[945] O sweet spontaneous

O sweet spontaneous
earth how often have
the
doting

          fingers of
purient philosophers pinched
and
poked

thee
,has the naughty thumb
of science prodded
thy

      beauty      .how
oftn have religions taken
thee upon their scraggy knees
squeezing and

buffeting thee that thou mightest conceive
gods
        (but
true

to the incomparable
couch of death thy
rhythmic
lover

          thou answerest


them only with


                        spring)

 	-- E. E. Cummings

While the main theme of today's poem is one that never fails to faintly
disappoint me, I must admit that it has produced some beautiful poems. The
disappointment is, of course, due to the persistent failure of a certain
class of poems to understand the sheer beauty of science, and the fact that
the scientist's appreciation of nature is undiminished by the desire for
understanding. "O sweet spontaneous" goes much further than "pity this busy
monster, manunkind" - Cummings makes almost literal the (common) metaphor of
the scientist raping the defenceless earth.

The sexual imagery is underscored by the fact that Cummings changed
'philosophies' to 'philosophers'[1][2] - he sets not just Science, but Man up
in direct opposition to the 'sweet, spontaneous earth' (bleh!).

Annoyance aside, though, this is a wonderful poem. I may not agree with
Cummings' sentiments, but he makes them beautifully, with a vivid sequence of
images culminating in the exquisite

	   ... the incomparable
	   couch of death thy
	   rhythmic
	   lover

In one short phrase, the scope of the poem is expanded dizzyingly - indeed,
the 'pace' and density of the poem increase sharply towards the end, until it
levels off gently, almost quietly in the last 'verse'. The almost concrete
nature of the layout helps here, with the multiple blank lines being used to
very good effect.

[1] see the first link
[2] maybe the new US version should read 'sorcerers' <g>

Links:

  http://www.library.utoronto.ca/utel/rp/poems/eec2.html has a bit of the
  poem's revision history in the notes

  Biography of Cummings: See Poem #57

  Some other poems on Science:

    Poem #54, Walt Whitman, "When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer"
    Poem #57, E. E. Cummings, "pity this busy monster manunkind"
    Poem #795, Harold P. Furth, "The Perils of Modern Living"
    Poem #797, Lewis F. Richardson, "Big Whorls Have Little Whorls"
    Poem #798, John Updike, "V.B. Nimble, V.B. Quick"
    Poem #800, Miroslav Holub, "In the Microscope"
    Poem #801, D. D. Perrin, "A mosquito was heard to complain"
    Poem #803, Catherine Faber, "The Word of God"

-martin

From: sandi_ordinario@

Comments on Poem #945, e.e.cummings' O Sweet Spontaneous

Undoubtedly my favorite E.E.Cummings poem. His greatness
as a poet lies in his ability to grossly simplify the 
workings of philosophy, science, and religion relative
to nature. It is almost like attending Prof. Alfred E. Neuman 
delivering a short lecture on life with only his famous line: 
What me worry!

Cummings is the master of brevity according to Dorothy
Parker's concept that "Brevity is the soul of lingerie."
For there are very few things that are more elegant than
the female form  which lingerie is designed to drape.

"..but true to the incomparable couch of death, thy
rhymic lover, thou answerest them (philosphers, scientists,
theologians) only with spring."

What depth! What artistry! Instead of quoting the Bible by
saying "the sun also rises.." to indicate that Nature is 
cyclically nonchalant of the issues wise men put forth
even esp. while dwelling on morbid things like aging, 
withering, death, he says in his characteristic cumming-ish 
(rather cunning-ish) way: there is always the promise of spring.

There is no 20th century poem I know of that approaches its 
impact! My favorite!

Sandi

From: "Don Skoller" <diskol@>

I think it's very important to allay the first commenter "martin"'s
disappointments about the poem --"o sweet spontaneous earth ..."--  and
its outlook on science.  Cummings says "how often" not "always". Unless
"martin" himself wants to be absolutist and grant the
scientific/literalist/didactic mind a free pass on all it does, he might
reconsider his paeon to science and pee-on to e.e.