| The force that through the green fuse drives the flower | |
| by Dylan Thomas |
|
The force that through the green fuse drives the flower
Drives my green age; that blasts the roots of trees
Is my destroyer.
And I am dumb to tell the crooked rose
My youth is bent by the same wintry fever.
The force that drives the water through the rocks
Drives my red blood; that dries the mouthing streams
Turns mine to wax.
And I am dumb to mouth unto my veins
How at the mountain spring the same mouth sucks.
The hand that whirls the water in the pool
Stirs the quicksand; that ropes the blowing wind
Hauls my shroud sail.
And I am dumb to tell the hanging man
How of my clay is made the hangman's lime.
The lips of time leech to the fountain head;
Love drips and gathers, but the fallen blood
Shall calm her sores.
And I am dumb to tell a weather's wind
How time has ticked a heaven round the stars.
And I am dumb to tell the lover's tomb
How at my sheet goes the same crooked worm. |
Don't you hate it when you know something, but you just aren't the one to say it? Like for example, in class, if you know exactly what the teacher is teaching, and you think you can teach the class more correctly then the teacher, but because they are the teacher, and in a way above you, you don't speak up? Or when your parents are yelling at you when you know your right, but you don't yell back because you'll get into more trouble. I think that is what this poem is really about.
I noticed that in a lot of Dylan Thomas' poems, the last few lines of a stanza repeat going throughout the poem, like in "Do not go gentle into that good night". in this poem, the repeated line was: "And I am dumb to tell... how...". This in itself is not worth much, but added the two lines before it, it means so much more. The first line in a stanza describes some metaphorical force in nature, where as the second line (& 3rd) describe that same force within him. But in the ending of each stanza, he says that he would be dumb to tell nature about the force described.
the Third stanza and all the ones after it also really stood out to me, because instead of describing nature, and then himself, he describes something different. Replacing nature he described something calm, like "the hand that whirls the water in the pool", but replacing himself, he describes a similar thing to the calm, only bad, like" Stirs the quicksand; that ropes the blowing wind".
I think that the stanza pattern is very important to understanding this poem. In a way, he is saying that he knows that the natural or the calm is correct, so he shouldn't even attempt to fight it. In fact, he would be dumb to do such, But I disagree. I think that we should all have the right to speak out and be heard. if we are wrong, so be it! We will learn from our mistakes. We do not live to be put down by others. Evolution happens by things being different, standing out!
But maybe, say he knew that death was coming, that speaking out wouldn't help him in the long run, only get him scolded. Why waste time , when you know that time itself is very limited. I assume that if you know life has to end, there is little point in questioning, as it will probably not affect you. I suppose, It really depends on your side of life.
I think this can teach us about how to act. Sometimes, there is really no reason to talk back or prove someone wrong, because it really helps no body. this could solve so many parent and child fights. The main reason that I've seen people get detention for is talking out of turn in one way or another. But on the other hand, we should also share our opinions, while we are young. these two Ideas are almost opposites, and yet I feel they are both right. it depends on who you are.
