The Destructive Character

I have been reading "Modernism and the Other in Stevens, Frost, and Moore" by Andrew M. Lakritz. In it, he discusses Wallace Stevens as a destructive character. He explains that Stevens works to tear down typical views of mankind and nature and work towards change in his poetry. "If Stevens meant to be a poet of change, he did so in order to make his position as a writer most deeply connected with the life of his nation and his community, and not connected in the sense of one speaking the common language of the realm and this communicating with his people but, rather, speaking as one who would shift the very grounds of thought and speech." (Lakritz 45).

Stevens was not a Romantic, which is what makes him Lucretian. He wrote about things the way that they are. Too often, many poets litter their poems with abstract metaphor which serve to only confuse rather than clarify. What is the point of this? Stevens only wished to point out the world the way it is. He served to remove the romanticism from humanity and present the world the way it is supposed to be. In Stevens' time, the world was at war. It was confusing, chaotic, and the future was unsure. Many conceptions of the world was changing. From this, Stevens emerged, trying to shine a light on reality, untangling what was real from the imagination. While boys filled with the fantasy of courage lined up to sign up for war, Stevens came out attempting to give a sense of reality to the world, removing the romance, and helping people to see things the way they are.

Lucretius also strives for people to see things the way that they are. By removing the concept of life after death and removing the idea that we are working towards something for some great being, it simplifies things. We are here. That is it, and that is all we need to worry about. I heard an interesting quote today. Although I can't remember the exact words, it went along the lines of, Things are more pleasurable when they are shortened. This immediately struck me as Lucretian. Life is sweeter because it is short. Life is sweeter when it has an end. He removes the romance of life after death and, therefore, makes life sweeter. It gives life more pleasure. It makes life a thing to be savored rather than a process towards a higher goal assigned to an abstract being.

Both Lucretius and Stevens tear things apart in order to bring to life a simpler, more sublime reality. They are destructive characters, but from the destruction, new life rises.