Form of the poem affects the way we encounter its meaning

A particular set of punctuations along with the everyday language is reorganised in the poem “Broken Back Blues” by the American poet Robert Creeley. This essay identifies a few instances of punctuation and language usage and highlights some poetry techniques by which this poem is formed to obtain its particular expressive force.

The poet used abbreviation and punctuation in a creative way to convey this poem more vividly. The very beginning verse starts with a short exclamation which brings the reader’s attention to the poem “O yr facing reality now-” (Creeley 48). This verse ended with a dash. Although a dash normally marks a pause or a break in sense or represent omitted letters or words, here, it perpetuates a sort of continuation of “reality” because the second verse explains further “& yr in the same beat groove-” (Creeley 48).  When it comes to the artistic usage of punctuation, a dash may function in quite an opposite way which could be an escape for its own sake with no destination.

The function of dots is also used in an unconventional way. On the one hand, ellipses and dots are used to show something not being said, on the other hand, and in this poem, it is a kind of gesture to convey those hidden things. “I got them things in my head-” is placed exactly after the three double-spaced dots from the previous verse “we can play all nite long . . .” (Creeley 48).  The function of these dots is more than just punctuation because they are visually on the page and their existence is felt the same way as they are read and heard. The reader can imagine and may try to reveal the un-tolled parts, but the dots are lined to direct one in a subtle way towards the second verse.

Although a bracket is normally used to keep explaining something more, in this poem brackets can be articulated further as they may show that there is more than one voice in this poem.

There is powerful imagery which illustrates some particular scene in this poem. The combination of the words such as “bent […] middle” followed by “face on the floor” gives a perfect depiction of someone with the broken back.

The poet benefits from using rhythm to turn the verses easily sing-able. Putting the artificially extended-syllable helps the poem to sound more attractive. The reader can easily enjoy reading the word “moo-oove” while it is paired with “groove”. Furthermore, the repetition of the undefined word of “heh” provides sufficient musical potential for this poem. However, it is not clear whether it is laughter or weeping, one can easily understand that in a melancholic blues poem, such as it is, sometimes human may sound relatively loud “(heh heh heh, heh heh heh . . .)” (Creeley 49).

In conclusion, the poet has used a variety of language properties such as abbreviation, punctuating and poetry techniques to form the poem. These creative arrangements have resulted in the poem to achieve an expressive form and affect the meaning. 

Reference:

Creeley, Robert. “Broken Back Blues”. The Jazz Poetry Anthology. 1975: 48-49. Print.