'Corn .' by Sidney Lanier
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To-day the woods are trembling through and through
With shimmering forms, that flash before my view,
Then melt in green as dawn-stars melt in blue.
The leaves that wave against my cheek caress
Like women's hands; the embracing boughs express
A subtlety of mighty tenderness;
The copse-depths into little noises start,
That sound anon like beatings of a heart,
Anon like talk 'twixt lips not far apart.
The beech dreams balm, as a dreamer hums a song;
Through that vague wafture, expirations strong
Throb from young hickories breathing deep and long
With stress and urgence bold of prisoned spring
And ecstasy of burgeoning.
Now, since the dew-plashed road of morn is dry,
Forth venture odors of more quality
And heavenlier giving.Like Jove's locks awry,
Long muscadines
Rich-wreathe the spacious foreheads of great pines,
And breathe ambrosial passion from their vines.
I pray with mosses, ferns and flowers shy
That hide like gentle nuns from human eye
To lift adoring perfumes to the sky.
I hear faint bridal-sighs of brown and green
Dying to silent hints of kisses keen
As far lights fringe into a pleasant sheen.
I start at fragmentary whispers, blown
From undertalks of leafy souls unknown,
Vague purports sweet, of inarticulate tone.
Dreaming of gods, men, nuns and brides, between
Old companies of oaks that inward lean
To join their radiant amplitudes of green
I slowly move, with ranging looks that pass
Up from the matted miracles of grass
Into yon veined complex of space
Where sky and leafage interlace
So close, the heaven of blue is seen
Inwoven with a heaven of green.
I wander to the zigzag-cornered fence
Where sassafras, intrenched in brambles dense,
Contests with stolid vehemence
The march of culture, setting limb and thorn
As pikes against the army of the corn.
There, while I pause, my fieldward-faring eyes
Take harvests, where the stately corn-ranks rise,
Of inward dignities
And large benignities and insights wise,
Graces and modest majesties.
Thus, without theft, I reap another's field;
Thus, without tilth, I house a wondrous yield,
And heap my heart with quintuple crops concealed.
Look, out of line one tall corn-captain stands
Advanced beyond the foremost of his bands,
And waves his blades upon the very edge
And hottest thicket of the battling hedge.
Thou lustrous stalk, that ne'er mayst walk nor talk,
Still shalt thou type the poet-soul sublime
That leads the vanward of his timid time
And sings up cowards with commanding rhyme --
Soul calm, like thee, yet fain, like thee, to grow
By double increment, above, below;
Soul homely, as thou art, yet rich in grace like thee,
Teaching the yeomen selfless chivalry
That moves in gentle curves of courtesy;
Soul filled like thy long veins with sweetness tense,
By every godlike sense
Transmuted from the four wild elements.
Drawn to high plans,
Thou lift'st more stature than a mortal man's,
Yet ever piercest downward in the mould
And keepest hold
Upon the reverend and steadfast earth
That gave thee birth;
Yea, standest smiling in thy future grave,
Serene and brave,
With unremitting breath
Inhaling life from death,
Thine epitaph writ fair in fruitage eloquent,
Thyself thy monument.
As poets should,
Thou hast built up thy hardihood
With universal food,
Drawn in select proportion fair
From honest mould and vagabond air;
From darkness of the dreadful night,
And joyful light;
From antique ashes, whose departed flame
In thee has finer life and longer fame;
From wounds and balms,
From storms and calms,
From potsherds and dry bones
And ruin-stones.
Into thy vigorous substance thou hast wrought
Whate'er the hand of Circumstance hath brought;
Yea, into cool solacing green hast spun
White radiance hot from out the sun.
So thou dost mutually leaven
Strength of earth with grace of heaven;
So thou dost marry new and old
Into a one of higher mould;
So thou dost reconcile the hot and cold,
The dark and bright,
And many a heart-perplexing opposite,
And so,
Akin by blood to high and low,
Fitly thou playest out thy poet's part,
Richly expending thy much-bruised heart
In equal care to nourish lord in hall
Or beast in stall:
Thou took'st from all that thou mightst give to all.
O steadfast dweller on the selfsame spot
Where thou wast born, that still repinest not --
Type of the home-fond heart, the happy lot! --
Deeply thy mild content rebukes the land
Whose flimsy homes, built on the shifting sand
Of trade, for ever rise and fall
With alternation whimsical,
Enduring scarce a day,
Then swept away
By swift engulfments of incalculable tides
Whereon capricious Commerce rides.
Look, thou substantial spirit of content!
Across this little vale, thy continent,
To where, beyond the mouldering mill,
Yon old deserted Georgian hill
Bares to the sun his piteous aged crest
And seamy breast,
By restless-hearted children left to lie
Untended there beneath the heedless sky,
As barbarous folk expose their old to die.
Upon that generous-rounding side,
With gullies scarified
Where keen Neglect his lash hath plied,
Dwelt one I knew of old, who played at toil,
And gave to coquette Cotton soul and soil.
Scorning the slow reward of patient grain,
He sowed his heart with hopes of swifter gain,
Then sat him down and waited for the rain.
He sailed in borrowed ships of usury --
A foolish Jason on a treacherous sea,
Seeking the Fleece and finding misery.
Lulled by smooth-rippling loans, in idle trance
He lay, content that unthrift Circumstance
Should plough for him the stony field of Chance.
Yea, gathering crops whose worth no man might tell,
He staked his life on games of Buy-and-Sell,
And turned each field into a gambler's hell.
Aye, as each year began,
My farmer to the neighboring city ran;
Passed with a mournful anxious face
Into the banker's inner place;
Parleyed, excused, pleaded for longer grace;
Railed at the drought, the worm, the rust, the grass;
Protested ne'er again 'twould come to pass;
With many an `oh' and `if' and `but alas'
Parried or swallowed searching questions rude,
And kissed the dust to soften Dives's mood.
At last, small loans by pledges great renewed,
He issues smiling from the fatal door,
And buys with lavish hand his yearly store
Till his small borrowings will yield no more.
Aye, as each year declined,
With bitter heart and ever-brooding mind
He mourned his fate unkind.
In dust, in rain, with might and main,
He nursed his cotton, cursed his grain,
Fretted for news that made him fret again,
Snatched at each telegram of Future Sale,
And thrilled with Bulls' or Bears' alternate wail --
In hope or fear alike for ever pale.
And thus from year to year, through hope and fear,
With many a curse and many a secret tear,
Striving in vain his cloud of debt to clear,
At last
He woke to find his foolish dreaming past,
And all his best-of-life the easy prey
Of squandering scamps and quacks that lined his way
With vile array,
From rascal statesman down to petty knave;
Himself, at best, for all his bragging brave,
A gamester's catspaw and a banker's slave.
Then, worn and gray, and sick with deep unrest,
He fled away into the oblivious West,
Unmourned, unblest.
Old hill! old hill! thou gashed and hairy Lear
Whom the divine Cordelia of the year,
E'en pitying Spring, will vainly strive to cheer --
King, that no subject man nor beast may own,
Discrowned, undaughtered and alone --
Yet shall the great God turn thy fate,
And bring thee back into thy monarch state
And majesty immaculate.
Lo, through hot waverings of the August morn,
Thou givest from thy vasty sides forlorn
Visions of golden treasuries of corn --
Ripe largesse lingering for some bolder heart
That manfully shall take thy part,
And tend thee,
And defend thee,
With antique sinew and with modern art.
Editor 1 Interpretation
Introduction
Corn by Sidney Lanier is a classic poem that explores the beauty and majesty of nature's bounty. The poem is a celebration of the humble corn plant, a crop that has sustained human civilizations for thousands of years. In this literary criticism and interpretation, we will take a closer look at the themes, structure, and language of this masterpiece.
Themes
Corn is a poem that is rich in themes that touch on various aspects of human life. At its core, the poem is a celebration of the beauty of nature and the miraculous way in which it provides for us. The poem highlights the importance of agriculture and the role that it plays in sustaining human life. The poem also touches on the themes of faith, hope, and perseverance.
Throughout the poem, Lanier emphasizes the importance of faith in the face of adversity. He draws parallels between the growth of the corn plant and the trials and tribulations of human life. He emphasizes the need for patience and perseverance in the face of adversity, and the importance of maintaining hope even in the darkest of times.
Structure
Corn is a sonnet, a form of poetry that is characterized by a strict rhyme scheme and a set structure. The poem is divided into two stanzas, each with fourteen lines. The rhyme scheme is ABAB CDCD EFEF GG. The poem is written in iambic pentameter, a rhythmic pattern that consists of ten syllables per line. The poem's structure is simple and straightforward, but it allows Lanier to convey his message with great clarity and precision.
Language
The language used in Corn is simple and elegant, yet at the same time, it is imbued with a sense of grandeur and majesty. Lanier's use of imagery and metaphor is particularly noteworthy. He uses vivid imagery to describe the corn plant, drawing on its physical characteristics to create a sense of wonder and awe.
Lanier also employs metaphor to great effect in the poem. He compares the growth of the corn plant to the struggles of human life, using the plant as a symbol of hope and perseverance. He uses the image of the corn plant reaching for the sun to convey the idea of human beings striving for something greater than themselves.
Interpretation
Corn is a poem that speaks to the human spirit and the resilience of the human soul. It is a celebration of life and the beauty of nature, a reminder of the miracle of creation and the wonders of the world around us. At its core, the poem is a call to faith, a reminder that even in the darkest of times, there is always hope.
The poem also highlights the importance of agriculture and the role that it plays in sustaining human life. It is a reminder of the hard work and dedication that goes into farming, and the importance of respecting the land and the natural world.
Overall, Corn is a timeless masterpiece that continues to inspire and uplift readers to this day. Its message of hope and perseverance is just as relevant now as it was when it was first written, and it serves as a testament to the enduring power of poetry to touch the human soul.
Editor 2 Analysis and Explanation
Poetry Corn: A Masterpiece of Literary Art by Sidney Lanier
If you are a lover of poetry, then you must have come across the classic poem, Poetry Corn, written by Sidney Lanier. This masterpiece of literary art is a perfect example of how a poet can use simple language to create a complex and beautiful work of art. In this article, we will take a detailed look at this poem and explore its themes, structure, and literary devices.
Themes
The central theme of Poetry Corn is the power of poetry to inspire and uplift the human spirit. The poem is a celebration of the beauty and power of poetry, and it encourages the reader to embrace the transformative power of language. The poem also explores the idea that poetry is a natural and organic part of the world, just like corn is a natural and organic part of the earth.
Structure
Poetry Corn is a free verse poem, which means that it does not follow a strict rhyme or meter. Instead, the poem is structured around a series of images and metaphors that create a sense of rhythm and flow. The poem is divided into three stanzas, each of which explores a different aspect of the theme of poetry.
The first stanza describes the physical appearance of the corn, using vivid imagery to create a sense of the beauty and abundance of the natural world. The second stanza explores the idea that poetry is a natural and organic part of the world, just like corn is a natural and organic part of the earth. The third stanza celebrates the transformative power of poetry, and encourages the reader to embrace the beauty and power of language.
Literary Devices
One of the most striking literary devices used in Poetry Corn is the use of metaphor. The poem is full of metaphors that create a sense of depth and complexity. For example, the corn is used as a metaphor for poetry, and the speaker describes how the corn grows and flourishes just like poetry. The poem also uses personification, as the corn is described as having a "voice" and a "soul."
Another literary device used in Poetry Corn is imagery. The poem is full of vivid images that create a sense of the beauty and abundance of the natural world. For example, the speaker describes the "golden tassels" of the corn, and the "green and rustling leaves" that dance in the wind. These images create a sense of the beauty and vitality of the natural world, and they help to reinforce the idea that poetry is a natural and organic part of the world.
Finally, the poem also uses repetition to create a sense of rhythm and flow. For example, the phrase "Poetry Corn" is repeated throughout the poem, creating a sense of unity and coherence. The repetition of this phrase also reinforces the central theme of the poem, which is the power of poetry to inspire and uplift the human spirit.
Conclusion
In conclusion, Poetry Corn is a masterpiece of literary art that celebrates the transformative power of poetry. The poem uses a variety of literary devices, including metaphor, imagery, and repetition, to create a sense of depth and complexity. The central theme of the poem is the power of poetry to inspire and uplift the human spirit, and the poem encourages the reader to embrace the beauty and power of language. If you are a lover of poetry, then you must read this classic work of art by Sidney Lanier.
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