Poet, Lover, Birdwatcher by Nissim Ezekiel
To force the pace and never to be still
Is not the way of those who study birds
Or women. The best poets wait for words.
The hunt is not an exercise of will
But patient love relaxing on a hill
To note the movement of a timid wing;
Until the one who knows that she is loved
No longer waits but risks surrendering -
In this the poet finds his moral proved
Who never spoke before his spirit moved.
The slow movement seems, somehow, to say much more.
To watch the rarer birds, you have to go
Along deserted lanes and where the rivers flow
In silence near the source, or by a shore
Remote and thorny like the heart's dark floor.
And there the women slowly turn around,
Not only flesh and bone but myths of light
With darkness at the core, and sense is found
But poets lost in crooked, restless flight,
The deaf can hear, the blind recover sight.
INTRODUCTION -
The poem 'Poet, Lover, Birdwatcher' is a famous poem by the Indian Jewish poet, Nissim Ezekiel. It is a 20-line poem divided into two ten-line stanzas. The rhyme scheme for each stanza is ABBAACDCDD. The poem deals with the creative process of writing a poem. The speaker describes the process of writing poetry and compares it to the task of being a lover or a birdwatcher. A poet, a lover, and a birdwatcher - all have one common quality which is the patience required in their tasks. According to the speaker, patience is the best action to achieve the goal. He compares the patience of all the above three revealing how their quest ends. Ezekiel has written many ars poetica throughout his career, but "Poet, Lover, Birdwatcher" is by far his most famous.
POET -
Nissim Ezekiel (16 December 1924 - 9 January 2004) was an Indian Jewish poet, actor, playwright, editor, and art critic. He was awarded the Sahitya Academy award in 1983. He was a foundational figure in postcolonial India's literary history, specifically for Indian Poetry in English, and is often called the “father of post-independence Indian verse in English”. His works also earned him the Padma Shree award. His other famous works include Enterprise, Night of the Scorpion, The Night of the Psalms, etc.
SUMMARY -
In the first stanza, the speaker starts by saying that to keep on moving and not waiting by standing still is not the way for a man who studies birds (birdwatcher) and that who studies women (lover). Similar is the case of the poet. He, too, has to wait for the correct words required for his poetry just like the other two. The speaker next says that this waiting would not be troublesome for them but instead, it will give them a sense of peace and relaxation. It will as calming as resting on a hill. This wait will be desirable and not a burden. When a man stops and relaxes, he pays attention to the different kinds of things in life like the movement of a bird's wing or the moment a woman gives in to love. This is possible only if a man drops all his haste and calmly waits for the right moment. Similarly, a man who waits for the correct words and does not hurry to finish his work brings out the best of himself. The patience he shows in completing his work makes them more special and close to the soul. So, it doesn't matter whether you are a poet or a lover or a birdwatcher, you have to be patient in your job.
In the next stanza, the speaker defines these slow and relaxing movements. He says that these actions define him much more because they are more difficult than fast and hasty actions. To find the rarer birds, the speaker advises that one must go off the deserted path near the rivers toward areas that are "remote and thorny". The areas are as secluded as the innermost chambers of the heart. Once one arrives at such a location, the bird or woman one was chasing will be found by him. The women at this very place switch their attention to these lovers. These women hide their darkest and deepest fears with a fake vision of light, not allowing others to look beyond it. However, when one reaches this estranged segment of heart, he can overcome the fears and win their love. Lastly, the speaker remembers the poet and tells us about his conflict. He has to show a great deal of patience to allow his works to contain the best choice of words. He pours his soul out in those poems in such a way that his works make the deaf hear and the blind see. His works show them a light that is not visible to them. The search of all three (poet, lover, and birdwatcher) is in the darkness without any concrete path of their aspirations. At the center of their quest, there is darkness but it is full of meaning for them.
THEME -
- Patience - The poem mostly focuses on the theme of patience. He explains to us the beauty and peace behind the wait to accomplish your motive. He uses the examples of a poet who waits for the correct use of words, a lover who waits endlessly for his women's love, and a birdwatcher who noiselessly waits to enjoy the small movements of a bird. These aims can be achieved only by their patience and their strong will to achieve them.
END -
"Poet, Lover, Birdwatcher" is known as one of Ezekiel's more 'serious' poems. Here he focuses on the beauty of waiting for something that one desires and being patient for it. The poem has no irony and satire and simply motivates us to achieve our goals. All three: poet, lover, and birdwatcher move at a slow pace though they say much more than one can understand. Their creativity demands untiring efforts.
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