Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Chanson Innocente: 2, Fr. Tulips" by E.E. Cummings is a delightful yet eerie poem that captures the whimsical and sometimes frightening world of childhood imagination. As with many of Cummings' works, the poem plays with language, form, and rhythm to create a vivid and sensory-rich experience for the reader. This poem, filled with playful yet sinister imagery, reflects the dual nature of childhood, where joy and fear often coexist.

The poem opens with the words "hist whist," an onomatopoeic phrase that immediately sets a tone of secrecy and quietude, as if the reader is being invited into a hidden world. This whisper-like start gives the impression of something magical or ghostly taking place, a scene unfolding in a realm of half-light and shadow. The "little ghostthings" that "tip-toe" and "twinkle-toe" evoke images of small, ethereal beings moving delicately through the night, perhaps unseen by adult eyes but keenly observed by a child's vivid imagination.

Cummings introduces a cast of fantastical characters, each described with a mix of playful and ominous language. The "little twitchy witches" and "tingling goblins" suggest both excitement and unease, as these creatures are familiar to children through tales of magic and mischief. The repetition and rhythm in the lines "hob-a-nob hob-a-nob / little hoppy happy / toad in tweeds" add a musical quality to the poem, further enhancing its playful tone. Yet, even within this playful world, there is a sense of underlying danger, as the poem transitions to the "itchy mousies" with "scuttling eyes" that "rustle and run and hidehidehide."

The poem's form, with its short, fragmented lines and scattered phrases, mirrors the jittery, quick movements of the creatures it describes. This structure also mimics the breathless excitement and fear that often accompany children's games of make-believe, where the line between play and reality can blur.

A turning point in the poem occurs with the introduction of the "old woman with the wart on her nose," a classic figure from fairy tales who is often associated with witches or malevolent forces. The warning to "look out" for her adds a sense of urgency and danger, as the poem shifts from the playful to the menacing. The fear of the unknown is encapsulated in the line "what she'll do toyer / nobody knows," suggesting the unpredictability of this figure's actions and the potential for harm.

The poem then takes a darker turn with the repeated invocation of "the devil," a figure that embodies ultimate evil and terror in the Western imagination. The old woman is said to "know the devil," and the poem describes him with words like "ooch," "ouch," and "ach," which convey both pain and fear. The repetition of "devil" and the description of him as "the great green dancing devil" add to the sense of escalating dread. This culminates in the final, drawn-out "wheeEEE," a sound that could be interpreted as a scream or a cry of fear, suggesting that the playful game has reached its terrifying climax.

In "Chanson Innocente: 2, Fr. Tulips," Cummings expertly balances the light and dark aspects of childhood imagination. The poem captures the way children can be both enchanted and terrified by the stories and figures they encounter in their play. The whimsical language and rhythmic structure of the poem mirror the playful energy of childhood, while the darker imagery hints at the underlying fears and anxieties that often accompany growing up.

Through his use of unconventional form and vivid, sensory-rich language, Cummings creates a poem that is both a celebration of childhood's imaginative potential and a recognition of its inherent vulnerabilities. The poem’s closing lines, with their blend of excitement and terror, encapsulate the complex emotions that define this stage of life, making it a powerful and evocative exploration of the child's world.

Copyright (c) 2025 PoetryExplorer

Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!

Other Poems of Interest...