Saturday, March 8, 2014

Jherek Cummings Explication of Dean Young`s, Gruss



Gruss
DEAN YOUNG  (B. 1955)
Whenever I`m not drunk enough
is a waste of time.
I carry within me a hypnagogic dawn,
maybe the insulation gnawed by rats,
maybe I`ll never be back
Ha ha to the mating swans.
Ha ha to the sepulchral golden slime
that shines and shines and shines.
This party started long before I arrived
with the last of wacko youthful chatter,
a curious crew, prone to slam-dance depression.
what`s the matter? Don`t know, maybe so
much hilarity is a strain on us or at least
we like to boast in loopy communiqués
to those who`ve seen through us
and love us for what they see,
maybe some trees, a packing factory,
some secretive birdie hopping about
with a grasshopper in its mouth.
I don`t know what I`d do without you
although that`s how I spend most of my time.
It`d be unbearable otherwise,
like a vacation without sleeping pills,
without some creaking rain
abating the granite`s breakdown.
Such a paltry gesture, my surrender.

(From Writing Poems, pages 74-75).
Jherek Cummings
English 2266
Mike Lohre
3/8/2014
Explication
 Dean Young`s poem Gruss
Asteroid Analysis

            The point of view in this piece is in first person. The speaker seems deeply content with death while being on drugs or drunk. The speaker seems to compare the narrator`s moment/life/death to the weathering of granite rocks. The triggering moment seems to be the drunkenness from the start of the piece. The tone is deep-heavy-dark-stonned-drunk-rocked-druged-tired-babbling-sleepy-think-dream-gloomy-nature-economic-youth-aged-corrosion-decay-deaht-life-linear. The piece gets my blood flowing and gives me a feeling of teeth falling out from gnawing on granite rocks . . . pacified sleepiness. The speaker is the early morning drunkard. The motivation incident is the drunkenness and lucid dream state of sub consciousness. There are no uses of the letters j, x, or z. If you put those three letters in this order . . . j, z, x, and say it as a word . . . it almost sounds like my name Jherek. I found a way to be left out of this piece in a literal sense. There are 26 lines. I wonder if the author was 26 years old when he wrote the piece. There are 163 words in this piece, if you count the (-) word, “slam-dance”, as two then 164 words. There are between 4-10 words per line. There is one stanza, 16 end-stops, and 10 line breaks. One example of line iambic is “maybe the insulation gnawed by rats”. Some words I had to look up were, communiques (communicative press for public or private), hypnagogic (drowsiness before sleep and lucid dream like states of hearing and seeing things), sepulchral (associated with gloominess, graves, burial vaults, funerals, and any burials), and gruss (loose accumulations of fragmented products formed from weathering granite rocks). Some repetitions that I noticed are the words without, us, shine, and maybe. Each line varies from the others in syllable choice or quantitative syllable choice. I found quite a bit of alliteration in this piece . . . using words like sepulchral-slime-shines-started or sleeping-pills-some-granite`s- gesture-surrender. I found much assonance as well, such as boast and those. There is consonance like, drunk and dawn. A cliché that I picked up on was, “is a waste of time./ I don`t know what I`d do without you / although that`s how I spend most of my time”. There are few rhyme words like, rats and back, slam and dance, or sleeping and creaking. I noticed some onomatopoeia as well, such as, gnawed and creaking. The only anthropomorphized part that I could find is that granite`s decay is being equivocated to life as a human or better yet, the narrator, at least it seems that way to me.   I also found some paradox in being drunk and everything else being a waste of time. How do you carry with yourself, “hypnagogic dawn”? How can you look through something and see anything, “to those who`ve seen through us / and love us for what they see”? My favorite paradox is the part where the narrator can`t be without but is without all the time, “I don`t know what I`d do without you / although that`s how I spend most of my time”.  The irony is that the speaker is making observations of abstraction while being the central view point of the piece. I think there is juxtaposition with the surrendering to corrosion being easy for granite, like it is easy to surrender to corrosion for the narrator. The archetype of this piece is granite. The use of synesthesia is prevalent with words like, drunk, time, within, hypnagogic, wacko, youthful, chatter, curious, depression, and a few more. I found one simile, “like a vacation without sleeping pills”, that seems ironic as well. Why would you want to sleep during vacation? This piece is full of negative capability with the use of words like, waste of time, gnawed by rats, sepulchral, wacko, depression, strain, least, loopy, without, unbearable, breakdown, surrender, and depression. I think that the piece contains quite a bit of pessimistic negativity. I think I also notice some ambiguity or obscurity as well. As soon as the narrator carries the hypnagogic dawn, it seems that many readings of lines such as, “maybe the insulation gnawed by rats, / maybe I`ll never be back”. Perhaps I don`t know exactly what is meant by insulation and gnawed by rats. What does it refer to? And where exactly may the narrator never be back to or from? Much of the piece has ambiguity /  obscurity because I get new meanings from each reading. One thing that I found to be concrete was . . . ha ha . . . granite. The jokes on me. I wondered about the implications and ars poetical that I felt in this piece. I wonder if the gesture and surrender is the writing of a poem. Is the curious crew slam-dancing depression through hilarity and boasting in loopy poems? I`m not sure if that is the hidden implication or not. There are many ways to read this piece. It is certain that the narrator needs some sleep. One way to look at personification in this piece is by looking at, “some creaking rain/abating the granite`s breakdown”, the abating being the human quality and the rain doing the abating.
            Here is the outline of my explication:
The Moon Pigeons Are Off Limits
Point of View
            1st person
Speaker
            Seems deeply content with death while being on drugs or drunk. Seems to compare the narrator`s life/moment/death to the weathering of granite rocks.
Triggering Moment
            Drunkenness.
Tone- Deep-Heavy-Dark-Stoned-Drunk-Rocked-Drugs-Tired-Babbling-Sleepy-Think Dream-Gloomy-       Nature-Economic- Youth-Aged-corrosion- decay-death-linear. Gets my blood flowing, a feeling o            of teeth falling out. Gnawing on granite rock . . . pacified sleepiness. Early morning drunkard.
Motivating incident
            Drunkenness.
Letters- no use of j,x,z. If you put those letters in this order . . . j, z, x . . . it almost or resembles my name          . . . Jherek. This means something to me. Ha ha I am left out in a literal sense. Just my fun way of     looking at a piece.
Lines- 26. I wonder if the author was 26 years old when the piece was written.
Words-163 or 164 if you count the (–) word, slam-dance.
4 – 10 words per line. In the “163”. . . if you use the one to minus the three and get 2 you still have 6, so you could have 26, there. Ha ha.
Stanzas – 1
End-stops
            16 end-stops.
Line breaks
            10 line-breaks
Iambic
            One line of iambic is “maybe the insulation gnawed by rats”.
Diction- line logical- alphabetical sort of order. Abecedarian analysis.
and
and
arrived
at
and
a
about
a
although
a
abating
a
by
be
back
before
boast
birdie
be
breakdown
carry
chatter
curious
crew
communiqués- a communicative bulletin in the press for the public or private people.
creaking
drunk
dawn
dance
depression
Don`t
don`t
do
enough
factory
Gruss- a loose accumulation of fragmental products formed from weathering granite. A rock. Asteroid.
gnawed
golden
grasshopper
granite`s
gesture
hypnagogic- drowsiness before sleeping. Lucid dreams-out of body experience. Hearing and seeing                             things while falling asleep (hypnagogic hallucinations).     
Ha
ha
Ha
ha
hilarity
hopping
how
I`m
is
I
insulation
I`ll
I
is
in
in
its
I
I`d
I
It`d
--------------NO (J) words
know
long
last
least
like
loopy
love
like
me
maybe
maybe
mating
matter
maybe
much
maybe
mouth
most
my
my
not
 never
of
on
or
party
prone
packing
pills
paltry
rats
rain
swans
sepulchral- characteristics associated with grave/gloominess. Burial vaults-funeral and burials.
slime
shines
shines
shines
started
slam-dance
so
seen
see
some
some
secretive
spend
sleeping
such
surrender
time
the
to
the
that
This
the
to
the
to
to
those
through
they
trees
that`s
time
the
us
us
us
unbearable
vacation
whenever
waste
within
with
wacko
What`s
we
who`ve
what
with
what
without
without
without
-----------------------NO (X) words
youthful
-------------------------No (Z) words
Repetition
            Without, without, without. Us, us, us. Shine, shine, shine. Maybe, maybe, maybe, maybe.
Syllables-233
            Each line varies from the others. Quantitative syllable choice.
Alliteration= whenever-within
            Insulation-gnawed-never
            Be –back
Sepulchral – slime-shines-shines-shines-started
            Curious-crew
Dance-depression
Matter-maybe-much
Hilarity-strain-or
Those-seen-us-some-some-secretive-grasshoppers-its
Don`t- I`d – do
Most- my
Sleeping- pills-some- granite`s- such- gesture-surrender

Assonance
 Whenever-enough
Drunk – enough
Carry-within-me
Hypnagogic –dawn
Maybe-be
Ha-swans
Ha-sepulchral
Slime-shines
Party-started
I-arrived
Last-chatter
Crew-to
Slam-dance
What`s-the
Don`t-know-so
Hilarity – is- strain
Boast-those
Loopy-communiques
To- who`ve-through
Love-what
See-maybe-trees-factory-birdie-hopping
Secretive-in
About-mouth-without-although
Don`t-know-
Do-you
Of-otherwise
It`d-without-otherwise-like
Vacation-rain-abating-granite`s-breakdown-paltry
Sleeping-creaking-abating
Gesture-surrender
Consonance
Drunk-dawn
Long-last
Matter-maybe
Least-like-loopy
Clichés
“is a waste of time.
I don`t know what I`d do without you
although that`s how I spend most of my time”.
Rhymes
            insulation – depression
            rats – back
            slime – shines- arrived
            slam – dance
            Don`t – know
             loopy – communiqués – who`ve seen – they see – some trees – factory – birdie
            about – mouth – without – how
            don`t – know
            do – you
            time – otherwise – like
            sleeping – creaking – abating – paltry
            rain – granite`s
            gesture – surrender
Onomatopoeia
gnawed
mating
slime
shines
started
arrived
last
chatter
slam
dance
depression
hilarity
strain
loopy
seen
hopping
spend
creaking
breakdown
Anthropomorphized
            Granite`s decay being equivalent to life as a human.
Paradox
Being drunk . . . waste of time
            How do you carry with yourself, “hypnagogic dawn”? Yes, be in a state of hypnagogicness.
            “to those who`ve seen through us
            and love us for what they see”,
            “I don`t know what I`d do without you
            although that`s how I spend most of my time”.
Irony
            Self centered point of view. One`s observations and abstractions.
Juxtapositions
            Surrendering as easy as granite surrenders to corrosion.
Archetype
            Granite

Synesthesia
drunk
time
within
hypnagogic
insulation
gnawed
slime
shines
wacko
youthful
chatter
curious
slam-dance
depression
hilarity
strain
boast
communiques
seen
see
love
secretive
in its mouth
without
unbearable
sleeping
vacation
rain
breakdown
surrender
Figurative Language
Simile = “like a vacation without sleeping pills”,
Negative capability
waste of time - gnawed by rats – sepulchral – wacko – depression – Don’t know – strain – least – loopy – I don`t know – without you – unbearable – breakdown – paltry – surrender.
Ambiguity/ Obscurity
As soon as the narrator carries the hypnagogic dawn, it seems that many readings of lines such as  “maybe the insulation gnawed by rats,/ maybe I`ll never be back”. Perhaps I don`t know exactly what is meant by insulation and gnawed by rats, refers to. And where exactly may the narrator never be back to or from? Much of the piece has ambiguity / obscurity because I get new meanings from each reading.
Concrete
            Ha ha granite
Implications / ars poetica
            I wonder if the gesture and surrender is the writing of a poem. Is the curious crew slam-dancing depression through hilarity and boasting in loopy “poems”. I`m not sure if that is the hidden implication or not. There are many ways to read this piece. It is certain that the narrator needs some sleep.  
Personification
            “some creaking rain /abating the granite`s breakdown”. “rain” -  “abating”.

So don`t take the moon for granite.

4 comments:

  1. Jherek! Wow, if only you would put some effort into these assignments! Joke! Way to work and really put yourself into a poem. You learn so so much by just letting it go like this. Thank you!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I miss school. I really enjoyed having classes. When is the next open mic and where? I`d like to play music and sing sometime.

      Delete
    2. Jherek, email me at mikelohre@gmail.com and let's get together and catch up!

      Delete
  2. Thanks Mike. Thank you for everything.

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.