LITR 5535: American Romanticism
 
Student Poetry Presentation 2006

Monday 30 October:

poetry: Denise Levertov, "The Jacob's Ladder," N 2708

poetry reader / discussion leader: Cindy L. Goodson

Denise Levertov (1923-1997)

Biographical Information:

• A British-born American poet
• Born in Ilford, Essex, England
• At the age of 12 sent some of her poetry to T. S. Eliot who replied with a two-page letter of encouragement
• In 1940, Levertov published her first poem at the age of 17
• In 1947, married an American, Mitchell Goodman (they later divorced) moved to US
• During the 1960’s and 70’s Levertov was very politically active in her works
• From 1982 to 1993 Levertov was a full professor at Stanford University
• In 1984 Levertov received a Litt.D. from Bates College
• She worked as a civilian nurse in England during WWII, and was a political activist in the United States during the Vietnam War
• She was both a feminist and activist
• In her poetry she tries to advocate for community/group change via the personal/private imagination of the individual

Accomplishments:

Wrote and published 20 books of poetry, criticism, translations, and also edited several anthologies

Her awards include:

- Shelley Memorial Award

- Robert Frost Medal

- The Lenore Marshall Prize

- The Lannan Award

- The Guggenheim Fellowship and National Institute of Arts and Letters grant.

Her mother’s family descended from Welsh Tailor and mystic Angel Jones of Mold who was known for stitching his meditations into his garments. Levertov would eventually become Roman Catholic; thus, giving her a solid religious foundation from which to create her poetry.  Her writing was strongly influenced by William Carlos Williams as she embraced his interest in an organic poetic form.  Even though Levertov is 100 years after the Transcendentalists, you can still see a fair bit of Transcendentalism in the poem ‘The Jacob’s Ladder’.  Her poetry often presents minute observations of everyday life and permeates commonplace objects with personal and religious significance.  Levertov has frequently expressed her understanding of the poet's vocation in language borrowed from spiritual or religious discourse. Reacting to the turbulent events of the 1960s, she began to use her poetry to explain and support her actions as a political activist, with her most strident poetry being directed against the actions of the U.S. military in the Vietnam War.

The Jacob’s Ladder- Page 2708

My Interpretation:

The poem is based on a scripture from the Bible in Genesis 28:12-15. This scripture describes a ladder in Jacob’s dream, which reaches from earth to heaven, and the angels of God are ascending and descending on it.  Through his vision, God appears declaring to Jacob the future of his descendants or a confirmation of the Abrahamic Covenant to him.  “And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth…” (Gen. 28:14) During the dream, God explains to him that He is always with him.  When Jacob woke up he dedicated himself to God and Bethel becomes a significant place in Scripture because Jacob changed the name of the place from Luz to Beth-el (28:19)

The poem follows Objective 1a, the romance narrative--describing a quest or journey toward transcendence.  She features precise imagery using both sublime and gothic expressions and subjects drawn from everyday life, often recognizing and celebrating the spiritual qualities of domestic situations.  She follows the life of a man who is on a journey to a greater place and at the end he, “The poem ascends.”  This can be viewed as the result of one not swift of strong but one who endured till the end.

1^st Stanza: The writer begins with what the stairway is not. It is not “a thing of gleaming strands/a radiant evanescence” I believe she’s saying that life is not as simple as suggested in the Genesis version of Jacob’s Ladder. 

She combines her organic form of writing, letting the reader know she fully understands the Bible’s version of Jacob’s Ladder, but says, “consider this…” and she sort of puts a spin on the whole ladder thing and combines it with the alternative rosy stone paved road which is to me romantic because it expresses the sublime: Beauty, hope, optimism.  “All roads lead to Rome.”

The fact that Jacob dreams of this ladder that reaches from the earth into heaven is a romantic theme because the Bible’s premise is that the children of Israel hope for redemption and through this redeemer they will live forever in glory according to the promises of God.  A ‘getting to glory’ mindset is a crossing over for believers and the ladder represents that crossing of physical borders in order to attain the transcendent goal or dream; heaven. 

2^nd Stanza: “It is of stone.”  Stone is a symbol of solidity and beauty; diamonds are stones.  She’s replacing the ladder with the stone.   There’s a sense of optimism; representative of hope in the future.  “A rosy stone that takes a glowing tone of softness” the stones are used metaphorically to represent the stoned-paved streets. In Rome cut stones where the first smooth roads; All roads lead to Rome.  This connection to Rome, is probably a result of her religious affiliation with the Roman Catholic Church so she would have studied this history.

Behind is the sky with a night gray color – man looks to the past and has doubts.  For her, she hated the wars.

If you’re on the ladder you can’t look back.

Gothic color scheme – night gray give depicts of a state of melancholy – could be a considered a romantic spirit.

“It is a stone…” This could represent the word from God.  It is of stone, it’s solid, reliable, dependable the Bible is considered the road map to life.

 “Rosy” signifies love, sacrifice, and blood – sublime expressions of beauty and pain = Jesus the cross

3^rd Stanza: “Sharp angels,” represent the trials of life, things don’t always go as planned, still optimism present in her.  Things are not always as they appear.

1841 Emerson’s (Self-Reliance) ref ships – the voyage of the best ship is a zig-zag. A line of hundreds tacks.  A glance from a sufficient distance gives the appearance of a straight line but the actual navigators.   

4^th Stanza:  I see clearly the connection between Levertov and Emerson through his influence of her use of imagery.  She recognized Emerson's influence on her thoughts on organic poetry. She quotes him as saying, "This insight which expressed itself by what is called Imagination does not come by study, but by the intellect being where and what it sees, by sharing the path or circuit of things through forms, and so making it translucent to others"

“Must scrape his knees” -  We overcome obstacles and achieve higher levels but we get bumps and bruises along the way. 

“Cut stone console his groping feet” – road to accomplishment; reaching a destination; again the cut stones could represent diamonds or wealth.  The wings of the angels represent the strength of the Lord, which God promised to Jacob in the vision.

“The poem ascends” - Man is like a poem to her.  He succeeds.  We see things the way we see them and have interpretations, others see things the way they see them and interpret them.  A poet sees things and creates poems out of them.  The life and journey of a man is represented through romantic expressions

Q1.  How is Levertov’s romantic style similar to other American writers in our selections?

Q2. What some thoughts on the rhythm and words and sounds?  Stone, tone, glowing, only (2^nd stanza). 

Q3.  What are some of the mystical and transcendental attributes of the poem?