Poetry Analysis
An analysis of two works from renowned poet, Simon Ortiz. These works are The Promises We Live By and Dawn Prayer for All. Discover their context, stylistic and language features, and critical perspectives. To get started, scroll down.
Simon Ortiz
Poet
A leading figure in the Native American literary renaissance that emerged in the 1960s, Simon J. Ortiz has published many books of poetry, short fiction, and non-fiction. In general, his writing is concerned with modern man’s alienation from others, from himself, and from his environment—urging humanity to reconnect the wisdom of ancestral spirits and with Mother Earth.
– Poetry Foundation
Poem Contexts
These poems were both written in 1994 as part of a collection of poems and essays by Simon Ortiz, titled ‘After and Before the Lightning’. He wrote this collection while living in South Dakota on the Rosebud Lakota Sioux Reservation, which is home of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. During his time living there, he was particularly challenged by the harsh winter (bitter cold and snow of prairies) and political reality for its Native community and culture 1.
The Promise We Live By
On the West Coast, days of rainstorm wrestle
the Coast Range, their wet fury driven landward.
We never quite known what the sky promises,
and there is certain assurance in that fate.
It is for that we wait. We’ve already weathered
more than promises. They’ve passed us by.
So I’m not sure this morning when I step outside,
and suddenly it’s not winter anymore but some
warm mask that molds the contours of my face
with unbidden warmth. It’s almost unnatural
but I hope not, having already found reliable
the promise of loss. My expectation is unfulfilled.
Somewhere within the universe of the prairie hills
is a climate that is yet unnoticed, and from it
is welling a warm rupture of another sure season.
Believe it is not unusual, I urge myself
whose myths are always changing in the light.
So it’s this we arrive into daily, always
another season, warm or frigid, and it’s we
who wage weather within our furious spirits.
Tomorrow’s dawn is a promise that will fulfill.
Never mind if the sky does not quite agree.
Personification
Used to emphasise relatability and begin to form a connection between nature and our own experiences or feelings, as well as providing foundations for a greater analogy between the ‘weather’ and our experiences. ‘Wrestle’ and ‘fury’ give rainy weather a negative tone, and ‘promises’ emphasises hope.
Imagery
Used to draw readers into the poem and to help readers form a mental picture of the ideas present in the text. Particularly prevalent in the first two lines of this section, which is evidence of its intentionality to engage readers from the start.
Overall Interpretation
There is a natural assurance in what we don’t know.
Interpretation
It is for [fate] that we wait. We’ve already dealt and coped with more than what we know (promises) – those things we didn’t know have passed without harming us.
Contrast
The switch from ‘winter’ to ‘warmth’ emphasises the changeability of our circumstances, and the ‘unsurety’ of each day that passes.
Imagery
The language in the last two lines of this section uses such descriptive language that a reader can’t help but imagine and dwell in the beauty and warmth of the moment described.
Analogy
The ‘winter’ and ‘warmth’ are analogous to how we feel – our emotions and our experiences.
Juxtaposition
The latter half of the last line juxtaposes the natural imagery presented in the sentence just beforehand. Cont. in next section.
Caesura
This technique in the last line emphasises the abruptness of his statement (‘the promise of loss’), and opens literary space for the following abrupt sentence.
Interpretation
I hope that it is not unnatural to experience such changeability in life (or perhaps to be ok with such changeability), as I have found loss to be consistent in my life (perhaps he has faced a long period of sustained pain and loss). My expectation [of loss?] is no longer satisfied.
Metaphorical Imagery
Imagery, used in conjunction with metaphor, describes that somewhere, somehow, new circumstances and experiences are arising (unknown climate causing another season). ‘Warm rupture’ is perhaps indicative of a positive or good season to come, and ‘sure’ as an adjective is used to emphasise a sense of security amongst the uncertain context of the statement.
Double Entendre
‘Season’ may be used to refer to both a literal season, as well as a figurative state of life.
Reflective Writing
Ortiz reflects on his own ideas and perspectives, which are ‘always changing in the light’, and reassures himself that this changeability is not unusual. This reflection serves to form a personal connection with his audience, opening a space for personal application amongst readers.
Metaphor
At the culmination of his entire poem, Ortiz uses metaphor to both tie together his natural and reflective perspectives, and starkly contrast the situations we may find ourselves in (‘warm’ or ‘frigid’). He also makes the bold statement that it is we who ‘wage weather’ [construct our own futures and circumstances] within our ‘furious spirits’ [selves].
Symbolism
‘Tomorrow’s dawn’ is symbolic of our futures, and the ‘sky’ is symbolic of our current circumstances. Use of symbolism is both poetic as a literary feature, and also draws on current associations we may pertain to (dawn -> hope, disagreeable sky -> unfortunate, downcast).
Literal Meaning
We never know what to expect of the weather. When Ortiz steps out of his home and it’s no longer wintery, but warm, it seems almost unnatural to him. He hopes not, however, as he’s found the winter to be a consistent cause of loss (perhaps loss of life?). Somewhere in the prairie hills (of South Dakota?) there’s another climate which is yet to be noticed, and within it another season is forming. Daily there is always a new season, either warm or frigid (though not necessarily in-between), and our spirits have power over the weather.
Figurative Meaning
Our circumstances are ever changing. We can never expect what is yet to come, whether it be positive or harmful. But this uncertainty has a unique kind of assurance. We live in hope that somewhere, somehow, sometime, our circumstances will change for the better. That our futures are sure, even though they are uncertain. And regardless of what our futures might hold, we will persist through the ‘warm [and] frigid’, with the hope that tomorrow will fulfil our needs, even if there is no good reason to hope in our current circumstances.
Biographical Perspective
Simon Ortiz faced many different experiences in his life. He grew up speaking his native Acoma Indian language, however was punished in school for doing so. He later went to university and joined the army where he was heavily discriminated, and worked as part of the uranium mining industry. He later wrote much in protest of the mining industry’s destruction of the land.
This poem, viewed as a self reflection on Simon’s own life, is almost paradoxical in nature. He reflects that there is a ‘certain assurance’ in ‘never quite [knowing] what [our life] promises’. That even though every day may hold a different ‘season’, ‘tomorrow’s dawn is a promise that will fulfil’. He also portrays a sense of self-persistence, that even though his cirumstances may be ever changing, it is ‘[he] who wages weather within [his] furious spirits’, and he will make it through regardless of how challenging those circumstances may be.
Environmental Perspective
This poem was, perhaps, intended to be read as a literal reflection of the environmental landscape at the time and place of his writing.
As mentioned, the poem was written in South Dakota during a time of intense winter, cold and snow, where even survival was at risk. The first two lines of the poem frame this idea of environmental harshness, which is juxtaposed by the line that even though the sky is unsure, there is certain assurance to be found in that uncertainty. Simon also reflects that some days when he steps outside the harsh winter has been replaced by a ‘warm mask’, providing deep warmth. He emphasises that the weather and environment is always changing, whether it be warm or frigid, and that today’s weather is not a sure indication of what may be expected tomorrow.
Dawn Prayer for All
Right before dawn, in the blue light of it,
I look for the horses but they aren’t there.
Only the winter trees, thick along the creek.
Everything is still, not even birds move. Only
a pain in my chest under my right breast.
Pulling muscle, something engorged, I’m afraid
of its motion, the turn I awaken to daily.
The horses must be beyond the creek, feeding
in the frozen meadow. I’ll not wait for them.
My knowledge is only human, only my eyes see
what is to be seen, and beyond that is more
yet it is not within my ken. I can’t see death
yet know its presence well, even its posture
prior to it. Pain is not death, I allow that.
For that I am grateful to my mind, the memory
ancient, not lonely or unreasonable. Pray then
for the blue light of morning that draws me
toward the day. Pray then for the horses,
for the presence of all things, for the pain.
Imagery
This is perhaps the most prominent stylistic technique throughout this poem, and is used largely to engage the audience and convey Ortiz’s meaning and purpose, which is reflecting on the beauty of nature, spirituality and life. Here, it is particularly used to emphasize his feelings of connection to nature at the time of writing.
Hyperbole
The first sentence is largely hyperbolic, however the language used is common enough in day-to-day life that we may not even realise it. His diction adds greatly to the overall image the poem is painting. An image of stillness, peace and connection to nature.
Juxtaposition
Contrasting the overall picture this poem has been painting thus far, Ortiz’s reflection on pain in his body is emphatic of our human mortality and the inevitable presence of pain even in the moments most at peace (literary contrast emphasises this contrast). The last sentence here seems to indicate a fear for his own health, and even of his own survival.
Volta
This line gives an abrupt change in thought, turning from reflection of pain back to his present moment and the whereabouts of the horses. This change may serve to emphasise the fragility and changeability of our human nature, and particularly our thoughts.
Caesura
In the final line of this section, caesura again emphasises the changeability of our human thoughts – one moment reflecting on the whereabouts of the horses, and the next concluding their location and determining not to wait for them. This abrupt statement prepares the audience for the shift in perspective from a very real, physical reflection to more personal, deep reflections in the next section.
Personification
Here, death is personified as having a ‘presence’ and ‘posture’. This section powerfully transitions from notions of physical sight to those of deep knowledge and self-awareness. Personification almost allows the audience to empathise with Ortiz, where he speaks of acquaintance with death, we can relate through our own interpersonal connections.
Repetition, Cumulation, Rule of Three
These three cumulative techniques are each used powerfully in this concluding section to compile all that has been spoken of in this poem, from Ortiz’s physical observations to his soulfelt reflections. His diction is also used to emphasise the unity of all of these reflections under one spiritual banner (‘Pray then for…’).
Literal Meaning
In the blue light of dawn, Ortiz looks for the horses but can’t find them. Nothing is moving, and he feels pain under his right breast – something engorged. He has only human knowledge, but is familiar with the feeling of death, and death’s posture prior to it. Ortiz is grateful to his mind for an ancient memory. We should pray for the blue light of morning, the horses, the existence of everything and for the pain in his chest.
Figurative Meaning
Our knowledge is limited by our human nature. There is more to be seen, however, than what our eyes alone can see. Our eyes can see the blue light of dawn. Though he cannot see the horses, he knows their whereabouts intuitively. Symptoms of pain may be seen, however pain itself may only be experienced, and death (in a spiritual sense) may not be seen, however its presence may be known well.
Phenomenological Perspective
Under this perspective, this poem appeals to the subjective nature of our experiences. It speaks of the individual experiences of Ortiz, portraying his thoughts, feelings and emotions through a range of observations. The blue light of dawn is representative of the things he observes physically using his eyes. The horses’ location represents intuition and logic in their supposed whereabouts. ‘Pain under [his] right breast’ perhaps serves as an indication of his self-awareness, feelings and emotions, and knowledge of ‘death’ and ‘its presence’ represents a greater spiritual awareness. By alternating between these different observations, Ortiz further represents the fragility and changeability of our human thoughts and consciousness.
Spiritual Perspective
In Native American tradition, dawn is representative of life, warmth and light. Furthermore, horses symbolise healing, strength, and a deep emotional intelligence. Under these associations, the poem takes on a deeper spiritual meaning. That the horses are not in sight, yet known to be nearby, may be a reflection on Ortiz’s physical wellbeing, and that it may be at risk. This is further emphasised by his reflections on pain he is experiencing – considering also that it is a chest pain. The spiritual meaning of this poem is especially emphasised in the concluding lines, where Ortiz says to ‘pray then for the blue light of morning that draws me towards the day’, perhaps suggesting that he is wishing to get or feel better (dawn -> life, warmth and light). Prayer ‘for the horses’ could be symbolistic of prayer for healing and strength. Finally, prayer for all things, and for pain, centers back to our mortality and physical existence.