D’sa 1

Shane D’sa

Mr. Damaso

Honors English 2, Period 7

19 March 2010

SRP Poetry Analysis

POET: James Wright

REVISED LITERARY THREAD: James Wright through his life and book The Branch Will

Not Break discusses the escape of man into nature because of humankind’s manipulation of the

world.

POEMS:

1. “A Blessing” by James Wright

2. “Lying in a Hammock at William Duffy’s Farm in Pine Island, Minnesota” by James

Wright Poem 1: “A Blessing” by James Wright

Poem 1:
“A Blessing” by James Wright

Just off the highway to Rochester, Minnesota,

Twilight bounds softly forth on the grass.
And the eyes of those two Indian ponies
Darken with kindness.
They have come gladly out of the willows
To welcome my friend and me.
We step over the barbed wire into the pasture
Where they have been grazing all day, alone.
They ripple tensely, they can hardly contain their happiness
That we have come.
They bow shyly as wet swans. They love each other.
There is no loneliness like theirs.
At home once more,
They begin munching the young tufts of spring in the darkness.
I would like to hold the slenderer one in my arms,
For she has walked over to me
And nuzzled my left hand.
 D’sa 2

She is black and white,

Her mane falls wild on her forehead,
And the light breeze moves me to caress her long ear
That is delicate as the skin over a girl's wrist.
Suddenly I realize
That if I stepped out of my body I would break
Into blossom.
 D’sa 3

“A Blessing.” Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, 2005. Web. 18 Apr. 2010.

< http://poets.org>

1. FORM
 24 total lines
 1 stanzas of 24 lines
 This is free verse
 Each line varies in length
 The poem is mostly written pentameter or hexameter
 Rhyme
 There is no rhyme scheme
 There is alliteration in lines 23 and 24 with the use of the sound of b.
 Meter
 See poem above for SCANSION
 Meter is mostly iambic/pyrrhic pentameter/hexameter
2. FUNCTION
 Method
i. Figurative language
1. Simile- (line 11) horse bow to swan courting bow
2. Oxymoron- (line 9) a ripple is supposed to be peaceful,
subtle, and slow
3. Oxymoron- (line 14) spring is a time supposed to be a time
of light and life and not of darkness
4. Simile- (line 21) horse skin compared to girl’s skin
ii. Poetic Devices
 D’sa 4

1. Metonymy- (line 2) it describes the color or grass in the

afternoon
2. Paradox- (line 4) kindness is supposed to be associated with
happiness and not the not darkness
3. Metonymy- (line 14) tufts are used to describe hay
Meaning
i. The poem is about two men who get off the highway and step into a
ranch. They cross a barbed wire fence and commit trespassing to
witness theses beautiful animals. They come across two horses of
which these men see themselves in them. The poem goes on
describing their love for each other and their beauty. The narrator
finally claims that he could never attain this beauty, and if he did “I
would break into blossom”
 Theme
i. The theme is about the balance of man and nature. These men stop
amidst their hustle and bustle life to see these innocent and pure
animals. They though, are not sure if they can fully attain this state
of true beauty.
3. LITERARY THREAD
 These men break the law to cross into the forbidden grazing area
 The lust to come closer to these perfect beings
 Men stop amidst busy life to take time and appreciate nature
 Men have a sensual relationship with these horses, as man wants to escape
into nature’s arms.

Poem 2: “Autumn Begins in Martins Ferry, Ohio” by James Wright

Over my head, I see the bronze butterfly,

Asleep on the black trunk,
blowing like a leaf in green shadow.
Down the ravine behind the empty house,
The cowbells follow one another
Into the distances of the afternoon.
To my right,
In a field of sunlight between two pines,
The droppings of last year's horses
Blaze up into golden stones.
I lean back, as the evening darkens and comes on.
A chicken hawk floats over, looking for home.
I have wasted my life.
 D’sa 5

Wight, James. "Lying in a Hammock at William Duffy's Farm in Pine Island, Minnesota by

James Wright." PoemHunter.Com - Thousands of Poems and Poets.. Poetry Search

Engine. Web. 18 Apr. 2010. <http://www.poemhunter.com>.

1. FORM
 13 total lines
 1 stanzas of 13 lines
 This is a free verse lyric
 Rhyme
 There is no rhyme scheme
 There is alliteration in lines one and two with the sound of b.
 Meter
 See poem above for SCANSION
 There is no specific meter
 Meter is mostly iambic/ pyrrhic tetrámeter
2. FUNCTION
 Method
 Figurative language
o Personification- (line 2) describe stance of butterfly which is
relaxed
o Simile- (line 3) this is a comparison to describe the butterfly
and a leaf
o Metonymy- (line 5) the cowbells describe the cows
 Poetic devices
o Hyperbole (line 8) over-exaggerate the color and texture of
the horse poop
 D’sa 6

o Overstatement- (lines 9,10) droppings over time darken and

decompose, and don’t “blaze”
o Oxymoron- (line 12) chickens are carnivorous as hawks
 Meaning
o This poem is about a person sitting on a hammock in the
summertime. Next to him a bronze butterfly is lying
peacefully while a group of cows are walking in a line. He
looks at a piece of poop and sees that it has almost
caramelized instead of decomposing. As he witnesses all of
this, he feels that he has wasted his life.
 Theme
o The theme is about inaction versus action. The narrator sees
that he cannot move forward and is stuck in the past.
3. LITERARY THREAD
 All human creations weigh down man
 The narrator escapes by relaxing these manipulations
 Man has completely altered that is beauty and nature
 Narrator realizes that he has bought into this system and it has drained him
 Man has even made cows walk in straight lines and make chickens fly, and
therefore there is no nature or beauty in the world