Amy Lowell’s “September, 1918” can be read as both an example of Imagist poetry and a comment upon itself and the movement as a whole. To do this it employs a dual structure, dividing itself neatly into two stanzas of almost equal length, in which the second stanza comments directly on the first. This dual, self-referential structure is reinforced by the way the contents of the two stanzas mirror each other, both following a similar pattern. They each begin with mentions of “this afternoon” (Lowell, “September” 1, 10), move on to spend time describing the leaves (Lowell, “September” 2–3, 13), and draw to a close with something being gathered into a box (Lowell, “September” 7–8, 14–15).
The first stanza deals directly with conveying the scene in the park that Lowell is observing, utilising many of the techniques associated with the Imagist movement. Yet at the beginning of the second stanza Lowell pulls us from this peaceful reverie with the abrupt statement, “Some day there will be no war” (“September” 9). As the only line to also be its own self-contained sentence, it immediately draws the reader’s attention by disrupting the long, flowing rhythm of the poem up to this point. In doing so it brings to the forefront the idea of war, which has hitherto gone unmentioned and stands in direct contrast to the calm, idyllic scene just described. This serves to highlight a shift in focus between the two halves of the poem.
In the second stanza the scene previously described itself becomes the subject, with Lowell writing that one day in peacetime she could “take out this afternoon” (“September” 10), which characterises it in terms of an object. Of particular note is the way in which Lowell describes interacting with the afternoon in question. Rather than speaking in intangible terms such as remembering or reminiscing, Lowell wishes to “turn it in [her] fingers, / And remark the sweet taste of it” (“September” 11–12). The language she uses here is very tactile, reflecting Lowell’s belief that Imagist poetry should “render particulars exactly and not deal in vague generalities” in order to produce work that is “hard and clear, never blurred nor indefinite” (“Preface” 53). Just like the berries in the first stanza, the image of the afternoon is able to be gathered up and “put into [her] lunchbox” (Lowell, “September” 15), to be stored, and later taken out and re-experienced. With this Lowell conveys one of the key beliefs of the Imagist movement – that good poetry endures as it evokes emotion in the reader through its beauty (Pound 52). By precisely and truthfully describing the scene in the first stanza, it becomes – in the second – a physical, enduring object that can be returned to and enjoyed at a later date.
Just as the second stanza provides context for the boys gathering berries by placing it within wartime, it also gives context for the poem itself by addressing its Imagist characteristics. In this way, “September, 1918” is not only an Imagist poem, but a poem about Imagism, providing both an example of and rationale for the movement.
Citations:
Lowell, Amy. “Preface to Some Imagist Poets 1915.” ENGL 213: Modernist Lit & Culture, edited by Valerie O’Brien, Illini Union Bookstore, 2016, p. 53.
Lowell, Amy. “September, 1918.” Anthology of Modern American Poetry: Volume 1, Second Ed., edited by Cary Nelson, Oxford University Press, 2015, p. 66.
Pound, Ezra. “A Retrospect.” ENGL 213: Modernist Lit & Culture, edited by Valerie O’Brien, Illini Union Bookstore, 2016, pp. 47–52
Engl 213: Modernist Lit & Culture 