Jessica Hite
4/22/03
English 102
Prof. Christie

Edward Estlin Cummings, commonly referred to as E. E. Cummings, was born on October 14, 1894 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He was a source of vast knowledge and was responsible for many creative works other than his poetry, such as novels, plays, and paintings. He published his first book of poetry Tulips and Chimneys in 1923. Many of his poems are known for the visual effects they create through his unusual placement of words on the page, as well as, his lack of punctuation and capitalization. The manner in which Cummings arranges the words of his poems creates an image in the reader's mind of the topic he is discussing, such as a season or climbing stairs. His visual style also brings emotions, such as loneliness or cheerfulness, to the reader's mind. Due to this creativity, Cummings won many awards, such as the National Book Award and the Bollingen Prize in poetry (Marks 17).

In his poem "l(a", the words are arranged in such a way that they are falling down the page. He only puts several letters of each word on a line and then continues to spell the word down the page. The main focus of the poem is about loneliness and the words almost appear to be "lonely." He uses parentheses around the phrase "a leaf falls," which appears in the middle of the poem. The remaining letters in the poem spell "loneliness." When these are placed together in the same poem, it creates an effect that there is a leaf falling from a tree to the ground where it will be lonely because it will be separated from the tree. Cummings emphasizes the image of being alone or aloof by using two versions of the word one. On the first line, he uses the letter "l," which also looks like the number "1." On another line he uses the word "one." Besides the parentheses, there is no other punctuation or capitalization used in the poem and this contributes to the effect of the leaf not having any attachment or connection and falling off the tree.

The reader also obtains a visual effect when reading Cummings' "in Just-." In this poem, the main topic is springtime and the various aspects of that season. Cummings creates the words "mud-luscious" and "puddle-wonderful" to provide the reader with images of spring from a child's perspective. Adults would view mud and puddles as a negative aspect of spring, resulting from the melting of snow and the showers that usually occur at that time of the year. However, by creating these words, Cummings brings the reader back to their own childhood when mud and puddles were wonderful aspects of spring.

In this same poem, Cumming also uses spacing to create an image in the reader's mind. For example, he writes:

lame balloonman
whistles                  far               and wee  		(Cummings 21-22.)

The fact that the word "far" is separated from the other words in the line creates an image that the whistling is in the distance. Additionally, he joins the names "eddieandbill" and "bettyandisbel." This illustrates that there is a "togetherness" that is usually found in spring because it is a time when children play outside with their friends. By joining the names, the poet captures the manner in which children, who are excited, speak by running their words together and leaving out syllables. Spring is usually a time when people's attitudes become more lighthearted and cheerful because they are free from the hassles of winter. In this poem, Cummings paints that carefree picture in the reader's mind through both the words he uses and his placement of them.

Another poem that creates visual images is titled "XLV." This poem is written in a very unique way. It is diamond shaped on the left side but does not follow a pattern on the right. The poem actually is about winter and dying. For example, in one of the lines he writes, "people are walking deaths in this seasonä" The diamond shape of one side illustrates the toughness of the winter season, like the hardness of a diamond. Additionally, the diamond shape creates an image of the fierce, winter wind blowing so hard that it pushes things. In the case of this poem, the words are being shifted to the right. Then the unevenness of the words on the right side illustrates that dying occurs at random times.

In the poem that is referred to as "48," Cummings writes:

	mortals)
		climbi
			ng i
			nto eachness begi
			n 						(Cummings 385.)

This creates an image of steps and people climbing from one level to the next. This could refer to developing one's personality or improving oneself. In this case, mortals, or people, are climbing into a more complex body or personality in order to move on with their lives. By using the word "eachness" and ending each line with the letter "i" he creates an image of people's individuality and the desire to develop that to its fullest extent.

In another portion of this poem Cummings writes:

		trapeze gush somersaults
		open ing
			hes shes
		&meet&
			swoop
				fully is are ex
						quisite theys of re
		turn							(Cummings 385.)

By the way he places the words on the page, you can visualize the trapeze artists engaging in their air stunts. The "hes shes" are connecting with each other and he uses the "&meet&" to further illustrate this effect. The spacing in the word "open ing" can refer to two conditions. On one hand, it portrays the gap between two trapeze artists as they swing apart into individual beings. On the other hand, it can portray the gap between these artists as they prepare to meet each other and join in swinging as one.

From the examples provided, it is evident that Cummings created a large number of visual effects in his poetry. He combined the lack of punctuation, capitalization, and creative spacing with his topics, such as the seasons, to convey his messages. Some readers find the visual effects in his poems disconcerting and feel that they are meaningless because of it. However, others find his visual effects helpful in gaining a deeper understanding of his poems and the messages he was trying to convey. Cummings' poems were definitely meant to be viewed rather than simply listened to so that the reader can benefit from the full effect of them. His poetry does not follow traditional rules and is very unpredictable. As a result, they leave more room for your imagination to soar.

Cummings, E. E. Poems 1923 ‚ 1954. New York : Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1926.

Marks, Barry A. E. E. Cummings. New York : Twayne Publishers, Inc, 1964.