Hello,
In this blog i will discuss my understanding of the deconstruction process and analyze the poems by William Shakespeare, Ezra Pound and William Carlos Williams.
Traditional literary analysis often seeks to find a single, definitive meaning in a text, believing that the author intended one clear message or interpretation. This approach views the text as having a fixed meaning that can be uncovered through careful reading and analysis.
On the other hand, deconstructionists or poststructuralists challenge this idea by arguing that texts can have multiple, conflicting meanings. They believe that language is inherently unstable and ambiguous, making it impossible to pin down a single, unchanging meaning. Instead of looking for a single interpretation, deconstructionists explore the various possible meanings that a text might suggest, playing with the text's ambiguities and contradictions.
According to this view, language carries within itself the potential for its own critique. This means that any text, no matter how straightforward it might seem, can be critically analyzed and reinterpreted. Deconstructionists examine how a text's language can undermine or subvert its apparent meaning, revealing new and often unexpected interpretations. This approach highlights the complexity and richness of literary texts, showing that they can be understood in many different ways, none of which is necessarily the "correct" one.
How to Deconstruction a Text : Deconstructive Reading of Sonnet 18 by William Shakespeare, In a Station of the Metro by Ezra Pound and The Red Wheelbarrow by William Carlos Williams.
William Shakespeare "Sonnet 18"
Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer’s lease hath all too short a date;
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm'd;
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow’st;
Nor shall death brag thou wander’st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow’st:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.
This sonnet starts by comparing someone to a summer day, but then shows how the person is even better than summer. The poet points out that summer doesn't last long and can sometimes be too hot or windy. But the person he's writing about has a beauty that won't fade away.
The interesting part is that the poem says this person will live forever through the words of the poem itself. This brings up some big questions about art and memory. Can a poem really make someone live forever? The poet seems to think so, and he presents himself as the one who can give this gift of eternal life through his writing.
The poem also talks about getting old and dying without directly saying it. It promises that the person's beauty will never fade in the poem, even though we know people do get old in real life. This creates a tension between what we want (to stay young forever) and what actually happens. The poem suggests that art might be a way to solve this problem, keeping someone young and beautiful forever in words.
'In a Station of the Metro' Ezra Pound
The apparition of these faces in the crowd:
Petals on a wet, black bough.
Ezra Pound's "In a Station of the Metro" is a brief two-line poem that paints a vivid picture of a moment in a subway station. The poem compares the sudden appearance of faces in a crowd to petals on a wet, black tree branch. This simple comparison opens up several possible interpretations. It might be commenting on the fleeting nature of city life, where people appear and disappear quickly like delicate petals.
The contrast between the human faces and the natural image of petals could represent the tension between urban life and nature. Some might see it as finding beauty in everyday scenes, while others might interpret it as a statement on the alienation of city life, with people as disconnected as petals on a branch.
The poem's brevity and imagery resemble both Impressionist painting and Japanese haiku, suggesting Pound might be blending different artistic traditions. It could also be read as a meditation on mortality, with the fragile petals representing human life against the backdrop of time. Ultimately, this short poem captures a snapshot of modern life, leaving it open for readers to find their own meaning in its vivid imagery.
'The Red Wheelbarrow' William Carlos Williams
so much depends
upon
a red wheel
barrow
glazed with rain
water
beside the white
chickens
William Carlos Williams' poem "The Red Wheelbarrow" is a short but powerful piece of writing. It describes a simple scene: a red wheelbarrow that's wet from rain, sitting next to some white chickens. The poet tells us that "so much depends" on this scene. At first glance, it might seem like just a basic description of something you might see on a farm. But the way the poet emphasizes its importance makes us think there's more to it.
The poem could be telling us several things. It might be saying that everyday objects we often ignore, like wheelbarrows, are actually very important in life. It could be highlighting how crucial simple farm tools and animals are in the world of agriculture. The vivid colors mentioned - the red wheelbarrow, the clear rain, and the white chickens - create a striking picture in our minds. This might be the poet's way of showing us the beauty in ordinary things. The phrase "so much depends" could also mean that many things in life are connected and rely on each other, just like different parts of a farm depend on one another.
By describing this one moment so carefully, the poem might be encouraging us to pay more attention to what's happening around us right now, and to appreciate the simple things in life.
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