In Memory of My Feelings (Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Frank O’Hara
- First Published: 1958
- Type of Work: Poem
- Genres: Poetry, Lyric poetry, Elegy
- Subjects: United States or Americans, Snakes, Twentieth century, Art or artists, Poetry or poets, Chicago, Heroes or heroism, Horses
“In Memory of My Feelings” is a surreal poem that attempts to find an authentic self amid the many selves that can be discerned within the speaker. The poet seems to relate these selves to the different feelings he has. For example, in the first section of the poem, he identifies both a “transparent” self that “carries me quietly, like a gondola, through the streets” as well as a number of “naked selves” that use “pistols” to protect themselves. The division continues as “One of me rushes/ to window #13 and one of me raises his whip. . . .” The speaker is also...
[The entire page is 781 words long]
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