Sign Inventory Week 9

 Dream Song # 29
John Berryman


There sat down, once, a thing on Henry's heart.
So heavy, if he had a hundred  years
& more, & weeping, sleepless, in all them time
Henry could not make good.
Starts again always in Henry's ears
the little cough somewhere, an ordour, a chime.

And there is another thing he has in mind
like a grave Sienese face a thousand years
would fail to blur the still profiled reproach of. Ghastly,
with open eyes, he attends, blind.
All the bells say: too late. This is not for tears;
thinking.

But never did Henry, as he thought he did
end anyone and hacks her body up
and hide the pieces, where they maybe found.
He knows: he went over everyone, & nobody's missing.
Often he reckons, in the dawn, them up.
Nobody is ever missing.


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Inventory:

* The poem shifts rapidly from opposing "voices." It juxtaposes rather "elevated" language to, what I can best describe as the opposite of "elevated"--uneducated, simple, typically "un-poetic" language ( Ex. "in all them time," "Henry could not make good.")

*Similarly, the poem also contains a number of strange syntactical inversions. (Ex. " starts again always in Henry's ears" "like a grave Sienese face a thousand years would fail to blur the still profiled reproach of" "Often he reckons, in the dawn, them up." This might be read as a facet of my first sign. However, I won't argue that these inversions are particularly "un-poetic" ( like I found the juxtaposition of "high" and "low" language to operate.) Instead, these syntactical inversions call attention to themselves in a poem that seems to place a strict emphasis on poetic form- it consists of three, six line stanzas ( much like the rest of The Dream Songs. I think some further research'll help here: is this a traditional form? how closely has he followed it?

*Alhough its form appears to be "definite", or "traditional," Berryman continually obscures any literal surface level understanding of this poem. (ex. "there sat down, once, a thing," "and there is another thing he has in mind.)  What these "things" are the reader is unclear of.

*The poem appears fixated on some sort of  guilt or regret. (ex. the thing is described as "so heavy." Further more, we see words like " weeping, sleepless" and the mention of a"still profiled reproach of." Lastly, the poem ends with Henry thinking that he has murdered someone. This is interesting in the poem, because, however obscure the surface level meaning, we know that Henry hasn't committed this act--"he went over everyone, & nobody's missing." It's interesting--the one thing explicit in a poem largely focused around guilt has not occurred.

*The poem contains one metaphor--more of a simile, rather--and its highly specific, perhaps the most specific image in the poem: " And there is another thing he has in mind/ like a grave Sienese face a thousand years would fail to blur the still profiled reproach of." Though its a highly specific image--probably referring the Sienese portraits of the Madonna--its totally buried in this weird moment of syntactical breakdown.

* I noticed a rather intricate movement through the three, six line stanzas. The first sestet focuses on the "thing" that "starts again always in Henry's ears." The second sestet revolves around what Henry sees: "the grave Sienese face would fail to blur," "with open eyes, he attends, blind." And finally the last stanza chronicles Henry's "reckoning" "them up."

*There seem to be a heavy preoccupation with negation here. Ex. Henry is "sleepless" and can "NOT make good." "the gave Sienese face FAILS to blur," though Henry has "open eyes" he is "blind." The bells say "this is NOT for tears." "NEVER did Henry" "end anyone." Finally, Henry finds that "Nobody is missing."