and symbolic richness, describing it as a “bird that sings its own” and likening it to “music and hard fruit.” These metaphors evoke a sense of vitality and timelessness, suggesting that even without a face or personal history to attach it to, the name itself carries an intrinsic beauty and power. The connection to autumn—“the loud applause of wind in the dry leaves”—deepens the sensory experience, situating the name within the natural world’s cycles of life and decay.

The poem then shifts to a personal and genealogical reflection, where the poet recounts searching through “certificates and microfilm” in vain for a tangible image of Appalonea. This act of rooting through records is both literal and metaphorical, signifying a larger human effort to bridge the gap between the present and an increasingly inaccessible past. The absence of her face becomes a poignant reminder of the limits of historical recovery, even as her name, “a plum of pure sound,” takes on an almost mythic quality.

Wrigley’s exploration of the name’s etymology and its associations—Apollo, Apollonius, Apollinaire—highlights its versatility and resonance. The name becomes a kaleidoscope through which he views the world, linking it to figures of mythology, poetry, and even agriculture, as in the reference to Johnny Appleseed. This association with apples and cider brings an earthy, tangible element to the poem, grounding the ethereal nature of the name in something familiar and nourishing.

In the final lines, Wrigley’s celebration of Appalonea reaches a crescendo. He allows the name to transform and expand, applying it to everything around him, from a horse—“that strong grayish horse across the field: Appaloosa”—to the very act of poetic creation. This playful yet profound naming process underscores the enduring creative power of language and its ability to imbue even the unknown with life and meaning. The name becomes not just a placeholder for a forgotten ancestor but a symbol of artistic and emotional continuity.

"Appalonea" is a lyrical exploration of how names encapsulate identity and how they resonate across time, even when the person they belonged to is no longer remembered. Wrigley transforms a genealogical mystery into a meditation on the act of naming itself, imbuing the lost ancestor with vitality through the sheer power of sound and imagination. The poem becomes a celebration of how art and language preserve what might otherwise be irretrievably lost, ensuring that Appalonea lives on, at least in the music of her name.

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