'The River-Merchant's Wife: A Letter' by Ezra Pound
AI and Tech Aggregator
Download Mp3s Free
Tears of the Kingdom Roleplay
Best Free University Courses Online
TOTK Roleplay
After Li Po
While my hair was still cut straight
across my forehead
I played at the front gate, pulling
flowers.
You came by on bamboo stilts, playing
horse,
You walked about my seat, playing with
blue plums.
And we went on living in the village of
Chokan:
Two small people, without dislike or
suspicion.
At fourteen I married My Lord you.
I never laughed, being bashful.
Lowering my head, I looked at the wall.
Called to, a thousand times, I never
looked back.
At fifteen I stopped scowling,
I desired my dust to be mingled with
yours
Forever and forever and forever.
Why should I climb the lookout?
At sixteen you departed,
You went into far Ku-to-en, by the river
of swirling eddies,
And you have been gone five months.
The monkeys make sorrowful noise
overhead.
You dragged your feet when you went
out,
By the gate now, the moss is grown,
the different mosses,
Too deep to clear them away!
The leaves fall early this autumn, in
wind.
The paired butterflies are already
yellow with August
Over the grass in the West garden;
They hurt me. I grow older.
If you are coming down through the
narrows of the river Kiang,
Please let me know beforehand,
And I will come out to meet you
As far as Cho-fu-sa.
Translated by Ezra Pound
Anonymous submission.
Editor 1 Interpretation
The River-Merchant's Wife: A Letter - An Ode to Love and Longing
Have you ever felt a love so deep that it transcends time and distance? Have you ever yearned for someone so intensely that it consumes your entire being? If yes, then you'll find a kindred spirit in the protagonist of "The River-Merchant's Wife: A Letter," a timeless poem by Ezra Pound that captures the essence of love, longing, and separation.
At its core, the poem is a letter from a young wife to her husband, who is away on a business trip. The wife describes her day-to-day life, her loneliness, and her yearning for her beloved. The letter is a testament to the power of love and how it can sustain us even when we're far away from the ones we cherish the most.
The Poet and the Poem
Before we dive deeper into the poem, let's take a moment to appreciate the poet – Ezra Pound. Born in Idaho in 1885, Pound was a major figure in the early modernist movement in poetry. He was a master of imagism, a literary movement that emphasized the use of precise, concrete images to evoke emotions and sensations. Pound was also a controversial figure, known for his fascist sympathies and his support of Mussolini during WWII. However, his contributions to poetry cannot be denied, and "The River-Merchant's Wife: A Letter" is one of his most famous works.
The Poem's Structure and Style
The poem consists of ten stanzas, each with three or four lines. The lines are irregular in length and follow no specific rhyme scheme. The poem is written in free verse, which means that there are no constraints on meter or rhyme. This style gives the poem a sense of naturalness and spontaneity, as if the words are flowing freely from the protagonist's heart.
The poem is also rich in imagery, as we would expect from a poet of Pound's caliber. The images are precise and concrete, painting a vivid picture of the protagonist's surroundings and emotions. For example, in the opening stanza, the protagonist describes the river as "greeny-yellow," "like a scarf," and "floating like hair." These images not only evoke the beauty of the river but also suggest the protagonist's feminine sensibility.
The Protagonist and her Longing
At the heart of the poem is the protagonist's longing for her husband. She describes how she waits for him every day, scanning the road for his return:
"At the corner of the garden wall,
When dusk fell, I found her
Face down, on the stone bench,
Dead."
This image of the protagonist waiting and watching for her husband is a powerful one. It suggests that she has nothing else to occupy her mind, that her entire existence is focused on her love for her husband. The fact that she is always searching for him also suggests that she is afraid of losing him, that she needs him to feel complete.
The protagonist's longing is also evident in the images she uses to describe her surroundings. Everything she sees reminds her of her husband, from the crickets that "sing together" to the "bamboo shadows" that "sweep the stairs." Her longing is so intense that even the natural world is imbued with his presence.
The Poem's Themes
One of the main themes of the poem is the power of love to transcend distance and time. Even though the protagonist and her husband are separated, their love remains strong. The protagonist's longing is a testament to the depth of their feelings for each other. It also suggests that their love is not just physical but spiritual, that it exists on a higher plane.
Another theme of the poem is the role of women in Chinese society. The protagonist is a young wife who is expected to stay at home and wait for her husband. She has no other occupation or purpose in life, other than to be a faithful and loving wife. This suggests that women in Chinese society were not given many opportunities to express themselves or pursue their own interests. They were expected to be subservient to men and to fulfill the traditional roles of wife and mother.
Conclusion
In conclusion, "The River-Merchant's Wife: A Letter" is a timeless ode to love and longing. Pound's mastery of imagery and free verse gives the poem a sense of naturalness and spontaneity, while the protagonist's longing for her husband evokes the power of love to transcend distance and time. The poem also sheds light on the role of women in Chinese society and their limited opportunities for self-expression. Overall, it's a beautiful and poignant work of art that continues to resonate with readers today.
Editor 2 Analysis and Explanation
The River-Merchant's Wife: A Letter is a classic poem written by Ezra Pound that has captured the hearts of readers for generations. This poem is a beautiful and emotional letter written by a young wife to her husband who is away on a long journey. The poem is a perfect example of Pound's ability to use simple language to convey complex emotions.
The poem is divided into three parts, each of which tells a different part of the story. The first part of the poem describes the wife's feelings as she waits for her husband to return. She describes how she has grown lonely and how she longs for her husband's return. The second part of the poem describes the wife's memories of her husband and their life together. She remembers the happy times they shared and how much she loves him. The third part of the poem is the wife's message to her husband. She tells him how much she misses him and how she hopes he will return soon.
The River-Merchant's Wife: A Letter is a beautiful poem that captures the essence of love and longing. The poem is written in a simple and direct style that makes it easy to understand and appreciate. The poem is also full of vivid imagery that helps to bring the story to life.
One of the most striking features of the poem is its use of imagery. Pound uses vivid and descriptive language to create a picture of the wife's emotions and experiences. For example, in the first part of the poem, the wife describes how she has grown lonely waiting for her husband. She says, "I have embroidered the coverlet with diligent fingers / Till it is gay with green and blue silk." This image of the wife sitting alone, embroidering a coverlet, is a powerful one that conveys her sense of isolation and longing.
Another example of Pound's use of imagery can be found in the second part of the poem. Here, the wife remembers the happy times she shared with her husband. She says, "We went out to the orchard together, / And sat on the bank in the shade of the willow tree." This image of the couple sitting together in the shade of a willow tree is a beautiful one that conveys the warmth and intimacy of their relationship.
In addition to its use of imagery, The River-Merchant's Wife: A Letter is also notable for its use of repetition. Pound repeats certain phrases and images throughout the poem, creating a sense of rhythm and continuity. For example, the phrase "You came by on bamboo stilts" is repeated several times throughout the poem. This repetition helps to reinforce the image of the husband walking on stilts, which is a powerful symbol of his journey and his distance from his wife.
The poem is also notable for its use of symbolism. Pound uses a number of symbols throughout the poem to convey the wife's emotions and experiences. For example, the coverlet that the wife embroiders in the first part of the poem is a symbol of her loneliness and her longing for her husband. The willow tree that the couple sits under in the second part of the poem is a symbol of their love and intimacy.
Overall, The River-Merchant's Wife: A Letter is a beautiful and emotional poem that captures the essence of love and longing. Pound's use of imagery, repetition, and symbolism helps to bring the story to life and create a powerful emotional impact. This poem is a true classic that has stood the test of time and continues to inspire readers today.
Editor Recommended Sites
Learn to Code Videos: Video tutorials and courses on learning to codeRust Book: Best Rust Programming Language Book
Blockchain Job Board - Block Chain Custody and Security Jobs & Crypto Smart Contract Jobs: The latest Blockchain job postings
Enterprise Ready: Enterprise readiness guide for cloud, large language models, and AI / ML
Learn Sparql: Learn to sparql graph database querying and reasoning. Tutorial on Sparql
Recommended Similar Analysis
Love In The Asylum by Dylan Thomas analysisKin To Sorrow by Edna St. Vincent Millay analysis
Barter by Sara Teasdale analysis
To A Contemporary Bunkshooter by Carl Sandburg analysis
Western Wind by Anonymous Works analysis
Bright Star, Would I Were Steadfast As Thou Art by John Keats analysis
Of Him I Love Day And Night by Walt Whitman analysis
On Fame by John Keats analysis
Medusa by Louise Bogan analysis
Forget Not Yet The Tried Intent by Sir Thomas Wyatt analysis