Q: Describe how the content OBSTRUCTS your understanding of the poem?
Jabberwocky
By: Louis Carroll
The" nonsense"
style form of writing is a clever poetic tool in which readers can really enjoy
however the content can be difficult to grasp and therefore obstruct the audiences
understanding of the poem. That is, although the poem is fun, light- hearted and
entertaining with the use of play-on, nonsense words, Carroll leaves too much
to the imagination, creating a sense of frustration or perhaps confusion as to
what the underlying meaning of the literary work or content means. Based on the
"Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"
story, the fantastical theme and content in which Alice finds herself in a room
with fun house mirrors or "looking glass" reads the strange unfamiliar
word Jabberwocky. In deed the poem has
been deemed difficult to understand by some as its not precise in its meaning
nor does Alice even seem clear. In addition, the poem leaves the reader with much
to interpret on their own yet grasps the imagination of adults as much as well
as children. Next, while the syntax, such as the quatrain versus and use of abab rhythmic schemes as well as iambic
meters allow the poem to flow and be whimsical or playful, it is questionable
as to whether or not it helps the reader understand the content. Furthermore,
this pattern of poetic writing allows the audience to infer to many meanings while
engaging in the nonsense. Lastly, although Carroll cleverly uses many
exclamation marks at the end of stanza's in order to emphasize a point as well
as capture the reader's attention and more importantly attempt to maintain it
throughout the entire poem, its' content or words do not seem to make much
sense nor be logical. Finally, Jabberwocky
is a surreal literary piece and the poet's distortion of words allow readers of
all ages to delve into a fantasy-like world of many unknowns and questions much
like this poem's contents reveals.
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