Distortion of Atwood
This is a Photograph of Me- Margaret Atwood
It was taken some time ago.
At first it seems to be
a smeared
print: blurred line and gray flecks
blended with the paper;
then, as you scan
it, you see in the left-hand corner
a thing that is like a branch: part of a tree
(balsam or spruce) emerging
and, to the right, halfway up
what ought to be a gentle
slope, a small frame house.
In the background there is lake,
and beyond that, some low hills.
(The photograph was taken
the day after I drowned.
I am in the lake, in the center
of the picture, just under the surface.
It is difficult to say where
precisely, or to say
how large or small I am:
the effect of water
on light is a distortion
but if you look long enough,
eventually
you will be able to see me.)
This poem caught my eye because of its shape on the page. Its theme is distortion, and similarly, so is its structure. The most interesting thing is that half the poem is in parentheses, giving the impression that it is less important that the other information given, yet this is where truth is revealed. The image of the photograph is described as being "smeared" and "blurred" , and in fact, so is the poem as a whole. The first line is very factual, perhaps contextualizing the poem: "It was taken some time ago" , straight away giving the picture an ancient, mysterious feel that is further emphasized by the description of distortion. The free verse of this poem gives it a strong narrative feel of the speaker in private conversation with the reader. The poem is broken up into stanzas that include breaks on the page that add to this conversational feel as though the speaker was taking a break and allowing the reader to take it all in. Finally, the poem gives an eerie feeling when the reader realizes that the speaker is dead, and is speaking from what seems to be from ‘beyond the grave’. This is mentioned off-handedly in parenthesis, as if it makes no difference in the description of the picture, yet obviously, has a large impact on the poem as well as the reader. The speaker says" the effect of water on light is a distortion", yet the poem as a whole is a distortion as well.
posted by Dana @ 12:51 AM
2 Comments:
I have enjoyed Atwood's poetry for a number of years now, and one thing I have noticed about her poetry is her use of brackets.
Especially in her poems which contextualize Susanna Moodie's quest in Canada as a new immigrant, she uses brackets to her advantage.
I have always viewed Atwood's use of brackets to reveal or to show a juxtaposition of thought. She "REMOVES" or "DISPLACES" parts or thoughts within her poems through the use of these brackets, and many times the content within these brackets can lead in an entirely different direction.
In this specific case, she tells her story in the first half, but the second half, removed by the use of the brackets, becomes almost the historical position of the first half of her poem.
I don't have the slightest idea if I am making ANY sense at all right now as I am completely and utterly brain-dead. Anyway, hope it did. [laugh]
Dana: I read this poem too, a couple of weeks ago. I thought the drowning was a metaphor for her feeling of being overwhelmed at that time and which caused her to feel submerged. Staring at the picture long enough and then seeing her, would be an act which has to contend with a distortion of her light (herself) which would emerge after this time.
I struggle with Margaret Atwood. Although I have read a few (very few) of her works, and I know she has won many awards for her work, to me, Margaret Atwood is the token Canadian woman writer. She has been touted and praised and has a name that is known all across this country, and in other parts of the world as well. Yet, when I hear her speaking, it is like nails on a chalkboard. For starters, I wish she would open her mouth. She talks and looks when you see her speaking, like some wizened old 90 year old woman who is totally afraid to use her mouth.
I heard an interview of her on CBC radio a few months ago in which she told the story of spending a lot of her childhood on the roof of the garage reading books - she was a solitary child. While the interview helped me understand the person a little better, it has done nothing to help me feel like growling when I think she could write garbage and it would still be thought to be wonderful because it was Margaret Atwood who wrote it - publisher's 'dream child'.
I know this is not a positive comment I have written here. In actual fact, this poem to me, is a tiny piece of prose that has been chopped up and said to be poetry. Someone is speaking to explain to someone else about a picture, as every one of us does from time to time. I don't see the craft in this, unless it comes from the fact that you could read this poem and then draw a small sketch that would produce a visual artistic picture.
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