Hi there, Lim! I thought I'd stop by with a review for you on this intriguing poem. c:
(I started out by covering both of your author's questions, and then I realized that I had actually written quite a lot, so that ended up being the majority of the review; I hope that's alright! If there's anything else you want me to cover outside of those two questions, let me know!)
1. When (as in, what time period in human history) do you think this poem takes place? (You can name more than one, or even if it's just a brief association.)
This is an interesting question! I'm getting kind of conflicting time period vibes, actually - a lot of the images and references definitely feel modern, like "foldable plastic chairs" and "bright pastel hoodies", which to me would indicate this likely takes place post-2000 - but then some of the language comes across as a bit more old fashioned to me. That could just be because the tone feels kind of formal and some of the vocabulary is more "complex" than you typically find in modern dialogue/writing (i.e. sequesters, sallow, a cloying embrace, brine), and that has the effect for me of having a more historical fiction vibe ~ I'm thinking mid 1900s probably.
So to answer your question, logically I'd say the poem is circa 2010, based on the details mentioned, the setting, that sort of thing. But vibe-wise, it feels more like 1930s maybe?
2. What kind of person is Elias?
The first words that pop into my head after reading through the poem are antisocial, withdrawn, recluse, eccentric, outcast, curious, pensive, anxious. Which happen to mostly be words with neutral/negative connotations; I think that's because the poem itself mostly spans those kinds of emotions and images and doesn't have very many totally positive ones, so there's not much opportunity for those kind of traits to be shown as well.
Like in the first stanza, we immediately find Elias in a "darkened hallway", and words like "captive" also show up. And then in the third stanza the poem talks about a pretty dark dream he had relating to gruesome body imagery - which is actually my favourite part of the poem! Those images are so intense and uncomfortable in a good way, especially "Backs of eyelids red he peeled them open".
And then towards the end of the poem we have torment, dark, shadows, and a frightening ocean as well. So overall I'd say the mood is leaning towards a bit more dark/uneasy, especially farther into the poem.
That's getting a bit off-track from the actual question itself though, so I'm going to loop back! I say he's antisocial/withdrawn/reclusive for a couple reasons. Most obviously, the poem starts with him by himself in a dark hallway. He prefers drawing and writing in his notebook to joining people outside. I also get the vibe he's kind of a people-watcher, with the way he looks out the window and observes how people are moving - "migrating cross the lawn" - how they look, dress, and interact, that sort of thing.
In the fourth stanza he seems to be deliberating what would happen if he moved to join the other people - and he ultimately decides against it because, he reasons, they'll ask him why he finally chose to join them and they'll think he's weird. There's also some interesting images of his body failing him (for example tongue turning to taffy, which I interpret as stumbling on his words), so he seems a bit insecure or anxious about trying to talk to the other people.
I would also say pensive/curious, because we see him asking questions about himself and the world throughout the poem - what's he willing to surrender? "how can all this be?" where is "that strange fragility"? (OOH sidenote, I just noticed all but the last stanza end with questions! That's a super neat and subtle pattern of repetition. The fact that it alternates between his internal questions and other peoples' dialogue-questions is an interesting choice I think!) And I also get the vibe just based on the way his thoughts slowly wander over the course of the poem and go on interesting side-tangents of imagery that he would be a person who spends a lot of time in his head, turning things over and musing about life.
Other thoughts
I would say my main critique while reading this poem is that I have trouble figuring out exactly where it's taking place? Which usually wouldn't be too big a deal, but given that the poem is very character-centric and seems to functioning a bit like a story as well as a poem, it feels like a clear setting is missing if that makes sense.
Like my thought process while readings was: he's in a hallway - oh he's at a banister! so...looking over some stairs? in the hallway? - hmm and the stairs overlook a window i guess - okay dream sequence - are we looking out the window again? at trees? or something else entirely? - huh it's nighttime, but i was imagining this whole thing in the daylight whoops. unless a whole day passed over the course of the poem. - oh he left the building! he's on a road! - and...a pier! there's an ocean! a pier connected to the road?
and it just felt very jumpy from scene to scene, like the poem couldn't settle on where exactly Elias was.
But all that said, in terms of the other story-like elements of the poem I thought they were very well executed! Elias had a very distinctive, well-developed character, and while he isn't necessarily the most charismatic one out there he definitely seems real and human. You even kind of have the main elements of a story - intro, development, conflict (internal, mostly, I think), and then a bit of a cliffhanger with the ocean at the end.
The dialogue from other characters is woven into the poem quite smoothly, so it doesn't seem out of place at all! And I like the fact that despite being in third person, we still get to see some of Elias's inner thoughts and feelings.
I hope this review proves useful for you! Let me know if you'd like me to elaborate on anything at all! ^-^
Best,
Seirre
Points: 22098
Reviews: 455
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