Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

John Ashbery's "Wakefulness" is a poem that operates within the interstices of memory, perception, and the ephemeral nature of existence, much like a dream hovering on the edge of consciousness. Ashbery, known for his complex and layered poetry, here offers a narrative that is at once intimate and universal, marked by its elusive imagery, thematic depth, and reflective tone.

The poem begins with a scene that is both ordinary and mystically charged: "An immodest little white wine, some scattered seraphs, / recollections of the Fall." This opening juxtaposes the mundane—a simple white wine—with the divine, or "scattered seraphs," setting the stage for a meditation on the interplay between the celestial and the earthly, the sacred and the profane. The mention of "recollections of the Fall" introduces a thematic concern with human imperfection and the loss of innocence, inviting readers to contemplate the consequences of knowledge and the longing for a paradisiacal state of grace.

Ashbery's inquiry into whether anyone has "made a spongier representation, chased / fewer demons out of the parking lot" employs a tone of ironic detachment, questioning the efficacy of our attempts to grapple with and expel our inner demons. The parking lot, a symbol of the mundane and transient spaces we inhabit, becomes the setting for a collective struggle with unseen forces, suggesting the ubiquity of such battles in human experience.

The poem then shifts towards a more introspective mood, with the speaker recounting a return to "the idea of the true way," a moment of clarity or understanding amidst confusion. This passage, "I was touched by your care, / reduced to fawning excuses," speaks to the vulnerability and dependency inherent in human relationships, highlighting the transformative power of care and attention.

In the "little house of our desire," everything is "spotless," and the clock's contentment with "being apprenticed to eternity" suggests a temporary suspension of time, a moment of perfection captured within the flow of the eternal. The "gavotte of dust motes" replacing the speaker's vision introduces a motif of obfuscation and the passage of time, as even the air we breathe is filled with the remnants of the past, dancing in the light yet obscuring clear sight.

Ashbery's reference to "ancient peach-colored funny papers" and the "law of true opposites" evokes nostalgia for a simpler time when truths were seemingly more straightforward, yet this nostalgia is undercut by the awareness of its artifice. The book that "opened by itself / and read to us" confronts the characters (and by extension, the readers) with a challenge to their integrity and intentions, suggesting both a divine judgment and an internal reckoning with one's own failings and desires.

The poem's latter sections delve into themes of madness, the relentless passage of time, and the struggle for authenticity in a world where "life stays frozen in the headlights." The "kindly gnome / of fear" on the dashboard symbolizes the ever-present anxiety that accompanies our journeys, ignored yet omnipresent, influencing the directions we take.

"Wakefulness" is a poetic exploration of the human condition, marked by moments of clarity and confusion, hope and despair, action and inaction. Ashbery crafts a landscape that is both deeply personal and expansively philosophical, where the search for meaning and the desire for connection contend with the recognition of life's impermanence and the inscrutability of existence. The poem's closing line, "Funny, none of us heard the roar," serves as a poignant reminder of our collective obliviousness or denial in the face of life's overwhelming force, suggesting that even amid the noise and chaos of existence, there is a profound silence that goes unnoticed.

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