next+to+of+course+god+america+i

media type="custom" key="6191803"

How does E.E. Cummings pack so much meaning and symbolism into such a small poem? E.E. Cummings represents Modernism in many ways in “Next to of course God America I,” with things such as testing the language. E.E. Cummings life was shown in this poem just by showing religion in throughout it. Cummings has a pretty consistent style throughout all of his poems and does not stray from some of the other Modernism writers most of the time. Overall, Cummings has done a great job having a message with his poetry. E.E. Cummings does a good job in representing exactly what the Modernism Literary period was all about. The first thing that one will notice when reading “Next to of course God America I” is that he pushes the limit on language in the poem. Cummings does not use any punctuation in the poem whatsoever, which is a characteristic of Modernism. Another thing that Modernism is known for is for rejecting traditional values (Characteristics). One might think Cummings shows this the most when he is almost mocking the people who have died for our country when Cummings says “Why talk of beauty what could be more beautiful than these heroic happy dead (Cummings).” E.E. Cummings puts some life experiences in to this poem “Next to of course God America I,” but one may not know about this unless they were to look into how Cummings was brought up. After researching Cummings life, Cummings shows that he was brought up in a traditional home with a strong tie to the church because his father was a minister (Frazee). Cummings shows the religious tone of the poem by putting god in the title of the poem, and later in the text talking about people who are bloody proclaiming that they won in the name of the lord, which one may think Cummings is saying is stupid by the tone (Cummings). There is arrogance to the tone and the way that it is written which may make one think like that. Cummings carries the same tone and passion for what he is talking about throughout other poems that he writes too. In “I carry your heart with me,” he briefly mentions god when he talks about how much he loves her compared to his own life. One may think that the tone is the same as the other poems as well because it seems like he feels he is entitled to her love. The tone of “Anecdote of the Jar” is very different than a poem by Cummings. The tone of the poem by Wallace Stevens is somber, relaxing, and somewhat sad compared to a mean and quick moving poem by Cummings. E.E. Cummings writing is different and yet the same compared to others(I Carry). In conclusion, Cummings has done a good job packing so much meaning into a small poem and having a message. He represents Modernism well and uses a different writing style to show it. Cummings writes different than the author Wallace Stevens, but he does write the same in his other poems as he does in “Next to of course God America I.” Finally, Cummings puts some life experiences into his poetry, showing religion in this poem. Cummings represents the aspects of Modernism well. Cummings, E. E. "I Carry Your Heart with Me - Poem by E. E. Cummings." //Famous Poets and Poems - Read and Enjoy Poetry//. Web. 01 May 2010. .

Stevens, Wallace. "Anecdote of the Jar." Web. 01 May 2010. .

Frazee, Jerry. "E.E. Cummings." //E.E. Cummings//. Web. 01 May 2010. .

Cummings, E. E. "Cummings: "next to of Course God America ..."" //Homepages at WMU//. Web. 01 May 2010. .

"Characteristics of Modernism." //SOCRATES//. Web. 01 May 2010. .