Poetry, Part 1

The Imperfect Paradise by Linda Pastan, page 320-321, poem #262.

The most dominant literary device in this poem, which largely dictates the central theme, is a biblical allusion to the stories of the creation and the garden of Eden.  These allusions are introduced in the first line of the poem and carry all the way through the piece.  The first two lines state "If God had stopped work after the fifth day/ With Eden full of vegetables and fruits..."  This is referring to the story in the Bible in which God created the world, as well as to the story of the garden of Eden.  These first two lines suggest a world in which there are plants and animals (thus the reference to the fifth day, on which God created the animals), but there are no human beings (created on the sixth day.)  The mention of the garden of Eden is also very significant because Eden was regarded as a paradise created by God, until the serpent's temptation led Adam and Eve to sin, thus introducing evil into God's paradise.  This idea of a flawed humanity, and of the human race as being a source of evil and imperfection in the world, is the primary focus of this poem.  The poet uses these allusions to pose the question of which is greater- the positive impact of humanity on the world, or human flaws and sins.  In order to fully understand this meaning, it is essential to understand the nature of the allusion that the poem is based on.

Another literary device that contributes to the meaning is synecdoche, used in the last three lines of the poem as part of a rhetorical question to sum up the meaning of the poem.  These lines ask, "Which would a wise and just creator choose:/ The green hosannas of a budding leaf/ Or the strict contract between love and grief?"  In these lines, two very specific examples are used to represent two very broad opposite ideas.  The green leaf is referring to the beauty and simplicity of nature when untouched by human influence, whereas the contrast between love and grief refers to a more complicated kind of beauty found within the human nature, and its impact on the world.  The poet substitutes these smaller examples for a general idea in order to more clearly show the contrast between the simplicity and complexity.  The poet also is able to emphasize these specific aspects of nature vs humanity in more vivid detail by using synecdoche.

I enjoyed this poem because I feel that it posed a very interesting question as to what a world untouched by humans would be like.  The poet creates an image of what could be interpreted either as an untamed wilderness or a serene paradise, using vivid but concise descriptions as with "...a kingdom made of stems and roots,"  and "...picture postcards of the soul," two of my favorite lines in the poem.  I appreciate the way in which the poet uses a series of rhetorical questions to presents two different sides of an idea, without ever taking a stance on one side or the other, leaving the reader to decide which is greater- nature's simple beauty, or complex human emotions, which may be associated with sin and flaws.  I also like this poem because it was fairly straightforward, and the poet was able to discuss a complicated topic and provide a great deal of depth in relatively few lines.  Many carefully chosen words and a few well placed question marks express a fundamental question and leave the answer open to the reader's opinion.