Wallace Stevens' "Le Monocle"

Paper Summary:

In this article, the writer notes that like much of Stevens' poetry, "Le Monocle" is a challenging poem for readers and scholars to define and explicate. This poem was published as part of a book of poetry in 1923 called Harmonium. The writer points out that the title of the poem, which indicates the speaker, previews the problems that the reader faces from this modernist viewpoint. The writer notes that the author plays with different strands of thought throughout the poem that sometimes interact and sometimes are antithesis of each other. The writer concludes that ideas about love and language dominate this poem, but leave the reader to wonder exactly how Stevens would define either or both of those terms.

From the Paper:

"The shifting meaning and problematic relationships haunt the entire poem. The separation of the poem into twelve distinct stanzas causes problems for the continuity of language. The blank space that appears between the sections makes the reader believe that something has completed and a new idea will be introduced. This is not the case. Stevens intentionally does not complete ideas within stanzas. He frequently introduces an idea or parable that remains unresolved in that stanza and in the poem itself. Stevens may be commenting on the disjunctive nature of modern life through his form. He does toy with certain motifs across the poem, but does not allow the reader to really draw conclusions about his intention."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Benet, William Rose. The Reader's Encyclopedia. New York: Thomas Y.Crowell Co., 1965.
• Elliott, Emory (Ed.). Columbia Literary History of the United States. New York:Columbia University Press, 1988.
• Goldman, Leila. "Stevens' Le Monocle de Mon Oncle." The Explicator, Volume 37, Issue 1 (Fall 1978), p. 26-28.
• MacCaffrey, Isabel G. "Le Monocle de Mon Oncle." Modern Critical Views:Wallace Stevens. Ed. Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 1985.
• Stevens, Wallace. Harmonium. New York: Best Books, 2001.

More papers on Wallace Stevens' "Le Monocle":

• Analytical Essay # 60598 : "Wallace Stevens' Poetry"
• Poem Review # 119432 : "Poem: Wallace Stevens' "The Snow Man"
• Analytical Essay # 46021 : "The Poetry of Wallace Stevens"

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