“mortals)” by ee cummings’ is quite confusing. The strange use of parentheses, perplexing word choices, and use of enjambment phrasing, were things that made no sense to me at first. During my first read, here are some things I noticed: “mortals)” lacks beginning parentheses; the only other punctuation is present in “meet n;” some words placed right next to each other are contradictory, and there are no clear stanzas. Immediately I was perplexed by the title, “mortals),” the way it sounds is so encompassing and powerful. Since it is a noun, this gives me hope that I can at least imagine something happening as I read. However, I wonder why the parentheses are not opened, it is irksome because he is using them in a way all his own that no one else can fully understand his intent. At first reading, this was uncomfortable, but as I persevere through reading and analysis, I have come to appreciate this unconventional use of parentheses. It is not impossible to use parentheses in this way, cummings just did it.
Breaking down all of the different components of difficulty opened my eyes to specific areas where I am confused instead of simply putting a general label on the whole poem as confusing. During my first read, I read it like before we learned how to use TPCASTT in class. The next time I read it, I read it once for every part of TPCASTT, and this is essential for me to carve out the difficult parts. The lack of clear stanzas, unusual punctuation, and allusions never left a complete idea in my head. I needed to do some outside research as well to learn more about ee cummings specifically. Some of the literary devices that I found were alliteration, enjambment, and juxtaposition. Learning these helped me put some of the pieces together.
Having more research in my head and TPCASTT as my guide, I began to question things more specifically. What does the word “eachness” mean or refer to? What does “swingthings” mean? I have to fight the urge to spell, correct them and get rid of the red squiggly line on my computer screen. Why are the parentheses only end parentheses and no beginning parentheses? Does the shape mean anything? I learned that enjambment is the continuation of a word across a line break, and this gave me some comfort because this device arguably gave me the most confusion across all of the cummings’ works. I wrote down the words that used this, “climbing” “into” “begin” “exquisite” and “return,” but what did they mean? Why these words specifically? All of these questions, all of this ambiguity, bothered me. Seemingly random spaces. Only two end parentheses. Hmm…
The reason that the two end parentheses are confusing is that we expect there to be another one. Maybe this choice was an ode to individuality, these parentheses still have meaning even though there is only one instead of the expected two. The parentheses could mean simultaneity, “mortal,” or risk of death, as the trapeze performance is being described. There is a risk of falling, but also the possibility of flying, there must be balance. The “eachness” means individuality, and the isolated “i” also means the same. “Swingthings” refer to the trapeze act that was a ‘watching; through this poem. Hmm… This poem does not have a shape I can see, but maybe the seemingly random spaces and the enjambment is attempting to show the randomness of a trapeze act. The trapeze artist is individually swinging, their individuality hanging on to the balance between falling and flying.
I JUST REALIZED. “im)mortals)”, the trapezist is immortal, and will never die. In the beginning, it seems suspenseful, as if they might fall, but even in the end the ) forms a connection to the front. Although the individual themselves might die, the art (in this case the trapeze show) that the individual creates will live on.
Overall, something I learned through this process is to be comfortable with ambiguity. There are many questions I have written down that I still wonder about and ideas and theories that are difficult to connect. I still do not have all of the answers. In this way, ee cummings poem creates an experience, seeking to experience rather than to understand. I have gained a new appreciation for poetry through this experience. What was once a muddle of letters to eyes, now provides an experience for my mind and heart.
Kaetlyn, the poem you chose is absolutely fascinating. I also chose an E. E. Cummings poem, but the most difficult part of it was more the diction and literary devices, not the syntax and format like it is here. I know this is really weird, but when I squint and look at the poem, I kind of see a person sitting with their arms and legs out, almost like they’re swinging on a bar, with a seat or something under them. I seriously doubt that is what E. E. Cummings was going for, but with the trapeze imagery and the image you chose of the acrobats, I don’t think that detail was only noticed by me. I agree with you that the punctuation is possibly the most difficult aspect of this poem. I had those classic E. E. Cummings parentheses in my poem, but definitely not up to this level. I thought the idea of the parentheses being an allusion to individuality and mortality because of how they cut off so abruptly was really interesting. Even more than that, your connection between the last line and the first one was absolutely amazing! I love how you connected the idea of immortality to art and humanity, especially how human lives are mortal, but the meaning of life and art will live on past the entire human race.
Hey Kaetlyn! My first read-through of your poem was filled with confusion and I didn’t quite understand what was going on. I did take notice of the strangely formatted title with one parenthesis just as you did but wasn’t able to properly grasp any details during my first read. The way you explained the parenthesis was really helpful and it made a lot more sense once I went back to reread it. Looking at the poem from far away, I do think that I see the slightest hint of the shape of someone dangling from something, where the section of the poem after “ng i” is the human, and the parts before that are the bar. I also loved that you were able to use the term “im)mortal)” to create a connection between the trapezist and the art, and emphasize the idea that even though the trapezist may not live as long, the art that they perform would last forever and in a sense, be immortal. I think you did a really wonderful job in analyzing the poem, and a lot of the things you mentioned I didn’t even think to recognize. I enjoyed reading through your thought process as you took us through this poem.