Re: BANANAFISH digest 104
Jessica Lynn Becker (beckerj@uwec.edu)
Mon, 22 Sep 1997 14:32:41
>With a bang, not a whimper? Ever read any of e.e. cummings' correspondence?
no, i'm afraid i haven't. i don't know what you're referring to, whether
it be that he corresponds in capitol letters or some other context. i'll
be sure to check it out, though. my reference was to his poetry, which is
written mostly (if not entirely) in lowercase letters.
>>perhaps he simply gave up on fighting with the aristocracy, the
>>judicial system, and was disheartened by the public's cries for his
>>execution. but inside, i am sure that there was a part of him that,
>>while maybe not afraid of death, certainly wanted to "rage,
>>rage against the dying of the light."
>
>i'm sorry, but i just don't see death as "a dying of the light". i love
>the poem, don't get me wrong, but it's just a symbol to me. i think
>people can very easily have a passion for life and accept death at the
>same time. it may be foreign for most westerners, but everyone does not
>see death as an end at all - and don't just mean the typical idea of
>heaven. if this is only one plane of existance, which is a common belief
>worldwide, then there may be all kinds of "light" or "life" to
>experience. i'm not trying to go into my personal views on life after
>death, i'm only saying that there many different perceptions of, and
>therefore feelings about, life and death. i don't think it's fair to
>make such a generalization.
i wasn't actually making a generalization. in no way am i saying that
there is definately life after death or anything like that. i was
referring to the context of the poem, and the line specifically mentioning
"dying of the light." personally, i don't believe there is anything after
this life. good for me. good for you if you believe there IS something
out there. i believe that we should all have faith in what we OURSELVES
believe in, and that there is nothing wrong with having beliefs differing
from those of others. the beauty of life is that we have the chance to
become individuals, to develop our own personalities and beliefs and the
right to defend them. when life is over, who knows? maybe i'm wrong and
there is something wrong, and maybe i'm right and there's nothing. i
suppose we'll all see when we get there, but until then, there is no way
that i will sit back and submissively wait for my time on earth to be over.
>>"rage is always deep inside, and no amount of acceptance
>> can mask that."