Poetry Post 1

"The Quiet Life" by Alexander Pope:
Pope has described a very fulfilling life, one "whose herds with milk, whose fields with bread,/ whose flocks supply him with attire;". The person or persons that Pope is depicting have land and resources that provide for them, which allows them to live and not suffer. However, Pope touches at a different type of suffering; a suffering of isolation. "Hours, days, and years, slide soft away." The people who live on this farm or piece of land believe that because they are provided for their lives are complete/whole but in reality they are missing key social interactions and moments that just make life not just fulfilling and complete, but meaningful. Pope also wrote, "Thus let me live, unseen, unknown." By this he is saying that the people aren't wanting to be the main attraction or center of attention, which is why they have sought out lives in isolation, but they are failing to realize all they are missing out on.

"the Cambridge ladies who ling in furnished souls" by E. E. Cummings:
Cummings touches on many of the same ideas as Pope did in "The Quiet Life." Cummings is essentially mocking the want-a-be high society snooty rich people, who blindly jump onto bandwagons and roll with ideas and movements because "it is the thing to do." Cummings talked about women with, "delighted fingers knitting for the it is Poles?" These women are knitting for the soldiers because they feel like it is the latest fad, not because they truly wanted to. In both poems, Cummings and Pope described people who were living lives that could bring a lot of meaning to someone, but instead the people are living empty lives and are okay with that.