by desiree
Type: poetry
Status: —
Author: Archibald MacLeish
Tags: poetry romance war marriage drama tragedy betrayal infidelity
Description: I have admired Archibald MacLeish ever since I discovered that he was the recipient of threeI have admired Archibald MacLeish ever since I discovered that he was the recipient of three Pulitzer Prizes. Recently I finally got around to reading 'The Collected Poems of Archibald MacLeish', expecting a series of brilliant poems that showed off his obvious genius. I was not disappointed. There were several poems that I found myself instantly engrossed in, such as: L'an trentiesme de mon eage, The Farm, Ars poetica (of course), Cinema of a Man, The Woman on the Stair, and The Rape of the Swan. He clearly chose his words very well whilst writing and his rhythm is actually rather eloquent for a man who experienced and saw so much violence in his life.
The reason that I only gave this book three out of five stars is that whilst I was impressed with the subjects of the poems Psyche with the Candle, Where the Hayfields Were, The Bed, and The Pot of Earth, which are some of his earlier works, I found the subjects in his later works completely dull at times. I absolutely hate saying that about MacLeish's work when I admire him so much but I must admit that they did not interest me. I confess that I was unable to even finish reading Conquistador. My inability to focus on it had absolutely nothing to do with the length, but more with the subject. I felt that it was far too involved and a bit biographical. I also had a bit of a problem with the Songs For Eve for personal and irrelevant reasons.
To be honest, I barely understood the poetry in Part Two. I can relate more to and understand the poems found in Part One, which were more emotional than the poems found in Part Two. I do recommend this book to anyone who has an appreciation for poetry, but I only suggest reading Part One unless you're prepared for the politics involved in Part Two....
2005-09-23
