[Marion Shore]

Columbus Circle


The traffic heaves so heavy round the park
that I expect Columbus' statue
to catch his command from some passing spark
and lead us on again. I wait for you,
for the quick claim of your discovery
that I am a new world, not India,
but a western hemisphere in a sea
of taxis all hailing America.
While I search the rushing geography
for some wave of hand or sail of your dress,
I coast along the sidewalk's slow progress
of tide and trade and guess how you'll find me:
I cannot chart what change of course you'll make
if the subway crew shouts, "It's a mistake!"



In this poem, the narrator, nervously waiting at Columbus Circle, and inspired by the statue of Columbus, imagines his date making a perilous journey toward a new world, where, he fears, she may never arrive. The nautical imagery cleverly develops the theme – "the traffic heaves," "the sea of taxis," "the wave of hand," "the sail of your dress"… All building up to the delightful and surprising couplet, in which the subway crew is shouting, "it's a mistake!"

Technically, there are some problems. While a certain amount of bumps in meter are appropriate – after all, this is a rough voyage – there are places where it is just too jarring. e.g., L2, L10, L11, among others, are metrically problematic.

I have other issues: in L3 – "spark" – what is that doing there? Does it have some nautical meaning I don't know?
And then--and I don't know if this is a problem--but at the beginning, the statue of Columbus is described as the commander; but afterwards it is the beloved who is "charting the course". But, it doesn't really bother me that much.

Despite the technical issues, I find the poem charming, whimsical and touching. Although I'll never know, I find myself hoping the journey was successful.

[Roger Slater]

DG points out some of the "metrically problematic" spots, though is perhaps a bit more forgiving than I am about it. The first line is straightforward IP, so much so that we have the word "round" because the poet didn't dare sneak in an extra syllable to make it "around" as normal speech would dictate. But then the next two lines are tet. The fourth line is pent again, unless you want to force a "statue/FOR you" rhyme, but if you don't there's really no rhyme at all. So meter and rhyme quickly go by the wayside. The rest of the poem doesn't really commit to any sort of meter either, and to me it's not a pleasant het-met but a bit ungainly.

Leaving aside rhyme and meter, though, I'm not sure I'm getting the significance of what's happening. The speaker is waiting for someone to arrive and meet him/her in Columbus Circle. Inspired by the statue of Columbus, the speaker tries to describe his/her wait in nautical terms. This is fine, I suppose, but I kept waiting for the nautical metaphor to shed some light on the relationship or the speaker's feelings about the person he/she is awaiting, but for me that never happened. What is it about Columbus, discovery, the sea, etc., that is like the situation that the speaker is in or the relationship of the two people?

The ending, too, didn't satisfy me. To be literal about it, the speaker is above ground for the first twelve lines contemplating the statue and taxis while walking along the sidewalk, so how come the last line is about the "subway crew"? When did we go underground to the subway? (Not to mention the fact that subways in NY don't really have a "crew" -- though sometimes you can glimpse an engineer or conductor in the front cabin). Beyond the literal, the last line, abruptly tet, confuses me a bit. What is the mistake? The relationship, perhaps? But why would the subway crew know this and shout it out?

[Simon Hunt]

It occasionally happens that while I am composing my thoughts on a poem here, another member posts a critique that says everything I meant to say--but better and with additional insights.

In other words, what Roger said.

[Maryann Corbett]

Might these lines be better analyzed as ten syllables, rather than IP? I can work out how they would be read with five beats a line, but it does take some work. I have in mind the name of a fairly well-known sonnet writer who works this way (she said, keeping mum).

If I'm not mistaken, Roger has lived close to this locale, so if he's confused visually and situationally, then those who don't know the place can well believe it really is confusing. But I did visit there recently, and one thing this poem conveys well is the sight and feel of the rush of traffic, and the flow of taxis, and the press of people.

[Anothai Kaewkaen]

I have a different reading of the poem. The speaker in this poem does not have a date--a person with whom he's established a time and place to meet, nor is he waiting for her at the circle. He "coasts[s] along the sidewalk's slow progress" wondering how "you," a person he has yet to meet, a nebulous fantasy lover we all long for at some point in our lives, will find him. [You would not walk around if you designated a time and place to meet someone, nor would you have to guess how he or she will find you.]

I like how N posits himself, then, as a "new world" waiting to be discovered by this person, and that the analogy is inspired by the statue of Columbus. I agree with the DG that this is charming. What falls flat to me is that first quatrain leading into the poem:

"The traffic heaves so heavy round the park
that I expect Columbus' statue
to catch his command from some passing spark
and lead us on again..."

While "catch a command" is unidiomatic, it's clear that the speaker imagines the statue to lead them (the people of the city?) on a voyage to somewhere different from the gridlock of the present scene. But how does this relate to the simile that follows--that the N is a new world waiting to be discovered by someone special? Also, "lead" + "on" is a construction that means "to deceive," "to hoodwink." "Lead us onward" more clearly indicates "guiding forward."

Finally, I echo what has been said about the final couplet: what does it mean if the subway crew shouts "It's a mistake!"?

[R.A. Briggs]

At this point in history, I think that putting Christopher Columbus into a poem without even acknowledging the issue of colonialism counts as evading a topic. I know it's meant to be a whimsical and cheery poem, but why introduce the figure of Columbus, leading "us", if you don't want to open that can of worms?

There's something nicely bustly about the pace of the poem, but I can't get past that initial skepticism about Columbus.

[Add: I do think it's interesting that the N here expresses no fear of being "colonized", devoured, or otherwise exploited by the "you". That would've been an interesting place to take the poem. Also, brave N; I am envious.]

[Janice D. Soderling]

I think this might be London and not New York. The Columbus statue in Belgravia Square is in a park and might be thought to be waving.



http://www.londonremembers.com/memor...olumbus-statue

"subway" has different meanings in the UK and the UK. I remember how confused I was my first time in London.

1. British A tunnel under a road for use by pedestrians.

2. North American An underground railway:
[AS MODIFIER]: a subway station

It might be that the "subway crew" is cleaning or repairing or removing graffiti. I don't remember if there is an underground passage in this vicinity, but since it is heavily trafficked, I am guessing that there is.

[Ed Granger]

Originally Posted by Janice D. Soderling

I think this might be London and not New York. The Columbus statue in Belgravia Square is in a park and might be thought to be waving.



http://www.londonremembers.com/memor...olumbus-statue

1. British A tunnel under a road for use by pedestrians.

2. North American An underground railway:
[AS MODIFIER]: a subway station

Columbus Circle is in NYC, at one corner of Central Park (the southwest). It is a literal (traffic) circle, with a statue of Columbus on a pillar in its center.

[Janice D. Soderling]

Yes, I know.

But the poem says:

The traffic heaves so heavy round the park
that I expect Columbus' statue

Take a look at the Columbus statue in New York. It doesn't seem to be directing traffic.

[Michael Cantor]

Sorry, but I'm really surprised to see something this klutzy and confusing in a Sonnet Bake-off. Starting with the infelicitous "The traffic heaves so heavy round the park,", the poem lumbers gracelessly after rhyme and meter in almost every forced line. Add to this the fact that I'm a native New Yorker, and I have no idea what's happening. I'm afraid that this one doesn't work for me in practically every way.