Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Howard Nemerov's poem "World as Brueghel Imagined It" intricately captures the chaotic and vividly detailed world depicted by the Flemish painter Pieter Brueghel the Elder. Through a richly descriptive and contemplative lens, Nemerov explores how Brueghel's paintings encapsulate the essence of human folly, vice, and virtue, transforming proverbs and proverbial wisdom into tangible, visual narratives.

The poem opens by acknowledging the intertwining of word and image in Brueghel’s work: "The world as Brueghel imagined it is riddled with the word: / Whatever's proverbial becomes pictorial." Nemerov suggests that Brueghel's paintings are not merely artistic expressions but visual representations of cultural sayings and moral lessons. This visual literalism is emphasized with the depiction of people "crawling up a rich man's ass" and turning into toads, illustrating how Brueghel takes figurative language and renders it into concrete, often grotesque scenes.

Nemerov continues to draw on specific examples from Brueghel's oeuvre, noting the bizarre and exaggerated nature of these visual proverbs: "If the owl is said to carry / Nestlings and nest upon her back, she must be seen to do so." These depictions serve to make the abstract tangible, yet their meanings can be elusive or obscured over time. The poet points out that "The proverbs get forgotten, or their meaning leaches out," highlighting the challenge of interpreting these densely symbolic works.

Despite the difficulty in deciphering every detail, Nemerov asserts that Brueghel's world remains a "plenum of meaning," filled with rich allegorical content. The paintings capture "an artful eternity" where actions are frozen in time, and the boundaries between literal and allegorical blur: "The hay runs after the horse / Forever-so that we can't always tell coming from going, / Or literal good from allegorical bad." This timeless quality adds layers of complexity to Brueghel's imagery, inviting endless interpretation and contemplation.

The poem transitions to reflect on the viewer's experience of understanding Brueghel's emblems: "The innocent and deep delight of understanding one / Or another emblem." This moment of recognition, where the visual and the proverbial align, offers a profound sense of connection to the artist’s intent. However, Nemerov acknowledges the limitations of this understanding, as many of Brueghel's symbols remain mysterious, their original meanings lost to time.

Nemerov provides further examples of Brueghel's scenes, such as "the Ship of Fools propped up on a pair of barrels" and "a man shitting on the Beauty Shoppe's roof." These vivid, often grotesque images exemplify the surreal and satirical nature of Brueghel's work. The poet muses on the elusive nature of these allegories: "Or if Saint Anthony is somehow tempted (but to what?) / By a helmeted human jug with dagger and diarrhoea." These bizarre and humorous depictions challenge viewers to find deeper meaning and moral lessons within the absurdity.

The poem concludes by acknowledging the hallucinatory yet truthful vision that Brueghel offers: "The world as Brueghel imagined it is full of decaying fish / With people in their hulls, it is centered on allegorical dames / With funny hats." Brueghel's world, though fantastical and exaggerated, reflects the true nature of human existence, filled with vices and virtues, folly and wisdom. Nemerov suggests that Brueghel's art captures the essence of the world we know, providing a lens through which we can better understand and critique our own reality.

In "World as Brueghel Imagined It," Howard Nemerov masterfully explores the complex interplay between visual art and proverbial wisdom in Brueghel's work. Through detailed descriptions and thoughtful reflections, the poem invites readers to engage with the rich, allegorical world of Brueghel, recognizing the timeless and universal truths embedded within his surreal and often satirical depictions of human life.

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