Analysis and Themes in Lucille Cliftons Poetry - Research Paper Example

Analysis and Themes in Lucille Clifton’s Poetry Introduction Lucille Clifton’s passion for poem writing began when she was ten years old, an interest she developed from her mother who was also a poet. With time, she learned to love and embrace the power that words carried. Kevin Young commented on her literary legacy saying, “Clifton’s influence is profound, not just in terms of style but topic and music,” implying the power that the author’s work has on her readers (Teicher 38). The most notable experience of her life was when her mother was given an opportunity to publish her poetry work, but her husband ordered her not to pursue this activity. The anger and sorrow she had made Clifton’s mother to burn her poems. This memory stayed in Clifton’s mind and often motivated her to write about gender-based discrimination and male chauvinism. According to her, poetry materializes from a poet’s life, and that is the only way poetry can reach its audience. Most of Clifton’s writings centre on family matters, life and death, politics and religion, but most important, she uses her hardship situations and life experiences to write poems on sexism, injustice, and racism. "At the cemetery, walnut grove plantation, south Carolina, 1989" This poem talks about a visit to a supposed farm in Roebuck, South Carolina. The term plantation, at first sight may give a hint to clearly understand what Lucille is talking about. Being a black poet, the title of the poem gives an insight that the author is talking about slavery. Clifton owes her respect to the slaves who worked at the plantation, since the artifacts left behind are evidenced by not just their fingerprints, but also by their culture’s spirit and determination. Despite the fact that no one seem to recognize and appreciate what the slaves did, Clifton does not induce anger to the reader or point fingers at anyone to create guilty feelings. Instead, the poem requests that its audience listen to the narrations of these dead individuals and treat them with respect that was not given to them. The poem seems to have some focus on the conditions that surrounded the slave women. At some points, the poet illustrates that women were treated differently from their male counterparts, actually for the worse. According to Clifton & Rowel (56-72), the best gift we can give to the departed souls is to remember them and most specifically, the forgotten slave women. In reality, the most notable discrimination proved in the context of slavery in the poem is the phrase, “nobody mentioned salves but somebody did this work who had no guide, no stone, who molders under rock” Further, this line may also mean that the slaves were buried under stones or rocks, where no person could ever notice or remember that some human life existed in the plantation. Certainly, this leaves evidence that indeed, the slaves were not honored at all. By understanding this stanza, a reader gets to comprehend that the slaves had little or in fact no place in the community at that time. Logically, the poem can be understood as a celebration of slavery work, of a voice to call upon readers to remember and honor the departed hard working men and women. It does not promote men’s evil deeds, but the need to realize the significance of women. Clifton feels that racial connection and unity ought to be reinforced, arguing that the artifacts depict the presence of black people and women who did some good work to be appreciated. I think the main point being put across is for reads to remember those who go unmentioned, and to recognize and honor the work of the forgotten ones. Themes in the poem Feminism Clifton writes that out of the many slaves outlined in the lists, only men were recognized. Such a stanza has several meanings; on one hand, it appears to be a mere historic concept, emphasizing the dehumanizing nature that existed in the plantations. At the same time, it may have a deeper meaning of ignorance on the feminist side. Female slaves were not considered in the inventory process, a list that recorded objects and property, an actual sign of what slaves were viewed. Women were not regarded as human beings to be recognized among groups of men. Clifton makes this issue critical, and it is easy for any reader to sport feminist elements and a plea to give slave women a sense of belonging. In an incidence when she talks to Michael Glaser, Glaser describes Clifton as a woman who was concerned with her life experiences, racial, and feminist issues. He articulates, “A survivor of abuse or cancer or you name it--enough for those groups, one who acknowledged boundaries but was always seeking ways to remove them, to cross borders, to articulate her belief that, indeed, "all of us are all of us." This shows her desire to fully associate with her background. (Teicher 38). Race In this poem, race seems to a persistent theme. She does this by sharpening or softening the female persona to explore the American plantation. She shows her desire to know the names of the victimized slaves upon visiting the historic site. She realizes that the dead slaves lie silent under the rocks, with no names to identify them, neither are there marked graves. Clifton recites, “tell me your names, tell me your bashful names and I will testify.” The silence of the unrecalled slaves is contrary to the official lists proclaimed publicly in the plantation. Evidently, the silence seems to originate from Clifton’s bones, meaning that what she does not know about the dead slaves shows how much information she lacks regarding her ancestry and racial background. Recognition and remembrance This is a theme on its own; with the author’s concern most notably being that the work of the slaves should be recognized and honored. Forgetting all about their history and ignoring that they ever existed is a painful idea to Clifton, thus she insists that the artifacts be taken into consideration in remembrance of the deeds and significance of both male and female slaves. Just like Clifton calls out for people to honor the slaves, it is quite evident that she has always stuck to this idea since she was in her childhood. When Rowell asks Clifton to talk about her family background, she answers, “When my brother died, I started asking myself who was going to remember my mother as a young woman. And then I began to think about, as I said--if the last person who remembers is gone, what is left? What will be left of my mother? I must stay alive so that in a way my mother stays alive.” Such a statement depicts how important the author believes memory is (Clifton & Rowell 60). “Climbing” The title of the poem brings out the mood in itself, considering why it is not called “climbs” or “to climb.” The title creates motion, meaning active movement in the present. The poem is about lie possibilities and about rising to face the challenges that come along in life. The tone is down to earth and the language used is straightforward with sharp images. Clifton uses an extended metaphor of going up a rope to paint a bright picture of the beauty and the struggle intrinsic in black womanhood as per her experience. In the initial stanzas of her poem, Clifton sets the poem’s tone by portraying a ghostly vision. By revealing that that the woman on the rope has “dangling braids with the color of rain,” this poet signals that she is writing or reciting the poem in the sphere of imagination, given the fact that rain is colorless and transparent. Symbolically, the rope signifies a means to transport something and at the same time, a device that can be used to pull an object. People also hang themselves or are hanged using this rope, but the fact that it is long implies that the persona has a long and hard journey ahead. The word “maybe” has been used severally in the plot. By questioning her conscience on whether she should have had braids brings in thoughts of regret. To understand the author even clearly, I can associate the description of the dangling braids with youthfulness and vitality, but she says that she is now sixty, and the woman ahead of her is younger, possessing the features she had some years back. However, these are just but imaginations. Themes The poem employs themes like time and regret, the relation between desire and ageing, as well as the manner in which self image deteriorate as human beings become of age. In the same way she tells Rudine that in life, “Lines connect in thin ways that last and last,” (Horning 248). Clifton does not really wish that some wishes were made in her present life, instead she is proud and grateful that she has what she has and continues to acknowledge the remaining part of her old age, which she has to put in more effort to achieve. The theme of transformation The only constant aspect of life is change. In the poem, the author emphasizes the concept of change by illustrating the desires of her present self in linkage to her past visions and future selves. The then self is the struggling self, filled with dread and anxiety, and whatever is questioning the past life is her conscience. The writer’s doubts are highlighted in the litany of the word “maybe” that she rattles off. According to Clifton, the past life of the self concerns the youthful body and appearance, as “slim as possible as a boy’s bone.” Such a description of the self just like that of the present is characterized by lust and desire for bright life. The empty bowl that strives to be filled also indicates how eager a young mind wishes that life transforms for the better. Individualism It is clear from the poem that Clifton tried to address the issue of success and survival by a single person. It is the responsibility of an individual to analyze his or her life if things fail to go as expected. When being interviewed by Rowell regarding the meaning of individual being, Clifton explains, “An understanding that what people were going to teach me might not be all that I needed to know, and so choosing at some point to learn, not just be taught.” (Rowell 56). In this context, the poet wonders how life could have been if she had been able to lead a joyful life and a fulfilled inclination until when old age set in. I suppose the poet begins by showing that several other people had been travelling using the same rope to the top of their life, and most likely, they were happy. She must have her own way to lead life, rather than following what those who preceded her did. It is less probable that the writer would have climbed faster and smoothly if she copied the rest. This is what individualism is all about, The poem talks of the person as not wishing to conform to other people’s decisions, but wonders if this was really the best decision to have been made. It is rational that the author, as a self is happy with the first choices she made and wish to live the life she chose initially, despite of the hardships that come along the way. For instance, in her interview with Rudine Sims Bishop, she is asked to talk about her life and she says, “It is very important to face what actually happened, not what we wish; we should not try to put a good spin on it, not to leave out stuff.” (Horning 247). Even though the tones in the poem include defeatism and distress, there is also much of pride and realization in the appearance and uniqueness held by the speaker. It is likely that Clifton wanted the word “sixty” to standout so that she can emphasize an age that marks survival in a person’s life. The author must have embraced this theme by making personal choices. Conclusion Lucille Clifton’s poetry simply attracts the attention of any reader. The favorite part of it is that we are obliged to understand her life experiences and relate them to her personality and finally, to her work. The above poems transcend the distinction between our backgrounds, an element which makes the strength of her poetry. What makes her work outstanding is the idea of making the poem personal. All the themes, whether feminist, racial, or individual, give a deeper understanding of what the society experiences and what time presents. Works Cited Clifton, Lucille, and Charles H. Rowell. "An Interview with Lucille Clifton." Callaloo 22.1 (1999): 56-72. Rpt. in Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed. Janet Witalec. Vol. 162. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Literature Resource Center. Teicher, Craig Morgan. "PW talks with Kevin Young and Michael Glaser: Lucille Clifton's legacy." Publishers Weekly 20 Aug. 2012: 38. Literature Resource Center. Horning, Kathleen T. "An interview with Rudine Sims bishop." The Horn Book Magazine May- June 2008: 247+. Literature Resource Center. Read More