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In William Carlos Williams’ poem, This is Just to Say one point of view states that he is describing a letter that he left for his significant other. The letter describes the plums he has eaten, and how he is sorry that he has eaten them because he knew they his partner was looking forward to eating them, but they were just so delectable and he had to have them. Some may say that he is sorry for eating the plums, but others say that he is being, ironic, playful, and flirty.
The last stanza states: “Forgive me they were so delicious so sweet and so cold” (Williams 19). When Williams is describing the flavor and the freshness of the plums, it is almost as he is being playful and teasing his partner about how good they were. Maybe Williams feels a little guilty about eating them. Were they supposed to be shared? This stanza can also give readers an inside look into his personal life. Is Williams a playful stud who is constantly eating plums? Another point of view the reader can take is that of starvation. This poem was written in 1934 which was the time of the Great Depression. Is the writer truly apologetic because he knows that the plums were the only food left in the house? The same stanza that is written above can be seen as a true apology, maybe even from a child. The words “forgive me” can portray a sense of innocence to the reader. The plums in the poem could symbolize temptation as well. Let’s be honest here, plums are a great fruit, but are they worth leaving a letter over? In the end, we may never know what Williams means, but what we do know is that the plums are gone.
4 Comments
Darlene W
9/13/2019 10:37:46 am
I honestly never thought about linking in the Great Depression while reading this poem, it does give it a new point of view I did not see before. Maybe the writer of the "letter" truly did feel guilt because of the lack of food available, this could also explain why he decided to describe the fruit as being so sweet. 9/14/2019 04:46:38 pm
I love the last line: "... what we do know is that the plums are gone". It adds a bit of humor to a very serious post. I also did not realize that this poem was written close to the Great Depression. The fact that it was during the Great Depression makes it make a bit more sense why he wrote the note in the first place.
Amy Conrad
9/15/2019 06:55:44 am
It's been said already but I didn't make the connection at all to the great depression, and that made me rethink my own interpretation of the poem! I like that you explored multiple interpretations to the meaning of the poem, it supports the purpose of post-modernistic imagist poetry without explicitly saying that the goal of the poets in this era of writing is to let the reader decide what it means. Like others, I never considered your interpretation that Williams is truly guilty because it was during the Depression. I think that's such a good way of viewing the poem! I personally prefer the first interpretation, but that's one of the best things about poetry, and literature in general: that everyone can have their own ways of viewing it. Leave a Reply. |
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