Philip Larkin

Though I enjoy the witty cynicism in poems like "This be the Verse" and "Talking in Bed," I ultimately prefer the dark, transcendent, almost romantic Larkin in poems like "Church Going," "Here," and "High Windows." I think his other poems are humorous and I actually like his cynical attitude (most of the time) but I think the "anti-romantic" Larkin has a much more complex voice that allows the poems to be a little more rewarding.  Not only are his "major" poems more rewarding (for me), but they also embody some of the same cynicism we see in other poems.  If Larkin was being strictly romantic in his descriptions of churches and nature...then maybe I'd prefer the witty Larkin...but it's not like "Church Going" and "Here" are completely void of cynicism..it's definitely there along with other factors that make the poems more. 
"Church Going," especially, is a poem I connect with on a pretty personal level and I think it is a good example of a poem that shows two different sides of Larkin. It's pretty clear that Larkin is not particularly religious as he dismisses religion multiple times in the poem and describes believers as "Christmas-addicts"...but still, there is amongst all of this cynicism a longing for something more, maybe not a search for God but a search for something to replace God with.  This tension between feeling disconnected and cynical of religion while still feeling the need to respect the church ("...I take off / My cycle-clips in awkward reverence") is what draws me to this poem. This "awkward reverence" complicates the poem and shows a different side of Larkin that we don't see in "This be the Verse."  I also enjoy the poem because it shows a different side of non-believers in general by challenging the idea that it's "easy" to be an atheist...it's not.

"Steps" by Frank O'Hara

 After we discussed it in class, I began reflecting on Frank O’Hara’s style/voice and whether or not his poetry is successful. I think it would be easy for readers to dismiss his style (especially in the “I do this/I do that” poems) just based on their (mis)conceptions that poetry always has to be this complicated, over the top, excessively meaningful thing... but I don’t really agree with that. I think his poetry is successful and enjoyable to read because it manages to be meaningful and honest while simply describing things as how they are, allowing readers to find enjoyment in the simple pleasures in life.  That it makes me feel something and look at the world a little differently without excessive language or use of symbolism, for me, makes it successful.  Compared to the other poets we have encountered this semester, the subject matter and voice of Frank O’Hara’s poetry is a lot simpler to understand and follow.  That’s not to say his more straightforward and simplistic language is not poetic, though, for he definitely offers fresh images and interesting ways to describe the spontaneous world around him.  

One of my favorite poems in Lunch Poems is “Steps” because I think it exemplifies exactly what I admire about O’Hara’s poetry...a clever, honest and light hearted view of the world.  Right away O’Hara exudes happiness in the second stanza with the lines “all I want is a room up there / and you in it / and even the traffic halt so thick is a way / for people to rub up against each other.”  Here, he takes something we normally look at as an annoyance (traffic) and somehow makes it into something positive with the claim that crowded city life, at least, forces contact with others.  O’Hara continues to describe the people around him in the park with the lines “why not / the Pittsburgh Pirates shout because they won / and in a sense we’re all winning / we’re alive.”  These lines really stood out as lines I really love with their “it could always be worse...we could be dead” type of philosophy...one that I think we all could benefit from from time to time.  O’Hara’s persistent positivity continues in the next stanza with “even the stabbings are helping the population explosion / though in the wrong country” (though I personally find these lines a little less believable than others.) The last line of this stanza “not that we need liquor (we just like it)” is admittedly a favorite...wouldn’t we all love to believe this is true? Finally, the last two stanzas cement this poem into one of my favorite O’Hara poems, first with the simplistic description of an old man and his wife...the man drinking beer and the wife knocking him off the box he’s sitting on.  The whole scene has a feel good “love can last” type message that reminds me of when my grandparents would bicker with each other and admit their love in the same breath. Finally, the last stanza “oh god it’s wonderful / to get out of bed / and drink too much coffee / and smoke too many cigarettes / and love you so much” just makes me smile, honestly. I’m usually resistant to anything inherently sweet because maybe it seems put on or not really genuine, but I think these lines are really successful at capturing a feeling without being cheesy or sentimental. This persistent happiness (that would usually annoy me...even though that maybe sounds a little more cynical than I mean for it to) is what makes me really enjoy O’hara. A lot of these poems just make you feel good, which is a nice change from some of the other poets we've encountered.