Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Lynn Emanuel’s poem "The Planet Krypton" offers a vivid and unsettling juxtaposition of domestic life against the backdrop of nuclear testing in mid-20th century Nevada. Through this stark contrast, Emanuel explores themes of transformation, danger, and the American fascination with progress and power, all while capturing the profound impact of atomic energy on the American psyche and landscape.

The poem begins by setting the scene in Ely, Nevada, where the environment is already marked by industrial activity: "Outside the window the McGill smelter / sent a red dust down on the smoking yards of copper." The imagery here—of red dust and smoking yards—immediately introduces a sense of pollution and decay, which is compounded by the town's description as "dull / and scuffed: a miner’s boot toe worn away and dim." This portrayal of the town sets a tone of degradation and wear, indicative of the broader environmental and social exhaustion.

The entrance of the atomic bomb into this setting is both dramatic and surreal. Emanuel describes how the local families, including her own, would react to the sounds of atomic testing: "From the Las Vegas / Tonapah Artillery and Gunnery Range the sound / of the atom bomb came biting like a swarm / of bees." The use of the simile comparing the bomb's sound to a swarm of bees adds a menacing quality to the atomic activity, suggesting danger and aggression.

Yet, the local response to the bomb is complex. The community is depicted as almost enchanted by the power of the bomb, evidenced by the description of the family sitting "in the hot Nevada dark, delighted, / when the switch was tripped and the bomb hoisted / up its silky, hooded, glittering, uncoiling length." This imagery is rich with contradiction—it is beautiful yet sinister, attractive yet clearly deadly. The bomb is anthropomorphized with descriptions like "it hissed and spit, it sizzled like a poker in a toddy," lending it a life-like, even snake-like quality that is both fascinating and frightening.

Emanuel masterfully captures the dual impact of the bomb—its destructive capability alongside its awe-inspiring presence. It "stripped every leaf from every / branch until a willow by a creek was a bouquet / of switches resinous, naked, flexible, and fine." This transformation is at once violent and artistically rendered, highlighting the profound changes wrought by such immense power.

The poem concludes with a reflection on the light cast by the bomb and its metaphorical implications. The narrator's mother appears "radioactive, swampy, / glaucous, like something from the Planet Krypton," linking her to the otherworldly, comic book realm of Superman, where destruction is often paired with heroism and rebirth. This light offers a moment of social levity and possibility: "In the suave, brilliant wattage of the bomb, we were / not poor. In the atom’s fizz and pop we heard possibility / uncorked." Here, Emanuel points to the atomic bomb as a symbol of new beginnings and unbounded potential, reflecting a quintessentially American optimism even in the face of potential annihilation.

"The Planet Krypton" is a powerful poem that captures the irony of deriving beauty and hope from something as destructive as an atomic bomb. It challenges the reader to consider the complexities of human responses to power and destruction, and the strange ways in which technology can shape our perceptions of possibility, progress, and ourselves.

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