George Gray Edgar Lee Masters
Spoon River Anthology Book of poems about a town called Spoon River All poems have the a person’s name as a title The book bears out the interactions among the people They are all dead Published in 1915 Spoon River Anthology
George Gray Gray is a plain, uninteresting color Gray connotes age and sadness George Gray
I have studied many times The marble which was chiseled for me -- A boat with a furled sail at rest in a harbor. In truth it pictures not my destination But my life. For love was offered me and I shrank from its disillusionment; Sorrow knocked at my door, but I was afraid; Ambition called to me, but I dreaded the chances. Yet all the while I hungered for meaning in my life. And now I know that we must lift the sail And catch the winds of destiny Wherever they drive the boat. To put meaning in one's life may end in madness, But life without meaning is the torture Of restlessness and vague desire -- It is a boat longing for the sea and yet afraid.
George Gray I have studied many times The marble which was chiseled for me - - A boat with a furled sail at rest in a harbor. In truth it pictures not my destination But my life. For love was offered me and I shrank from its disillusionment; Sorrow knocked at my door, but I was afraid; Ambition called to me, but I dreaded the chances. Yet all the while I hungered for meaning in my life. And now I know that we must lift the sail And catch the winds of destiny Wherever they drive the boat. To put meaning in one's life may end in madness, But life without meaning is the torture Of restlessness and vague desire -- It is a boat longing for the sea and yet afraid. I have looked at my headstone with the picture of a sailboat in the harbor with the sail down and wrapped. This is not my final resting place, but a picture of my life. I was afraid love or (the object of my love) would not be all I imagined so I turned away from it. Pain knocked at my door, but I was not going to open myself to it. I had opportunities for creating work, but I was too full of worries. Yet, I wanted purpose. But now I know I needed to risk letting life take me where it would. Trying and risking can end horribly and in madness, but not having any meaning is torture – like a boat build to sail – yet it never does.
Connotation Extended metaphor comparing life to a sailboat Strong words: shrank, dreaded, hungered; afraid; and torture Deep regret Personification: ambition, sorrow, love Connotation
I have studied many times The marble which was chiseled for me -- A boat with a furled sail at rest in a harbor. In truth it pictures not my destination But my life. For love was offered me and I shrank from its disillusionment; Sorrow knocked at my door, but I was afraid; Ambition called to me, but I dreaded the chances. Yet all the while I hungered for meaning in my life. And now I know that we must lift the sail And catch the winds of destiny Wherever they drive the boat. To put meaning in one's life may end in madness, But life without meaning is the torture Of restlessness and vague desire -- It is a boat longing for the sea and yet afraid. Shift
Title George Gray: Lifeless, dull, meaningless Gray: Neither black nor white; vague, indecisive Title
The poem gives a picture of a life void of life because of fear and timidity. “Dare I eat a peach?” Theme