Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"The Suburbans" by Carolyn Kizer deftly portrays the transformation of natural landscapes into suburban sprawl, examining the impact of this change on human experience and creativity. The poem begins by lamenting the loss of natural sounds, such as the nightingale's song, which has been silent for a century. This silence signifies a broader detachment from nature, as suburbs, with their lawns and fake weathervanes, replace the glades and birds.

Kizer juxtaposes the artificiality of suburban life with the natural world that once thrived. The suburbs are described as resembling cemeteries, with their leveled human contours and ironed land. This imagery suggests a sense of lifelessness and uniformity, contrasting with the vibrancy of natural landscapes. The speaker notes that even cemeteries offer a green relief, unlike the sterile and regulated spaces of suburban developments.

The poem continues to explore the symbols of suburban life, such as used-car lots and drive-in movie theaters, which enclose and regulate the gaudy junk that defines modern existence. The phrase "Perpetual Care" highlights the artificial maintenance of suburban lawns, paralleling the preservation of minds through libraries. However, both are seen as inadequate substitutes for genuine engagement with the natural world.

Kizer employs the seagull as a symbol of resilience and adaptability. The seagull thrives on human waste but rises above it, embodying a kind of freedom that contrasts with the human experience in the suburbs. The poem's imagery of polluted bays and industrial waste underscores the degradation of nature, even as the seagull escapes to the open sea.

The poet then shifts focus to the domestic sphere, where the remnants of wild nature are reduced to a passing cat, a synecdoche for the jungle. This cat represents a bridge between the untamed and the domesticated, its ancient freedom now confined to a cage of tidy rhyme. The reference to anthologies suggests that poetry itself has become a way to capture and contain what was once wild and free.

Kizer further critiques suburban life by comparing it to the artifice of mirrors and the transparency of goldfish in bowls. The fish, like suburbanites, live in a confined, artificial environment, their existence reduced to mere reflection. The poet also addresses the tendency to revolt in verse, asserting individuality through poetry, but ultimately remaining an average poet in a world of conformity.

The poem concludes by contrasting the contemporary suburban experience with that of the nineteenth-century bard. The bard's authentic connection to nature, with real birds and undisturbed waterfalls, contrasts sharply with the modern world's artificial recordings and neon lights. The poet's salvation lies not in religious institutions but in the act of writing itself, composing stanzas in the quiet of a graveyard, finding solace in the word.

"The Suburbans" is a powerful meditation on the loss of natural beauty and authenticity in the face of suburban expansion. Kizer's vivid imagery and poignant reflections capture the tension between the desire for individual expression and the pervasive conformity of modern life, ultimately suggesting that poetry remains a refuge and a means of preserving a sense of connection to the natural world.