In the Secular Night
I think this poem is beautiful. Out of all the poems we have discussed in class, I would say this is my favorite. I would say it is much more comprehensible than Ava Gardner Reincarnated as Magnolia, although maybe this is because I got slammed for my interpretation on that poem… The class came up with the theme “rejection of the sacred and seeking fulfillment from the world eventually leads to loneliness.” I sort of agree with this theme, but I think it is too vague. I am a bit scared to voice my own opinion because it was not pretty when I did so for Because I Could Not Stop for Death, but since this is a blog entry…
I think this poem has to do with the idea that the world is moving away from God in general and that conditions of the world we exist in prompt this movement away from God. In the text there is the character that feels lonely and finds fulfillment from vanilla ice-cream, grape juice, music, baby lima beans, etc. However, the character is still lonely. Then all verbs become present tense. “There is so much silence between the words, / you say.” The you refers to the character in the poem. Then the character says that the “sensed absence of God and the sensed presence amount to much the same thing,” which apparently shows that the character thinks the existence of God is an inconsequential aspect of her life. After, the character says that “I have too much white clothing.” This is the first and only reference to “I” which is the character referring to himself. The character just outright rejects God and says “too much white clothing,” where white has a connotation that goes along the lines of “white, pure, clean, goodness.” The final few lines are quite interesting. It says that it is not heresy or mysticism to not believe in God anymore, which suggests a general distancing of the world from God. Up to this point, the character slowly supports her belief for the inexistence of God. And then suddenly there are sirens, and someone dies. This deals with one of the most frequently asked questions about God, which goes something like “If God exists then why do such bad things happen?” So basically, the character’s belief is reinforced by the world. And then it says the century “grinds on” which suggests that people are having a hard time coping with the secular world, which includes this character.
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Michael, I love this post, and want to encourage you to always, always, always voice your opinion! Regardless of how it sometimes turns out, in terms of taking a risk, it is always fruitful to see where your ideas take you. What you have expressed in this post is very insightful and I think there is a more universal aspect to this poem. You touch on that when you say that, in general, society is grappling with the secular night and all of the darkness that comes with it. I wonder if Atwood is suggesting that turning our backs on spirituality/belief results in the lack of hope, and the sense of desolation, expressed in the poem. Maybe she is suggesting that we all struggle with this, as individuals, and that there is a societal struggle going on, as well. Certainly in a postmodern world, I think this is true. I wonder what Atwood would suggest as a way for society to move back towards faith (in whatever form that would take, in her opinion), or if she would suggest that is even possible. Interesting food for thought. Thanks for your post, Michael!
Yes, I agree with Mrs.Lavender.
Today, we are living in world where there are numerous obstacles. People often try to get rid of the obstacles by believing in God and seeking peace from God. But does believing in God really help?
Ah,
Reading this may perhaps help me write your rec letter..haha :P
Um..well, I cant totally see your point of view. In fact, I have to agree on many of the things you said. Like today's world be void of God. But, I want to ask you a question, was there ever a time when society wasn't detached from God? Are we really "moving away from God?" Or is that just part of our perception of the world under the limited scope of our visions? I feel like this issue, as well as many other issues, have existed in the world since the beginning of time. It's just that at the moment of living (for us, right now) people feel like something is changing. However, I think everything just fluctuates. Just like a sine graph, people come and go; they get closer to God then they draw back a little. But it's a never ending pattern that continues forever. I say this because the world has ALWAYS struggled with the idea of the supernatural. There were times when people feared the supernatural, and there were times when people readily accepted the supernatural. Now, people are beginning to believe that humanity itself is supernatural because we are able to sustain life. In some ways, yes that's true, but our spirituality can be alive or dead. Meaning, whether we really are supernatural is up to each and every individual. However, it seems to me that this idea is getting out of hand in today's world. Now, people are beginning to believe that they themselves can be gods. Hence, they blinded beliefs lead them away from the true spiritual. Suddenly, its not about faith in something beyond our own understanding, but now its about faith in our own selves; faith that we can make a difference; that we can do something; that we can even be gods.
Then again, this idea has existed since forever. Just like the Greeks thought people could be gods...history seems to repeat itself.
Anyways, like Mrs. Lav said, perhaps Atwood is commenting on an issue that's more than what meets the idea. Yes, its true that people are moving away from God...we're on the declining end of the sine graph at this point, but so what? Hm..I still think Atwood may be talking on both sides, depending on one's interpretation. She may be telling us to wake up from our ignorance and look to the metaphysical for fulfillment. Then again, I feel like she is saying that this is an inevitable process of departing from our dependence on a spiritual being to truly establish our independence.
Either way, this poem presents something priceless for humanity.
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