The Dance of Love and Grief: Exploring the Emotional Depths of Addition and Subtraction Poems

Poetry, with its evocative language and profound insights, has long been a medium to express the complexities of human emotions. Love and grief, two fundamental experiences that shape our lives, hold a particularly potent presence in the realm of poetry.

In addition and subtraction poems, poets explore the intricate dance between love and grief. Through the addition of words, they amplify the intensity of love, while through subtraction, they illuminate the profound absence left by grief. These poems capture the ebb and flow of our emotional landscape, revealing the ways in which joy and sorrow intertwine.

Adding The Subtractions: Poems Of Love And Grief

by PMF Johnson

4.5 out of 5

Language	:	English
File size	:	727 KB
Text-to-Speech	:	Enabled
Screen Reader	:	Supported
Enhanced typesetting	:	Enabled
Print length	:	70 pages
Lending	:	Enabled
Paperback	:	200 pages
Item Weight	:	14.1 ounces
Dimensions	:	5.1 x 0.4 x 7.5 inches
Reading age	:	Baby and up

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The Power of Addition: Poems of Love

In love poems, poets employ the power of addition to paint vibrant pictures of affection, passion, and longing. Every word, every line, serves as a brushstroke, adding depth and color to the canvas of their emotions.

Pablo Neruda's "Sonnet XVII" is a testament to the transformative power of love. He writes:

I do not love you as if you were salt-rose, or topaz,

or the arrow of carnations the fire shoots,

or the cinnabar in the wings of moths.

I love you as if you were the salt and bread,

the pitcher of cold water, or the flame

that warms one's hands on a winter's day.

Pablo Neruda

With each line, Neruda adds layers of imagery, comparing his love to the most cherished and essential elements of life: salt, bread, water, and fire. Through this accumulation, he conveys the depth and sustenance of his love, portraying it as an indispensable force that nourishes and comforts.

In her poem "Love is a Flame," Emily Dickinson uses the metaphor of a flame to explore the transformative power of love:

Love is a flame—'tis but a spark

At first, its tiny being,

But when we give it all a place,

It shakes the worlds with meaning.

Emily Dickinson

Dickinson's poem highlights the gradual intensification of love. Initially, it is a mere spark, but as it is nurtured and given space to grow, it becomes a force that transforms one's world.

The Profoundness of Subtraction: Poems of Grief

In contrast to love poems, grief poems often rely on the power of subtraction, stripping away words and emotions to expose the raw emptiness left by loss.

In "Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night," Dylan Thomas's poignant plea to his dying father captures the essence of grief:

Do not go gentle into that good night,

Old age should burn and rave at close of day;

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Dylan Thomas

Thomas's poem employs repetition and the insistent use of negatives to convey the speaker's desperate attempt to hold onto life. The repeated command "Do not go gentle" and the emphasis on burning and raging against the dying of the light express the speaker's fierce determination to defy the inevitability of death.

In her poem "Elegy," Anne Sexton explores the profound sense of absence left by grief:

Now that my father's dead, I think of him

as I might an old lover

whom I had wronged

but who forgave me

and whom I loved

after I had wronged him.

Anne Sexton

Sexton's poem reveals the complexities of grief and loss. The speaker's memories of her father are bittersweet, filled with both guilt and love. The subtraction of her father's physical presence leaves a void that is both painful and poignant.

The Interplay of Addition and Subtraction

In addition and subtraction poems, love and grief are not mutually exclusive but rather intertwined. The experience of love often involves moments of grief, while grief itself can contain glimpses of love.

Emily Dickinson's poem "Because I Could Not Stop for Death" explores the liminal space between love and death:

Because I could not stop for Death,

He kindly stopped for me;

The Carriage held but just Ourselves

And Immortality.

Emily Dickinson

Dickinson's poem presents death as a suitor who takes her on a journey towards "Immortality." The image of the carriage carrying only the speaker, Death, and Immortality suggests that even in the face of death, there is a sense of companionship and hope.

Addition and subtraction poems provide a powerful lens through which to explore the complexities of love and grief. By adding and subtracting words, poets capture the nuances of these fundamental human emotions, revealing the ways in which they shape and mold our lives.

These poems remind us that love and grief are inseparable companions, each one enriching and deepening our understanding of the human experience. Through the interplay of addition and subtraction, poetry becomes a vessel for expressing the ineffable, giving voice to the profound emotions that bind us together.

Adding The Subtractions: Poems Of Love And Grief

by PMF Johnson

4.5 out of 5

Language	:	English
File size	:	727 KB
Text-to-Speech	:	Enabled
Screen Reader	:	Supported
Enhanced typesetting	:	Enabled
Print length	:	70 pages
Lending	:	Enabled
Paperback	:	200 pages
Item Weight	:	14.1 ounces
Dimensions	:	5.1 x 0.4 x 7.5 inches
Reading age	:	Baby and up

FREE