Hi all, was wondering if anyone could help me with this poem by Simon Armitage. I'm supposed to look for ways he explores the idea of language in his poetry and i was hoping to use this one. Parts of it are supposed to explain how he feels about his poetry (attaches an almost religious significance to them (stanzas 9/10) and the nature of his inspiration etc. Could this be interpreted as how he then feels about language (language is basis of poetry) or is this link a bit tenuous?

Any help greatly appreciated thanks!




The Dead Sea Poems

And I was travelling lightly, barefoot
over bedrock, then through lands that were stitched
with breadplant and camomile. Or was it

burdock. For a living I was driving
a river of goats towards clean water,
when one of the herd cut loose to a cave

on the skyline. To flush it out, I shaped
a sling from a length of cotton bandage,
or was it a blanket, then launched a rock

at the target, which let out a racket -
the tell-tale sound of man-made objects.
Inside the cave like a set of skittles

stood a dozen caskets, and each one gasped -
a little theatrically perhaps -
when opened, then gave out a breath of musk

and pollen, and reaching down through cool sand
I found poems written in my own hand.
Being greatly in need of food and clothing,

and out of pockets, I let the lot go
for twelve times nothing, but saw them again
this spring, on public display, out of reach

under infra-red and ultra-sonic,
apparently worth an absolute packet.
Knowing now the price of my early art

I have gone some way towards taking it all
to heart, by bearing it all in mind, like
praying, saying it over and over

at night, by singing the whole of the work
to myself, every page of that innocent,
everyday, effortless verse, of which this

is the first.

A couple of ideas on approaching this topic:

Think of the cave as a metaphor for the human mind.

"man-made objects" refers to his written poems.

So if we take this along an analytical line, we might say that one needs to dig deep inside themselves to produce man made objects which may at some time be of some value. Especially, if they are taken to heart and repeated as is a well-worn verse/song.


Les

I think the language idea is a good one. Look at the details- maybe it's breadfruit, maybe burdock; cotton bandages or blankets; clearly this guy is having fun with language.

pam

The first things that occur to me are both the Seven Sleepers of Ephesus (because of the caskets) and the Dead Sea Scrolls. Since there are twelve caskets, that kicks out the slumbering seven, leaving us with the scrolls found in Egypt. Yeah, there were over 800 of those documents, but they were discovered by a sheep/goat herder, which fits.

Back to the language of the poem. Written in ten three-line stanzas of ten syllableas each, and a three syllable kicker at the finish, it is mostly unrhymed, but see racket/packet, sand/hand and even perhaps/gasped (amphisbaenic?).

Observe the alliteration, assonance and consonance. Travelling/lightly, barefoot/bedrock/breadplant, the 'a' sounds in travelling, barefoot, lands, camomile and the like. Right, enjoying his mastery of the language, as Pam writes.

I am not sure of the significance of the plants, but didn't the Bounty sail to the Pacific in search of bread plant, which did not grow anywhere else? Camomile and burdock I guess could really have existed in the biblical lands, but dunno for sure. No matter - the author still having fun with his subject.

The caskets gasping when opened is a nice image. He finds poems written in his own hand, clearly an impossibility but the solipsism (and twisting back on itself as a rebirth) is an interesting touch. Twelve times nothing is still nothing, a mathematical trope?

Religious significance, sure, but nothing devout. Just having a good time with the whole thing I would say, tongue firmly in cheek the entire way.

For Simon's blog, see:

[www.simonarmitage.co.uk]