Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Going Away Any Time Soon" by John Ashbery is a labyrinthine exploration of memory, perception, and the transient nature of existence. Ashbery, known for his complex and enigmatic style, crafts a poem that weaves together disparate images and ideas, challenging the reader to find coherence in the apparent chaos.

The poem opens with a farewell, "I'll see you in my dreams," suggesting a departure or a transition from one state of being to another. This sense of transition is reinforced by the reference to "my annual cure at Wiesbaden," implying a ritualistic journey for rejuvenation or healing. The mention of Wiesbaden, a spa town in Germany, adds a layer of historical and cultural context, evoking images of relaxation and retreat.

Ashbery's meditation on rules – "What good are rules anyway" – questions the structures and systems that govern life and thought. The poem plays with the idea of rules applying only to themselves, highlighting the self-referential and sometimes arbitrary nature of systems and regulations.

The imagery of the "rule of glass, sleek and dark" personified as a private individual delving into the speaker's "auto-autobiography" introduces themes of introspection and self-analysis. This introspection is juxtaposed with the external world, where "fallen petals" imbibe "life's mystery." The cat sipping and turning away symbolizes the tentative, cautious engagement with the mysteries of life.

The phrase "Little mystery, are you good for anything?" encapsulates the human quest for meaning in the seemingly insignificant or enigmatic aspects of existence. The poem reflects on the passage of time, with sleep representing the unconscious, and the years as something "still coming," suggesting an ongoing journey through life.

Ashbery delves into the idea of domesticity and routine, with "domestic tasks" set against a truth that is "mostly underground." This contrast between the surface of everyday life and the deeper, hidden truths speaks to the complexity of human experience.

The poem shifts to a scene of magicians falling, one traveling to Pennsylvania, another engaging in conversation. These vignettes add to the dreamlike, surreal quality of the poem. The questioning of "How many worms to a dozen" and the observation of "elbows at this windowsill serious as bunting on a cloudy day" further contribute to the sense of disorientation and ambiguity.

The closing lines, "Puckered mists trash the hill ecstatic as lozenges," evoke a landscape both familiar and strange, tinged with a sense of wonder and bewilderment. The use of "puckered" and "ecstatic" to describe the mists adds a tactile and emotional dimension to the scene.

"Going Away Any Time Soon" is a quintessential Ashbery poem, rich in layered meanings, elusive imagery, and a stream-of-consciousness style that defies easy interpretation. It invites readers to embrace the uncertainties and complexities of life, to find beauty in the incomprehensible, and to ponder the enigmatic nature of human consciousness and experience.

POEM TEXT: https://www.google.com/books/edition/Wakefulness/sSh5BAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22I%27ll+see+you+in+my+dreams+she+said%22+ashbery&pg=PT83&printsec=frontcover

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