Joy (Elegy 1)

Overview

• "Joy" by Tracy K. Smith is part of her debut collection The Body's Question (2003), which focuses on personal and familial themes.
• The poem is an elegy dedicated to Smith's mother, who passed away from cancer in 1994.
• It juxtaposes childhood memories with the harsh realities of terminal illness, portraying the body as both a vessel of memory and a site of suffering.
• Themes explored include love, grief, faith, and the ambiguity of belief in the face of mortality.
• The poem concludes with an open-ended, universal question, leaving readers to reflect on their own beliefs and the meaning of life and death.

Detailed Summary

Stanza 1:

The poem begins with a nostalgic image of Smith's mother as a young girl, requesting a simple, comforting meal of "dumplings and kale." This visualisation connects to the Biblical reference of the Last Supper, subtly linking food, ritual, and the anticipation of an ending.

Stanza 2:

The speaker recalls childhood memories, where the mother, depicted as nine years old, plays "hospital with your sisters." This emphasises the body as a repository of memory and suggests that even in terminal illness, recollections of innocence persist. The tender line, "These will be my medicine," poignantly contrasts with the realities of physical decline.

Stanza 3:

The imagery shifts to the present, where the room is darkened to shield the mother despite the setting being "the South in summer." The harsh consonants in the description ("dark" and "quilt") foreshadow death, contrasting the nostalgic softness of the earlier stanzas.

Stanza 4:

A metaphor, "The body is appetite," portrays the mother savouring small pleasures like "kale." This demonstrates her quiet acceptance of her condition, yet her "cautious" body warns against over-indulgence, revealing the fragile balance between longing and restraint.

Stanza 5:

The physicality of illness intensifies with clinical imagery: "transparent tubes, striding / Their compromise with the body." The tubes symbolise invasive medical procedures that sustain life but impose a visible compromise.

Stanza 6:

The mother's withdrawal from the physical world is marked by the line, "When you close your eyes, I know you are listening / To a dark chamber." This metaphor suggests her reflective contemplation as she prepares to confront death.

Stanza 7:

The poem concludes with a profound and ambiguous question, "What do you believe in?" Smith uses this line to weave a universal theme, leaving the reader contemplating the significance of faith, memory, and mortality.

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Themes

Memory and Nostalgia

The poem explores how the body acts as a vessel for memory, blending moments of childhood innocence with the stark realities of terminal illness. The nostalgic recollection of the mother playing "hospital with your sisters" (line 5) highlights the continuity of life's cycles, contrasting youth with the fragility of her current state. The past is revisited as a source of comfort, while the present anchors the narrative in the physicality of suffering.

Love and Care

Smith portrays the deep bond between mother and daughter, expressed through caregiving and intimate observation. The daughter's role as a witness is underscored when she notes her mother's enjoyment of small pleasures: "You savour the kale" (line 13). The act of love is quiet yet profound, revealing how care persists even in the face of grief and loss.

Mortality and Faith

The poem navigates the tension between the body's decline and the enduring mysteries of belief. The mother's preparation for death is imbued with a sense of quiet faith, evident in the closing line's poignant question, "What do you believe in?" (line 26). This open-ended query invites reflection on spirituality, acceptance, and the possibility of an afterlife, making mortality both deeply personal and universally resonant.

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Structure and Form

1. Free Verse

The poem is written in free verse, with no fixed rhyme scheme or meter. This lack of strict structure mirrors the unpredictability and emotional complexity of the subject matter—grief and the process of dying. The fluidity of the lines allows the poem to feel conversational and deeply personal, drawing readers into its reflective tone.

2. Stanza Length and Shape

The poem is divided into seven stanzas of varying lengths, with most containing three lines, except for the final single-line stanza: "What do you believe in?" This progression towards brevity reflects the poem's emotional arc, narrowing from memory-filled reflections to the stark finality of belief and mortality.

3. Enjambment

Smith frequently employs enjambment, allowing sentences to flow across line breaks. For example: "There will be a traffic / Of transparent tubes, striding / Their compromise with the body" (lines 19–21). This technique reflects the continuity of thoughts and emotions and the ongoing tension between the physical and emotional realities of caregiving.

4. Imagery-Laden Lines

The poem's shape on the page reflects its balance between visual and narrative elements. Vivid images such as "a dark chamber" (line 25) and "a quilt" (line 10) are juxtaposed with reflective statements, allowing the visual and emotional dimensions of the poem to unfold simultaneously.

5. Open-Ended Conclusion

The poem ends with an isolated question: "What do you believe in?" (line 26). This use of a stand-alone line creates a moment of silence on the page, forcing the reader to pause and reflect, much like the speaker grapples with the uncertainties of belief and mortality.

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Poetic Techniques

1. Metaphor

• "The body is memory" (line 4): The metaphor compares the body to a repository of past experiences, suggesting that our physical being holds the echoes of our personal histories. This reinforces the theme of nostalgia, as the mother's body becomes a symbol of her life story.
• "The body is appetite" (line 13): Here, the body is described as a manifestation of desire and longing, contrasting its physical needs with the emotional and spiritual acceptance of death. Effect: These metaphors deepen the reader's understanding of the complex relationship between the physical body and the emotional self, bridging memory and mortality.

2. Alliteration

• "Traffic / Of transparent tubes, striding" (lines 19–20): The repetition of the "t" sound mirrors the mechanical precision and cold detachment of medical procedures.
• "Though this is the South in summer" (line 10): The sibilance adds a soft, languid quality to the line, emphasising the tension between the oppressive warmth of the setting and the sombre reality of the scene. Effect: Alliteration enhances the poem's auditory quality, drawing attention to specific phrases and reinforcing the mood of each scene.

3. Enjambment

• "You savour the kale, / Trusting this one need. / But the body is cautious, / Does not want more" (lines 13–16): The sentences flow over multiple lines without pause, mimicking the gradual process of reflection and the continuous nature of life's physical and emotional rhythms. Effect: Enjambment creates a seamless progression of thoughts, immersing the reader in the reflective and fluid tone of the poem.

4. Contrast

• "They've made the room dark / And covered you with a quilt, / Though this is the South in summer" (lines 9–11): The oppressive darkness of the room contrasts with the brightness of the external summer heat, reflecting the tension between life outside and the reality of illness within. Effect: This juxtaposition underscores the isolation and fragility of the mother's condition while emphasising the inevitability of mortality.

5. Repetition

• "I know you are listening" (line 22) and "I know you are deciding" (line 25): The repeated phrase "I know" highlights the speaker's attentiveness and emotional connection to her mother's final moments. Effect: Repetition creates a rhythmic resonance, intensifying the emotional weight of these lines and highlighting the intimacy of the speaker's observations.

6. Symbolism

• "A chord of light" (line 25): The "chord of light" symbolises redemption, spirituality, and the possibility of transcendence, connecting the mother's experience to religious and universal themes. Effect: The symbolism elevates the personal moment of death to a broader, more universal exploration of faith and the afterlife.