Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Elegy of Last Resort" by Howard Nemerov presents a haunting and evocative reflection on the decline and desolation of a seaside town. The poem employs vivid imagery and a melancholic tone to capture the sense of abandonment and the inexorable passage of time. Nemerov's exploration of decay, memory, and mortality weaves together a poignant meditation on the human condition.

The poem begins with a stark depiction of emptiness: "The boardwalks are empty, the cafes closed, / The bathchairs in mute squadrons face the sea." This opening sets a scene of desolation, emphasizing the absence of life and activity. The imagery of "mute squadrons" of bathchairs personifies the inanimate objects, suggesting a silent witness to the passing of seasons and the ebbing of human presence.

The sky is described as "Grey cloud goes over, the baffled involved brain / Of the old god over the vacant waters." This metaphor paints the sky as a deity's troubled mind, presiding over the desolate landscape. The "proprietors of the world," which include "The girls, the senators, the priests," have all departed, leaving behind only memories as "ideas of death in the dry sand blowing." The poem underscores the transient nature of human presence and the way memories fade into the landscape.

Nemerov invokes the name of Aschenbach, a reference to the character from Thomas Mann's novella *Death in Venice*, who symbolizes the artist confronting mortality and decay. Aschenbach's death, along with other "invalids" who "Have coughed their poems and died in bed," highlights the inevitable decline and end that all individuals face. The decaying timbers and rattling sand against empty windows further illustrate the physical deterioration of the once-vibrant locale.

The "visitors of smoke in sallow light" who "Curl, drift, dissolve to seaward in the wind" are ephemeral and ghostly, representing fleeting lives and transient existences. These "piteous shapes of accident" reflect the harsh realities and struggles faced by individuals, suggesting that many have lived lives marked by hardship and eventual dissolution.

Nemerov shifts to a contemplation of autumnal themes, where some "with sullen breath do praise / Autumnal pieties" in a futile attempt to find meaning in the face of decay. The "pain of prayer / That time's corrupted body will not hear" speaks to the hopelessness and isolation of human efforts against the relentless passage of time. The "unfriendly marriage in the stranger's house" evokes a sense of alienation and discomfort, emphasizing the disconnection from familiar comforts and the inevitability of change.

The poem moves into a more cosmic and existential realm with the line, "We enter again November, and the last / Steep fall of time into the deep of time." This seasonal transition into November symbolizes a deeper descent into the darkness of winter and the end of life. The description of the earth turning "from the sun / Into the great darkness, into the steep / Valley of the stars, into the pit / Of frozen Cocytus" evokes Dante's Inferno, with Cocytus being the frozen lake in the Ninth Circle of Hell where Satan resides. This imagery portrays the ultimate bleakness and coldness of the world as it moves toward its final decline.

The closing lines of the poem return to the coast, where "cold late light / Glazes the field" and a "little fever of love" persists, albeit faintly. This faint love, "Held in numbed hands," admires "the false gods," suggesting a recognition of the transient and illusory nature of earthly attachments. The sea, personified as bidding "us / Farewell," signifies the end of an era and the hardening towards winter, a metaphor for the final stages of life and the acceptance of mortality.

"Elegy of Last Resort" by Howard Nemerov is a deeply reflective and somber meditation on decay, memory, and the inexorable passage of time. Through rich imagery and allusions, Nemerov captures the desolation of a deserted seaside town and the broader existential themes of human mortality and the ultimate futility of resisting the natural cycle of life and death. The poem invites readers to contemplate their own place within this cycle and the transient nature of all things.

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