Poetry Analysis Partial Draft - 2/11

Hey everybody!  Here is my partial draft. I'm not sure if this is the direction I want to go or not. It's pretty rough...I definitely have a lot of work to do for my final revision. It has some major problem areas.. Anyway...here it is!

Michelle Rehberger

Professor Wexler

English 495ESM

10 February 2013

Poetry Analysis Essay – Partial Draft

            William Carlos Williams is one of many modernist writers who uses imagism in his poetry. Arguably his most famous poem, “The Red Wheelbarrow” focuses on just one image: a wheelbarrow in the rain. The poem is incredibly short. It has just 16 words and is only 8 lines, but it represents much more than those 16 words. Imagism is not about the object, it is about the subject. Likewise, imagist poems are written from a subjective point of view, rather than an objective point of view. In this case, the subject would be the red wheelbarrow and it written from the way the Williams sees it. This helps make the image strong and universal for most readers. It lets the reader see the wheelbarrow, but every reader will see a different wheelbarrow. It is a specific subject, yet it can be seen in many different ways. Through his use of imagism, which include lack of detail, simplification and reduction of image, and the use of an economy of words, Williams is able to succeed in making a concrete, universal image for his reader.

            This poem lacks detail, but that is exactly how Williams makes his image so strong and so visible for every reader. Williams describes the wheelbarrow as “red” and “glazed with rain water” (87). Though this description is vague, the reader is still able to imagine the wheelbarrow; however, every reader will imagine the wheelbarrow differently due to the lack of detail. That’s why the poem is subjective—only the writer can see it exactly how he has described it and every reader will have their own experience with it. Therefore, by not using multitudes of details, the image has become universal. Part of William’s style and lack of detail also lead to his ability to make the physical view of the poem itself reminiscent of the shape of a wheelbarrow. Williams organizes the poem so that there are three words on the top line and only one on the bottom line to create a silhouette similar to that of a wheelbarrow. This is just another way in which Williams creates a concrete image for the reader, but with so little detail.

            Another part of Williams’ imagist style is shown in his word choice—or lack thereof. Imagists would say that Williams uses an economy of words in “The Red Wheelbarrow”. One of the three main tenants of imagism is the economy of words, which is essentially picking your words carefully and sparingly. In this instance, less is better. Imagists believe that the poet should discard all words that do not directly contribute to the poem, creating an almost Haiku-like poem. A haiku can only be so long because it depends entirely on the amount of syllables in each line, thus limiting the poet to a small amount of words.  Likewise, imagist poets must only use words that are necessary to the description of the poem. 

Works Cited

Morgan, Frederick. "William Carlos Williams: Imagery, Rhythm, Form." The Sewanee Review 55.4 (1947): 675-90. The Johns Hopkins University Press. Web. 10 Feb. 2013. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/27537788>.