Sunday Morning by Wallace Stevens | Structure, Summary, Analysis

Описание: Sunday Morning is a Modernist meditative poem that was first published in 1915 and then republished in Stevens's poetic collection Harmonium in 1923. The poem talks about the modernist critical approach to the Abrahamic religion (Christianity). Wallace Stevens mentioned that the poem is "simply an expression of paganism." The poem challenges the Biblical notion of the afterlife and heaven and suggests that no heaven can be more beautiful than the current life while death is the certainty of change, the mother of all possible beauty. Thus, the poem is abstract, and existentialist and can be related to The Emperor of Icecream.
The poem is divided into eight stanzas of 15 lines each. All the lines are written in Blank verse and thus, there is no rhyming scheme, nor any end-rhyming though all lines follow iambic pentameter. Wallace Stevens used alliteration, assonance, enjambment, imagery, symbolism, and simile in the poem. Nature symbolizes both, death and paradise. The poet suggests that nature is independent and unconcerned with human affairs.
The poem discusses the evolution of religion or belief systems. The poet raises doubts about Christianity and then compares it with Roman myths. He suggests that first, human and divinity were separated but then Christ came as a human, and thus, human God became human, the next evolutionary step would be for each human being to become divine and synchronizes with the divinity of nature.

The poem describes a discussion between a woman and the poet. The woman is perplexed about the issue of religion and wonders if there is any need for it. She is uncertain and questioning. The speaker is rather confident and reassuring and the poet encourages the woman to accept the change.

The major themes of Sunday Morning are Supernaturalism versus Realism, death, immortality, beauty, and carpe diem.
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