Maggie and Milly and Molly and May
By: E.E. Cummings
E.E. Cummings
E.E. Cummings was an American poet, painter, essayist, author, and play writer. He attending Harvard and later went to WWI. He was known as one of the finest writers of romantic and religious poems. In 1922 he published his first book about when he was held captive and what it was like it was called The Enormous Room. Cummings first poem came out in 1923 it was called "Tulips and Chimneys" and was very hard to read. In 1925 he wrote another collection "XLI". At the end of 1925 Dial magazine chose Cumming for there annual award of $2,000. It was the in these 5 years that Cumming gained his reputation as a good writer who wrote with hard language to understand.
"I thank you God for this most amazing day, for the leaping greenly spirits of trees, and for the blue dream of sky and for everything that is natural, which is infinite, which is yes"
maggie and milly and molly and may - a poem by e.e. cummings. performed by mark coleman
Analysis
Stanza: There is 6 stanzas with 2 lines each
End- stopped line: uses semicolon and periods at the end of some lines
narrative view-point: 3 person
internal rhyme: two words rhyme within a single line of poem. For ex. may and day
Stanza 1
maggie and milly and molly and may went down to the beach (to play one day)
- Four girls went down to the beach to have fun and play.
Stanza 2
and Maggie discovered a shell that sang so sweetly she couldn't remember her troubles, and
- One of the girls finds a shell and it makes her forget everything she is worrying about
Stanza 3
Milly befriended a stranded star whose rays five languid fingers were;
- Another girl finds a star fish and makes friends with it
Stanza 4
and Molly was chased by a horrible thing which raced sideways while blowing bubbles: and
- Molly was chased by a crab and realized her fears
Stanza 5
May came home with a smooth round stone as small as a world and as large as alone.
May comes home with a stone, Cumming wrote this part to show a dreamer.
Stanza 6
For whatever we lose (like a you or a me) it's always ourselves we find in the sea
To have fun and that if you don't know who you are yet one day you will find out what you are suppose to do.
"It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are"
Personal Response
I think this poem is about letting go and just having fun. It kinda relates on going to vacation and just having fun. Also, it talks about nature and the beauty of it. There is a little art of music in it. This is when one of the girls discovered the shell that sang.