E E Cummings

             E. E. Cummings, who was born in 1894 and died in 1962, wrote many
             poems with unconventional punctuation and capitalization, and unusual
             line, word, and even letter placements - namely, ideograms. Cummings'
             most difficult form of prose is probably the ideogram; it is extremely
             terse and it combines both visual and auditory elements. There may be
             sounds or characters on the page that cannot be verbalized or cannot
             convey the same message if pronounced and not read. Four of Cummings'
             poems - l(a, mortals), !blac, and swi( - illustrate the ideogram form
             quite well. Cummings utilizes unique syntax in these poems in order to
             convey messages visually as well as verbally.
             Although one may think of l(a as a poem of sadness and
             loneliness, Cummings probably did not intend that. This poem is about
             individuality - oneness (Kid 200-1). The theme of oneness can be
             derived from the numerous instances and forms of the number '1'
             throughout the poem. First, 'l(a' contains both the number 1 and the
             singular indefinite article, 'a'; the second line contains the French
             singular definite article, 'le'; 'll' on the fifth line represents two
             ones; 'one' on the 7th line spells the number out; the 8th line, 'l',
             isolates the number; and 'iness', the last line, can mean "the state
             of being I" - that is, individuality - or "oneness", deriving the
             "one" from the lowercase roman numeral 'i' (200). Cummings could have
             simplified this poem drastically ("a leaf falls:/loneliness"), and
             still conveyed the same verbal message, but he has altered the normal
             syntax in order that each line should show a 'one' and highlight the
             theme of oneness. In fact, the whole poem is shaped like a '1' (200).
             The shape of the poem can also be seen as the path of a falling leaf;
             the poem drifts down, flipping and altering pairs of letters like a
             falling leaf gliding, back...

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E E Cummings. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 11:45, March 28, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/52027.html