The Translucent Mechanics (Masterplots II: Poetry, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: George Oppen
- First Published: 1972
- Type of Work: Meditation
- Genres: Poetry, Meditation
- Subjects: Language or languages, Perception, Nature, Spiritual life or spirituality, Reality, Fear, Imagination, Sea or seafaring life, San Francisco, Wind, Angels, Mind and body, Motion
The Poem
A spare, free-verse poem, George Oppen’s “The Translucent Mechanics” comprises twenty-nine lines, four of which contain only a single word. The title invites readers to experience the poet’s vision into the tentativeness and transparency of things, revealing them as organic mechanisms, ever in flux.
The poem is written in the third person, as the poet takes on a persona that views things from shifting perspectives. First, he assumes the point of view of the wind, moving through “the clever city”—specifically, the port of San Francisco—penetrating...
[The entire page is 966 words long]
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