Explication: “The Bridge”

Ibrahim Mfosah

Essay #2: Explication

English 1121(Prof. Scalan)

April 13th, 2020

 

Explication: “The Bridge”

 

Hart Crane’s poem “The Bridge,”(350) is a formal poem. It has eleven stanzas. The poem is a visual depiction of American life, using the Brooklyn Bridge as the centerpiece, or center image. The poet is painting a picture of Brooklyn at, or along the east river. Two lines from the fifth stanza really intrigues me. Picking those two lines from the poem, I will explicate it, and break it down as much as I can. The lines are, “Out of some subway scuttle, cell or loft/A bedlamite speeds to thy parapets.” These lines talk about, in a literal context, a lunatic moving around on a subway. 

Looking at the first line, “Out of some subway scuttle, cell or loft,” I can find the meaning of the line by looking at the denotation and connotations of the words. First word is “subway” which in the denotation means an underground railway. The connotation for this word is an underground route for pipes, sewers, etc. The common thing between these two meanings is that both refer to something underground, or below grade. The next word is “scuttle” which the denotation is, a container like an open bucket(usually for carrying coal). The connotation means, a small hatch or opening that provides access to the roof from the interior of a building. In the line the poet uses literary devices of assonance, alliteration, and consonance. An example of assonance in the first line is,  “Out Of sOme sUbway scUttle, cell Or lOft.” 

Subway as commonly known is a means of transportation on a train running underground. A train is a carrier, which in this city carries millions of people to their destinations. So in this case, it could mean any of the New York City sewer systems which carries waste away from the city. Since New York City subway cars do not have scuttles, it is fair to conclude that whichever person came out of that place, was coming out of a sewer hole. As commonly known, not everything that comes out sewers are good. 

On to the second line, “A bedlamite speeds to thy parapets,” two words stand out. “Bedlamite” and “parapets.” Denotation of bedlamite is a lunatic, or a madman. And the denotation for parapet as commonly known is a perimeter wall that extends above the roof. Linking this to the first line, it makes sense that a lunatic would emerge from the sewers, because that would be where he or she dwells.

 

(429 words)

 

2 Comments

  1. Leviza Murtazayeva

    1–Is the title of the poem and the full author’s name provided in the first or second sentence? Be specific if something is missing.

    -Yes, Ibrahim included the title of the poem and the full author’s name in the first sentence as: “Hart Crane’s poem “The Bridge,”(350) is a formal poem.”

    2–Does the student provide the two lines he or she will explicate?

    – Yes, he added this information in this sentence of his draft, “The lines are, “Out of some subway scuttle, cell or loft/A bedlamite speeds to thy parapets.”

    3–What poetry terms does the student examine?

    -The poetry terms that Ibrahim uses to examine his poem is denotation and connotations, as well as assonance, alliteration, and consonance.

    4–Copy and paste your two favorite sentences from the student’s essay.

    -The last sentences “… the denotation for parapet as commonly known is a perimeter wall that extends above the roof.” and “Linking this to the first line, it makes sense that a lunatic would emerge from the sewers because that would be where he or she dwells,” stands out to me the most. After all, it creates a concrete idea of the whole essay and the idea that the poet is trying to propose to a reader. Ibrahim sets up this connotation in a very solid manner.

    5–Copy and paste two confusing sentences.

    -Even though I believe that the draft is very clear and straight to the point, these sentences were confusing for me to understand, “The connotation for this word is an underground route for pipes, sewers, etc. The common thing between these two meanings is that both refer to something underground, or below grade.” I believe that Ibrahim can add more descriptive words to describe the situation in his chosen poem.

    6–Make two concrete suggestions.
    There are no concrete suggestions that can be given for this essay since it is clear and straightforward. But, I recommend you to alternate “and” when you want to begin a sentence, and work on the ending sentence of the paragraph before the last one.
    Good luck with your Essay!

  2. Raysi Perez

    1–Is the title of the poem and the full author’s name provided in the first or second sentence? Be specific if something is missing.
    – yes
    2–Does the student provide the two lines he or she will explicate?
    -yes
    3–What poetry terms does the student examine?
    – Denotation, Connotation, Assonance, Alliteration, and Consonance.
    4–Copy and paste your two favorite sentences from the student’s essay. Then explain why you like them.
    – “An example of assonance in the first line is, “Out Of sOme sUbway scUttle, cell Or lOft.”” I like how you showed your readers how assonance was used in the first sentence.
    – “Linking this to the first line, it makes sense that a lunatic would emerge from the sewers, because that would be where he or she dwells.” I like how you connected both lines and showed your readers how both of these lines make sense when they are put together.
    5–Copy and paste two sentences that are confusing. Then explain what is confusing about them.
    – “In the line the poet uses literary devices of assonance, alliteration, and consonance.” You mentioned that the first line uses assonance, alliteration, and consonance but you only spoke about assonance. add both alliteration and consonance to make your essay better.
    6–Make two concrete suggestions.
    – Make sure you put commas in the correct place. for example “In the line the poet uses literary devices of assonance, alliteration, and consonance.” there should be a comma between the words “line” and “the”.
    -“Linking this to the first line, it makes sense that a lunatic would emerge from the sewers, because that would be where he or she dwells.” there shouldn’t be a comma between the words “sewers” and “because”.

    Overall this essay is good. I do feel like it was rushed and that you could’ve added more information in this essay but other than that I really liked it, it was very clear to read. Good luck with your final draft.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *