it may not always be so;and i say
that if your lips,which i have loved,should touch
another's,and your dear strong fingers clutch
his heart,as mine in time not far away;
if on another's face your sweet hair lay
in such a silence as i know,or such
great writhing words as,uttering overmuch,
stand helplessly before the spirit at bay;
if this should be,i say if this should be-
you of my heart,send me a little word;
that i may go unto him,and take his hands,
saying,Accept all happiness from me.
Then shall i turn my face,and hear one bird
sing terribly afar in the lost lands.
ee cummings
Notes on "it may not always be so;and i say "
There's not much to explain here, is
there? Relax and enjoy the ride. From "Tulips and Chimneys," 1923
E. E. Cummings' (1894 - 1962) writing and approach
represented a new departure in poetry. He first flourished in the intellectually innovative and daring world of the
1920s. His work has never been fully appreciated by critics, but has an avid following among both connoisseurs and
"ordinary" folk, because his poems touch people directly, especially young people.
The modern era was born in the 1920s, out of the ruins
and desolation of World War I. The war smashed more than cities and people. It smashed Victorian conventions and class
distinctions. Suddenly, people were not afraid to speak and write about sex as something enjoyable and beautiful. This
was the era of James Joyce's Ulysses and Lawrence's Lady Chatterley's Lover, but also, especially in America, the era of
Scott Fitzgerald's "Tender is the Night." A time of daring and romance in literature.
His poetry is informed by his unique philosophy of life and
art. Cummings would laugh at most of the pedantic and trite dissections of his work by "objective" critics. Cummings had
nothing against science and logic, but he didn't think it applied to feelings. He was intensely against regimentation
and conventional thinking. His rebellion and unconventionality were symbolized superficially by his refusal to use capital
letters in his poems, but they went far beyond that.
Typography and layout of the poem were often very
important to Cummings, who was also an artist. Please note that we will not always be able to be faithful to the
original typography, because of limitations of the medium. Like some other modern poets, ee cummings' often
conveyed images and feelings by indirect allusions that would make readers see the images and feel the feelings
he was feeling, though he also made skilful use of poetic conventions. He also had the gift of making the English
language do unexpected and wondrous things, a gift that has made great poetry since the time of Shakespeare and
before.
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