Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Philip Levine's "Above It All" captures the surreal and contemplative experience of a flight over the Pacific Ocean, revealing the speaker’s inner musings and the disconnection felt in modern life. Through the interplay of observation and reflection, Levine explores themes of detachment, routine, and the unseen tensions beneath the surface of everyday interactions.

The poem begins with the speaker, "strapped to [his] seat," engaging in a casual conversation with a thin Air Force major. This setup immediately situates the reader in a confined, controlled environment, contrasting with the vastness of the ocean below. The major's response, "50 minutes," to the speaker’s question about the distance to L.A. is precise and unemotional, reflecting a military detachment.

As the speaker describes the landscape they've left behind—“the stump-pocked crests, the creased hills of Vandenberg Missile Base”—there’s an emphasis on desolation and inactivity. The imagery of “one lone steam engine pulling nothing” and “waves which came at the shore as though they mattered, row after row” underscores a sense of futility and routine, a mechanical repetition devoid of meaning.

The major’s silent reading, with "lips move soundlessly, wordlessly like a lunatic's in love," introduces a layer of absurdity and disconnection. His reading material reflects societal issues—getting out of cars to be counted, a response to increasing authoritarian measures. The mention of a small blurred photo of Jean Cocteau and the champions Cerdan, LaMotta, Piaf, suggests a longing for past heroes and a world where individual significance mattered.

The speaker’s reflection, "If I shut my eyes I know I'll be in a private home for the blind where things are worse," evokes a fear of losing sight—both literal and metaphorical. It implies a deeper existential dread of becoming disconnected from reality and the vibrant world of sensory experiences.

In the second part of the poem, the major becomes more than a silent presence. His eyes, described as "young, placid, and light blue as though unused," indicate innocence or a lack of deep engagement with the world around him. The major's offers—to share his newspaper, his window seat, and comments on the weather—are polite but superficial, avoiding deeper connection or acknowledgment of the gathering night, symbolizing approaching darkness or uncertainty.

The poem ends with a powerful image: "the twin periods marking the dead centers of our eyes." This suggests a mutual recognition of emptiness or a shared experience of looking without truly seeing. The night gathering at the margins of sight and the ocean's depths evoke a sense of unseen threats or unspoken realities that remain just out of reach.

"Above It All" by Philip Levine is a meditation on modern disconnection and the unseen tensions beneath the surface of routine interactions. Through vivid imagery and reflective narrative, Levine captures the speaker’s sense of isolation and the unspoken complexities of human experience, inviting readers to contemplate their own perceptions and connections in a rapidly changing world.

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