I Will Wade Out
I believe Cummings's poem is a lot about deciding what type of person and what type of life one wants to live. To the speaker this life is one of spontaneity that follows the movement of nature. If you take a look at the physical structure of the poem, the lines are indented in and out like the waves of the ocean. This type of spontaneous and random motion follows that of another one of Cummings's poems "O Sweet Spontaneous" and "Lets Live Without Thinking" (cool right?). The type of living that the speaker describes is very intense.
E.E. Cummings had transcendental influences thus, I get from the poem a lot about retreating into nature to become aware of self. Flowers, the sun, the moon, all objects of nature with profound presence and meaning. The sun is symbolic of death and rebirth, evolution, and divine. The moon is described as a timepiece, personified as a deity, in some cultures associated with insanity and irrationality. Furthermore, the moon represents a feminine symbol, a middle ground between the light of sun and darkness, the realm between conscious and unconscious, a symbol of the soul, and determines a subjects capacity for reflection and adaptation.In some way, shape or form, all of these representations could be connected with the evolution of self and of one's soul.
There are a few instances of very visual and oxymoronic objects. For instance, "burning flowers" and "sleeping curves". The burning of flowers seems to be like destroying beauty. A flower is a very delicate and gentle object;however, burning is a very violent, strong, and destructive action. Furthermore, curves connote movement, action, winding, and instability while sleeping is non active, without movement. this could be an overstatement but i feel that this juxtaposition goes along with the sense of uncertainty in wading and wavering and possibly not knowing what you want out of life.
Even with all of this asserting of what the speaker will do, There is still an underlying sense of insecurity in their assertions. After all the poem is titled "I Will Wade Out". Of the many definitions of "wading", one is "to make one's way slowly or laboriously". Thus, the speaker seems to emote uncertainty in his actions and decision about the future. Wading is uncertainty by not having enough confidence to go all in. Wading is almost synonymous with wavering, going back and forth. The words that Cumming's uses connote the same idea: leap, curves, dash.
What I can take from this poem is about self-actualization even f it is not Cummings's intent. Interpretations and analysis are entirely the readers' though right? Ether way, i understand the pseaker to be expressing that he is reclaiming himself.
"the mystery of my flesh" seems to be a highlight on the poem to me
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