Marginalia

Marginalia

Introduction and Theme: - The poem is philosopising an important reality of life and puts forward his statement which is scientifically true that all forces of life are centrifugal (i.e. tending away from centralisation, as of authority). The force of life is pressurised to the borders or poetically speaking, to the margins of life. Because our energies and qualities lie in the center of life, we cannot utilize then in the best possible manner. Our dreams, visions, desires do lie in the center, but it is a reality of life that their achievements are centrifugal. The reality of life is developing or progressing from the center outwards.
We have our dreams, desires, myths and visions of a standard life, but we cannot materialize our dreams because the force of life is centrifugal and all our dreams lie in the center of our mind.
The basic idea of the poem is that things concentrate at the edges … all other details seem to present of a cinematic presentation of the idea. The poet gives an example of pond, then of sleep and finally concludes that our sleep takes us away from the world of reality to the world of imagination which is replete with all sorts of desires, but we cannot perform during sleep to get our desires. The end of our journey is death and our energies are expanding towards this goal.
A Critique of Marginalia
Introduction
Things concentrate at the edges; the pond-surface
Is bourne to fish and man
Things concentrate at the edges is the basic message of the poem. The poet brings round this point to his readers in a graphic manner using the example of water pond and sleep both of which are examples common enough for an average mind to understand. But the philosophical point, which the poet makes, is unique and seldom touched upon by the poets. This is a typical quality of modern poets especially Americans who tend always tend to choose striking topics for their poems. Marginalia tends to present the reality that things exert their pressures to the edges and this is amply proven by the men and fish along with other botanical life in the water which are driven by the centrifugal force to the edges rather than staying in the center (centripetal). Sleep also takes us from the conscious world to the unconscious world, which is an example of centrifugal force in life.
The poem has imaginative quality along with realistic touches. There seems to be a clash between imagination and reality. It is a fact that center is important for the generation of products and results, but all its energies are pressured to the edges, so for the existence of life, life must pace along with time and naturally progress ahead for better and standard life.
The progress and advancement of life lie in the coping with the rim of whirlpool rather than enjoying its center.
Development of Thought
An Attack on the traditional concept of Nucleus: - Wilbur is not simply a poet, but a philosopher who attacks the traditional concept of central significance of nucleus. Traditionally people have upheld the importance of center and nucleus. That is why Theodore Roethke hails Wilbur in the followings words, "Not a graceful mind - that's a mistake - but a mind of grace, an altogether different and higher thing."
Scientifics have discovered that the death of nucleus is the death of whole cell. They have believed in the centripetal forces rather than the centrifugal ones, but Wilbur challenges and says:
Things concentrate at the edges;
What he means is that complexity, richness, beauty and ugliness of the world exists not at its center but at its boundaries. It is the boundaries, which have held the center tight. Though the center is an emissary of light, knowledge and development yet our riches are centrifugal in the words of Wilbur. So the most important area for progress is not the center but the edges, which are ever expanding, evolutionary and revolutionary.
The Limits of Man and Animal: - He uses a number of images to drive home his idea. He uses zoological and botanical imagery very common in modern American poetry introduced by the advancement of science. Wilbur says,
The pond-surface
Is bourne to fish and man
He uses the image of pond, its surface and edges. Edges serve as the ultimate boundaries separating the world of the fish from that of human beings – the world of land differed from the waterly world. It is not the centeral water of the pond which defines the limits of man and the fish. Their limits are symbolised by the borders – the edge of the pond.
Not only this zoological, but also the botanical life such as slime, moss, impure vegetation or décor, music or pattered light, in other words all the beauties and ugliness all concentrate at the edges as ascertained by Wilbur in the following lines:
In textile scum and damask light, on which
The lily-pads are set; and there are also
Inlaid ruddy twigs, becalmed pine-leaves,
Air-baubles, and the chain mail of froth.