Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Stephane Mallarme's "Apparition" captures an ephemeral encounter filled with otherworldly beauty and melancholy. The poem articulates the emotions brought about by a fleeting meeting that revives old dreams and memories. Drawing richly on celestial and musical imagery, the poem presents an existential inquiry into the nature of love, memory, and the ephemeral quality of human experience.

The poem opens with a cosmic setting, where the "moon grew sad" and seraphim-biblical celestial beings-draw on their bows, creating a music of "white grief." This immediately places the narrative in a metaphysical realm, suggesting that the events to come are suffused with spiritual significance. The imagery of "tear-stained seraphim" and "failing viol-strings" introduces a melancholic tone that persists throughout the poem, contrasting with the transient happiness of the earthly encounter.

Mallarmé employs an extraordinary metaphor to describe the bittersweet memory of a first kiss: "My thought in its strange, self-tormenting way / Felt all the subtle melancholy sting." The sting is "subtle" yet deeply affecting. It is an internal battle, signified by the phrase "self-tormenting," where even the joy of a first kiss brings forth complex emotions. This sense of melancholy doesn't stem from regret but from the very nature of dreams and their fleetingness.

The tone changes when the speaker recounts walking "apart" and encountering someone-presumably the subject of the speaker's affection-with "sunny hair" and "laughter sweet." The arrival of this individual is likened to a "fairy with great aureole," suggesting an ethereal quality to the meeting. This person is akin to a childhood dream, one that had "touched my soul." The image of "half-closed hands" throwing "clusters of fragrant stars like gleaming snow" conjures a vision of magical charm, almost as though the person is a celestial entity sprinkling stardust on the world.

Yet, despite the joy and magic of the encounter, the poem leaves us with an enigmatic blend of melancholy and wonder. The dreamlike quality of the experience underscores its fleeting nature, while also elevating it to something divine and untouchable. The beauty of the poem lies in its ability to hold these contrasting emotions-joy and sorrow, earthly encounter and celestial beauty-in a delicate balance.

"Apparition" reflects Mallarmé's Symbolist predilections, his focus on evoking emotional resonance through abstract imagery rather than explicit narration. The poem becomes a space where the boundaries between the real and the surreal blur, much like the boundaries between joy and melancholy, or between dreams and waking life. In its rich tapestry of images and sensations, "Apparition" serves as a poetic microcosm that captures the complexities and contradictions of human experience.

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