|
Green
Green is the color of emerging life as in spring green. But this poem
is about the beauty of things that have decayed. The poem ironically
invokes this spring life in order to recall and undercut it with a "not,
exactly." Hence the line participates in the poem's tension between
what is ruined and what endures. Springtime is over for this crab, which
is no longer green but still capable of recalling its beauty. The word
also participates in the poem's evocation of colors.
Bronze
A metal alloy that both connotes strength but perhaps also something
has come up short--bronze is not the gold. The image connect both to
the poems interest in colors and to strength and vulnerability. Patinated
Patinated means developing a patina. A patina is the green film that
copper and copper alloys (such as bronze) develop with age. The word
has ambiguous connations. It is associated with decay or corrosion,
but having a patina can also connote an enrichment by age. See the chain
of associations around what is ruined
(opens in new window - just close window to return to this page) and
what endures.
Giotto Blue
Another of the colors of the poem. The underside of the crab shell is
not just blue, but "Giotto blue." Doty again associates the crab with
works of art. It is also significant hat Giotto, famous for his blues,
is considered one of the first Renaissance painters. The crab has died,
but with an unexpected beauty that not only recalls the work of art
(and becomes the occasion for Doty's poem), but also the work of art
that lives on and is even associated with Renaissance--rebirth. In the
ruin of the crab shell, the artwork lives.
Sky
Rhymes with die--a wonderful use of sound. The poet's shift from "firmament"
to "sky" is also interesting. Sky is more naturalistic in its connotations
than "firmament." The poet uses religious language, but the sense of
redemption from death in the poem remains rooted in the natural world.
The final color of the poem is not a failed green, but a more redemptive
blue sky.
|
