Poem Interpretation

[zpmodel]

Hello everyone,

I'm trying to interpret this poem, "the great advantage of being alive" by the famous E.E Cummings. Here is the poem:

the great advantage of being alive(instead of undying)is not so muchthat mind no more can disprove than provewhat heart may feel and soul may touch—the great(my darling)happens to bethat love are in we,that love are in we

and here is a secret they never will sharefor whom create is less than haveor one times one than when times where—that we are in love,that we are in love:with us they've nothing times nothing to do(for love are in we am in i are in you)

this world (as timorous itsters allto call their cowardice quite agree)shall never discover our touch and feel—for love are in we are in love are in we;for you are and i am and we are(aboveand under all possible worlds)in love

a billion brains may coax undeathfrom fancied fact and spaceful time—no heart can leap,no soul can breathebut by the sizeless truth of a dreamwhose sleep is the sky and the earth and the sea.For love are in you am in i are in we


From what I can understand so far, the idea is that "love are in we" instead of "we are in love". By the beginning of the second paragraph, I understood that E.E. Cummings is criticizing people who "create" love oppose to people who "have" love, as in people who already in love to begin with as it comes naturally. I could be wrong, but I still can't completely understand the poem. Any interpretations would be appreciated. :D

Thank you!

[PeterL]

Here are a few paragraphs of specific interpretation and a paragraph of summary.

One thing that I like about being mentally active, not simply surviving, is that I don't have any idea of how cognition happens or what difference there is between thought and emotion; but I don't let that stop me from having the emotional feeling of love and oneness with you.

In addition, I think that people who want to own rather than create are incapable of understanding the love that I feel for you. I think lowly of people who are not overly emotional.

He seems to think that something is unique in his feelings, so no one else has felt the same, nor can anyone else understand why he is in love with whomever it is that he is writing this to. Perhaps he is in love with an ugly and nasty person.

He goes on suggesting that that particular example of love in unique.


Clearly, Cummings didn't realize that "love" is a pleasant feeling that is related to survival, which is caused by a cascade of neurotransmitters that are produced pursuant to certain sensory inputs.

[cuppajoe_9]

I'm trying to interpret this poem, "the great advantage of being alive" by the famous E.E Cummings.

*ahem* i thinkyou mean the famous e.e. cummings.



i'm justkidding.

[sybilline]

I've never analysed Cummings's poetry, so I am going to give you my own interpretation, keeping in mind that I do not take into account the context of this particular poem.
The recurrence of the phrase "love are in we are in love", a kind of song, added to the anadiplosis (repetition of 'love' at the beginning and at the end of the unit) emphasize the circular structure, giving the feeling that the poet's love is enclosed in a kind of hermetical space, his "secret".
The semantic switch from space to abstraction contrasts with the abstraction switch (soul) to the sense of touch. The dual movement reflects the interaction between the poet and his beloved. So love is a source of life (1st line), and it moves the common rules of sense as it moves the heart.
Finally, the poet cannot share this "new" life and love with others, the various negative forms and the comparison with a dream enhancing a sense of seclusion which we do not know if it is welcome or not.

[zpmodel]

Thanks a lot guys! Your interpretations have helped out a lot! I now understand the poem. :)

One thing I've been asked is how the meter plays a role in this poem. But the way I see it, the meter is different in every line; so i'm lost. Any ideas?

[cuppajoe_9]

I think you stress every other sylable (usually). Like this:

the great advantage of being alive(instead of undying)is not so muchthat mind no more can disprove than provewhat heart may feel and soul may touch—the great(my darling)happens to bethat love are in we,that love are in we

[zpmodel]

Ah, that's true, It's a combination of iambic/anapestic tetrameters. I'll repost the poem properly now:


the great advantage of being alive
(instead of undying)is not so much
that mind no more can disprove than prove
what heart may feel and soul may touch
—the great(my darling)happens to be
that love are in we,that love are in we

and here is a secret they never will share
for whom create is less than have
or one times one than when times where—
that we are in love,that we are in love:
with us they've nothing times nothing to do
(for love are in we am in i are in you)

this world (as timorous itsters all
to call their cowardice quite agree)
shall never discover our touch and feel
—for love are in we are in love are in we;
for you are and i am and we are(above
and under all possible worlds)in love

a billion brains may coax undeath
from fancied fact and spaceful time—
no heart can leap,no soul can breathe
but by the sizeless truth of a dream
whose sleep is the sky and the earth and the sea.
For love are in you am in i are in we


Being a controversial poem, could the combination of meters have something to do with the tone of voice that gives it an controversial edge?