Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Richard Hugo's poem "What Thou Lovest Well Remains American" is a poignant exploration of memory, loss, and the enduring impact of one's past environment on their present identity. The title itself is a nod to Ezra Pound's "Canto LXXXI," where Pound writes, "What thou lovest well remains, / the rest is dross." In Hugo's context, what remains is not only what was loved but also the haunting vestiges of a troubled past that continue to shape the self.

The poem opens with a vivid recollection of Mrs. Jensen, a solitary figure whose life seems marked by isolation and despair. Her "face pasted gray to the window" is a powerful image that conveys her emotional and physical stagnation. The absence of mail symbolizes a lack of connection or communication with the outside world, reinforcing her loneliness. This image sets the tone for the rest of the poem, where the narrator revisits memories of a community marked by poverty, madness, and religious fervor.

Hugo's depiction of the Grubskis, who "went insane," and George, who played "rotten trombone," adds to the atmosphere of decay and disintegration. These characters are emblematic of a community that is struggling to maintain a semblance of normalcy amidst hardship. The detail of George playing trombone on Easter, a time typically associated with renewal and hope, becomes ironic in this context, as it underscores the community's inability to escape its own decline.

The poem's setting, with its "gravel roads" and "vacant lots," is a landscape of desolation. The "wild roses" serve as a reminder of the natural beauty that persists despite the bleakness, yet they also highlight the contrast between what once was and what is now. Hugo's use of the phrase "poverty was real, wallet and spirit" captures the pervasive sense of deprivation that extends beyond the material to the spiritual, affecting the very essence of the people who live there.

The narrator's return from war marks a shift in perspective. The "barn burned down" during his absence, symbolizing the irreversible changes that have occurred in the community. The realization that "the people you knew then are dead" adds a layer of existential reflection, as the narrator grapples with the passage of time and the loss of the familiar. The new, "good-looking" neighbors with their "well fed" dogs represent a superficial improvement that fails to address the deeper, unhealed wounds of the past.

Hugo's exploration of memory is complex. The narrator struggles with the desire to remember the "lots empty and fern" and the reality of the present, where "lawns well trimmed" serve as a constant reminder of loss. The memory of the wife who left "forever, some far empty town," with the details of the departure blurring over time, underscores the theme of abandonment and the disintegration of relationships.

The narrator's feelings of inadequacy and failure are inextricably linked to the neighborhood. The vague sense that "the Grubskis degraded you / beyond repair" suggests that the environment and the people within it have left an indelible mark on the narrator's psyche, shaping his self-perception and sense of worth. This degradation is not just a personal failure but a communal one, where the shared experience of poverty and despair seeps into individual identities.

The poem's conclusion is both haunting and evocative. The narrator is condemned to "play again and again Mrs. Jensen pale at her window," to relive the "foul music over the good slide of traffic." The love for the people and the grayness of their existence becomes a burden the narrator carries "for extra food," a metaphor for the emotional baggage that accompanies him wherever he goes. The final lines suggest a need for connection, for belonging to a "secret club" of the similarly afflicted, where the shared experience of emptiness and desolation offers a twisted form of comfort.

"What Thou Lovest Well Remains American" is a powerful meditation on the lasting impact of one's past, particularly the environments and communities that shape our identities. Hugo's masterful use of imagery and memory creates a poignant narrative that resonates with themes of loss, alienation, and the inescapable influence of the places we come from. The poem is a testament to the enduring power of love, even when that love is directed towards the bleak and the broken, and the ways in which our past continues to define us.

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