Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird
I
Among twenty snowy mountains,
The only moving thing
Was the eye of the blackbird.
II
I was of three minds,
Like a tree
In which there are three blackbirds.
III
The blackbird whirled in the autumn winds.
It was a small part of the pantomime.
IV
A man and a woman
Are one.
A man and a woman and a blackbird
Are one.
V
I do not know which to prefer,
The beauty of inflections
Or the beauty of innuendoes,
The blackbird whistling
Or just after.
VI
Icicles filled the long window
With barbaric glass.
The shadow of the blackbird
Crossed it, to and fro.
The mood
Traced in the shadow
An indecipherable cause.
VII
O thin men of Haddam,
Why do you imagine golden birds?
Do you not see how the blackbird
Walks around the feet
Of the women about you?
VIII
I know noble accents
And lucid, inescapable rhythms;
But I know, too,
That the blackbird is involved
In what I know.
IX
When the blackbird flew out of sight,
It marked the edge
Of one of many circles.
X
At the sight of blackbirds
Flying in a green light,
Even the bawds of euphony
Would cry out sharply.
XI
He rode over Connecticut
In a glass coach.
Once, a fear pierced him,
In that he mistook
The shadow of his equipage
For blackbirds.
XII
The river is moving.
The blackbird must be flying.
XIII
It was evening all afternoon.
It was snowing
And it was going to snow.
The blackbird sat
In the cedar-limbs.
-Wallace Stevens
Tags: Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird, Wallace Stevens
mark says:
how lovely.
mr. steven knows a thing or two doesnt he?
since this poem struck so fiercely at my geometric tendencies i googled the old chap to find this poem has been worthy of many critiques. not surprisingly they all soundly miss the obvious connection between the 20 mountains and the 13 blackbirds.
and of 3 minds sitting in a tree!?!?!? why doesnt he just give away the puzzle!!
since i am not one to hide these things so cryptically as mr. stevens i’ll let you in on what he’s talking about.
the icosahedron has 20 sides which are all equilateral triange which themselves have 3 sides. this lovely shape has 12 points which if you add the centre point makes 13. the center point is important because using it as point of transformation the icosahedron becomes a torus which is an infinite circular loop.
^^ . . . yeah i know you all think im nuts.
March 23rd, 2006 at 04:22 pm
Kunal Goel says:
thanks mark
March 23rd, 2006 at 07:55 pm
Dolphin says:
That’s a beauty Kunal…. It’s a wonderful poem….as mark said..i am goin to google Mr. Stevens too…
March 23rd, 2006 at 09:08 pm
Neha says:
thanks Mark.. that makes sense… btw the poem reminds me of a song… “blackbird singing in the dead of night… Take these broken wings and learn to fly… You have just been waiting for this moment to come by… Blackbird fly”
March 23rd, 2006 at 10:52 pm
mark says:
http://www.meta-religion.com/Mathematics/Articles/sacred_geometry.htm
March 24th, 2006 at 04:45 am
Teutsch says:
This poem reminds me of Lukas Foss. Anyone who has enjoyed reading this poem should also listen to the musical setting by this notable (living) American composer. Here’s a soudbit:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/music/clipserve/B000004ANE001004/0/ref=mu_sam_wma_001_004/002-
March 24th, 2006 at 11:27 am