Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Consolations of Water" by Stephen Dobyns offers a profound meditation on the transformative power of nature and the possibility of redemption for even the most troubled souls. Through the metaphor of stones in a beach parking lot—stones that embody the hardened, sharp remnants of human rage and suffering—Dobyns explores themes of violence, anger, release, and ultimately, forgiveness.

The journey across the parking lot becomes a symbolic passage through a field of human pain and anger, where each stone represents an individual consumed by rage. Dobyns invites the reader to consider the origins of such hardness, tracing it back to cycles of violence and emotional escape. Rage is depicted as both a burden and a means of flight from the self, a paradoxical force that promises liberation from gravity and attachment while ultimately ensnaring its bearer more tightly in its grip.

The imagery of anger as a "room to feel alone in" and the description of it as an attempt to "pull free of the planet, the tug of gravity" capture the isolating and self-destructive nature of rage. It is a place of false refuge, where individuals seek solace in the illusion of weightlessness, unaware that their actions further entrench them in cycles of pain and retaliation.

Dobyns's turn towards the metaphor of water as a force of gentle, persistent forgiveness marks a shift in the poem towards hope and healing. The waves and the "soft hands" of the water work tirelessly to smooth the edges of the stones, to ease the imprints of anger and to offer a form of absolution that the individuals themselves could not find. This natural process suggests a capacity for renewal and softening that stands in stark contrast to the hardness of the stones.

The poem's closing lines, "Granite and glass, granite and glass. Can’t we / forgive them? The world forgives them," serve as a call to empathy and understanding. Dobyns suggests that if the natural world can work to heal the scars of anger and violence, perhaps there is room for human forgiveness as well. The act of forgiving, like the relentless caress of the waves on the stones, becomes a means of reclaiming and softening the hardened remnants of conflict.

"Consolations of Water" is a lyrical exploration of the capacity of nature to heal and reshape the legacies of human suffering. Through its vivid imagery and contemplative tone, the poem encourages a reflection on the nature of anger, the possibility of escape from cycles of violence, and the healing power of forgiveness. Dobyns crafts a narrative that is both a lament for the ways in which individuals become ensnared by their own rage and a hopeful testament to the potential for transformation and redemption.

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