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Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained | |||
"Riddle" by Norman Dubie is a poem that draws on imagery from nature and the cosmos to delve into themes of human conflict, knowledge, and the enigmatic quality of existence. Through a conversation set against a wintry backdrop, Dubie crafts a dialogue that is both reflective and tinged with the unknown, using the interplay between two characters to explore broader philosophical questions. The poem opens with a vivid scene: snow clinging to the beards of sycamores, a striking image that blends the tranquility of a snow-covered landscape with the ancient, wise appearance of the trees. The character Laura introduces an element of mathematical and existential mystery by noting that the tracks over the snow are "divisible only by their sum and zero." This statement suggests a complexity and potential infinity in what might otherwise seem simple snow tracks, hinting at deeper, unseen forces at work in nature and perhaps by extension, in life. The response from the owl, a traditional symbol of wisdom and mystery, laughing from its perch on a cedar bough, and the narrator's own laugh, add layers of irony or acknowledgment of the complexity or absurdity of trying to fully understand the universe's workings. Laura's action of breaking a stick and her statement about the "brazen mathematics of stars" signaling approval to them further mystify the natural world around them, positioning the cosmos itself as an observer or judge of human actions. This could imply a belief in a connected universe where every action resonates on a cosmic scale. The narrator's skeptical response, asking Laura to specify which stars she refers to, introduces a grounded, empirical approach to Laura's more mystical, intuitive perception. Yet, when Laura points to a "little blue one" in Orion, the conversation shifts from the immediate to the historical and futuristic, pondering the frequency of wars in the new millennium and their resolutions. The question about how many wars will "reach their natural conclusions, and blink" uses the metaphor of a blinking star to reflect on the nature of conflict resolution — sudden, perhaps unexpected, and perhaps as ephemeral as the light of a distant star. This brings the poem full circle to the idea of visibility and invisibility, the knowable and the unknowable, as the characters are surrounded by the enigmatic beauty of a snow-covered, starlit night. In "Riddle," Dubie captures a moment of human interaction that reflects broader existential concerns, wrapping personal dialogue and cosmic imagery together to question the nature of understanding and conflict in a universe that is both mathematical and mystical.
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