"Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird"

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the view of perception and reality presented in each stanza of "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird" by Wallace Stevens. The issues of reality and imagination, or the perceived and perception, is discussed as it was presented by Steven in each stanza. Poetical devices, images, and quotes are used too.

From the Paper:

"In his poem entitled "Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird," Wallace Stevens states that in the silent winter landscape, "the only moving thing / Was the eye of the blackbird" (2-3). This raises an interesting question. Who is looking at who? Does Stevens see the blackbird or does the blackbird see Stevens' Stevens' poem is about the blackbird in its environment, but on a deeper level it deals with the state and mutuality of focus and context, imagination and reality, perceiving and perceived. The distinct and seemingly disjointed images provide the work with continuity and a series of paradigms depicting this relationship between thought and perception."

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