Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

In "Song of the Jailer," Jacques Prevert delves into the complexities of love, freedom, and possession through the voice of a jailer, who paradoxically wishes to free the one he "imprisoned" in his desire. The key touched with blood symbolizes the pain and sacrifice involved in love, particularly a love that is possessive and suffocating. The poem raises a profound existential query: can one truly possess the person one loves, and if so, at what cost?

The jailer's intention to "free the one [he] love[s]" is a fascinating internal conflict because he himself had confined her "tenderly and cruelly" within his "most secret desire" and "deepest torment." These conflicting adjectives encapsulate the juxtaposition between love's tenderness and the cruelty of its possessiveness. The jailer acknowledges the moral weight of his actions, which were driven not just by love but also by "falsehoods of the future" and "stupidities of vows." His realization signals a desire to amend the wrong, yet it is burdened by the recognition that his love is bound up in a personal and societal construct of promises and future expectations.

Moreover, the jailer's desire to liberate his beloved is tied to the poignant acknowledgment that freedom may lead her to "forget" him or "love another." This admission lays bare a difficult truth-that real love must come with the willingness to let go. His love isn't truly altruistic, however; he still wants her to "come back" and "love [him] again." In this way, the jailer oscillates between selflessness and selfishness, highlighting the human struggle between wanting personal happiness and respecting the autonomy of the loved one.

The poem culminates with the jailer's contemplation of a life alone, holding only "the softness of her breasts moulded by love" in his "two hollowed hands." The physicality of this image reflects a love that is deeply sensual, yet the hollowed hands imply emptiness and a sense of loss. The notion of 'moulding' evokes an almost artistic creation of a love object, which further complicates the themes of possession and artifice in the poem. He accepts that the only thing he might possess are his memories, shaped by a love that may or may not be reciprocated.

In summary, "Song of the Jailer" serves as a profound psychological and emotional investigation into the conditions and boundaries of love. It explores the paradox of love as both liberating and confining, and poses difficult questions about possession, freedom, and the ethical implications of passionate love. It is this morally gray area that Prevert illuminates, forcing the reader to confront the complexities and perhaps the impossibilities of truly ethical love. The jailer's song is one of contradiction and ambivalence, making it a compelling lyrical study of the human heart in conflict with itself.

POEM TEXT:

Where are you going handsome jailer

With that key that's touched with blood

I am going to free the one I love

If there's still time

She whom I've imprisoned

Tenderly and cruelly

In my most secret desire

In my deepest torment

In falsehoods of the future

In stupidities of vows

I want to free her

I want her to be free

And even to forget me

And even to go off

And even to come back

And even to love me again

And love me again

Or love another

If another pleases her

And if I stay alone

And she gone off

I will only keep

I will always keep

In my two hollowed hands

To the end of all my days

The softness of her breasts moulded by love.

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