Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Boundary Issues" by John Ashbery explores the complexities of human relationships and existential concerns with a sense of disquiet and inevitability. The poem seems to embody the constant struggles we face in reconciling our internal selves with the external world, relationships, and impending demise. The tone is both resigned and urgent, reflecting the inescapable tension of life's uncertainties.

The opening lines set the tone for existential meditation: "Here in life, they would understand." These lines posit a hopeful but vague expectation that understanding can be achieved, even if gropingly. But the margin "began to give way," implying that the closer one gets to clarity or the boundary of understanding, the more elusive it becomes. This initiates a cascade of complications: "Now it was time, and there was nothing for it."

Amid these uncertainties, the poet and his friend indulge in a "good meal," attempting to savor what's left of life, even when "life was a desert." This juxtaposition highlights how pleasure and existential emptiness often coexist. Despite the joys, the poem suggests that life's fundamental issues are unsolved: "But it wanted warmth." The lack of warmth-emotional, relational, or existential-creates a void that renders "ruse and subtlety" unsustainable.

As the poem progresses, it delves into the consequences of these existential "boundary issues." Once a "breach emerges," whether in relationships, ideologies, or within the self, it widens into a "chasm" almost instantaneously. This observation extends to society at large, where a "dispute on the far side of town erupts into a war in no time at all, and ends as abruptly." This universal human flaw leads to destruction, not just personally but socially, and it's always "us that has to pay."

The poem then veers towards a pseudo-solution: "draw the sting out," and "Banish truth-telling." But even this is futile, as "each new investigation rebuilds the urgency, like a sand rampart." The more we probe, the more desperate we become for clarity, yet the more elusive it grows. The endeavor is doomed to "collapse," but that doesn't make it any less urgent.

In the end, Ashbery leaves us pondering over the concept of "camaraderie, or something like it," suggesting that perhaps the shared experience of struggle, existential woe, and the ceaseless pursuit of understanding might offer a form of solace. The final image of being "pored over like we were papyri" connotes a search for significance, even as "night's friendly takeover" implies an inevitable end.

Through "Boundary Issues," Ashbery lays bare the harsh realities of human existence, relationships, and the ceaseless search for understanding. He uses fragmented thoughts, unsettling images, and a complex, winding structure to encapsulate the endless cycles of inquiry and disillusionment that characterize human life. And yet, in doing so, he also captures something ineffably common and intimate, offering a strange form of comfort in shared existential disquiet.

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