The Catholic Times in its 'Vision' column has an article on the place of lyrical poetry in our world today.
The priest writer was introduced to a book by a close friend which left a lasting impression on him. This is the novel “Snow” by French writer Maxence Fermine. This novel was concise, like reading a prose poem, but it left him with a wealth of thoughts.
Set
in Hokkaido, northern Japan, this novel tells the journey of the main
character, Yuko, who wants to become a poet against his father's wishes.
The contemplation of nature, which is as beautiful as human
relationships, is as thrilling as it is human. For Yuko, who lives in a snowy country, snow is special. His poems, which flow "as if laid down on silk paper", are solely about snow. Snow is the main subject of his poetry, that comes from the hand of God.
The conversation between Yuko and his father, who is opposed to his becoming a poet, is interesting.
The father says. "Snow is white so it lacks existence. Snow preserves nature by freezing it. It dares to idolize the world. Snow keeps changing. So I can’t trust it. Snow is slippery. Do you like slipping on snow? Snow turns to water. That’s why floods occur during the thaw season."
Yuko gives response: "Snow is white. That's why it's poetry. It’s pure poetry, snow preserves nature by freezing it. It is the most delicate picture of winter, it keeps changing. So snow is a form of calligraphy. There are thousand ways to write the word ‘snow’. The surface of snow is slippery. So snow is made for fdancing. Everyone on the snow will think you’re an acrobat. Snow turns into water. Snow makes music. When spring comes, snow turns rivers and rapids into a symphony of white notes."
For the father snow makes for a harsh winter and for the son lyrical poetry. If
the pursuit of unity between the self and the world is called
‘lyrical,’ for the father snow is merely a display of emotion upset
with his son, and for the son, they become a projection of who he is.
The
columnist forgot the novel was by a Frenchman who was born at the foot
of the Alps, this novel also seems to be an expression of his lyricism.
Clearly, there are various reasons that the subject matter of nature evokes strong feelings. He thinks of literature featuring not only snow, but also rain, sea, wind, mountains, sky, and the earth. Someone’s
memories of what they enjoyed in what we call ‘nature’, untouched by
human intentional touch, sometimes become literature sharing its hidden
meaning with the world. But will this romance with nature continue in the future?
On August 24th, Japan began releasing wastewater from the crippled Fukushima nuclear
plant into the Pacific Ocean, prompting a furious outcry from many."Children
born in Pacific countries after today will not remember the Pacific
Ocean before it was mixed with nuclear wastewater." It is no longer the sea it used to be. It is different from the sea in which the whale “Moby Dick” swims in Melville’s novel, at least for some.
The reality is that attitudes toward nature are quite different.
Snow can now remind us of snow drifts, the rain and wind remind us of
storms, the sky of fine dust, and the mountains and land remind us of
development and real estate.
Philosopher Adorno said:"It is barbarism to write lyric poetry after Auschwitz." How deceitful must it have seemed to write lyric poetry after so many human atrocities? So, can we continue to write lyric poetry in the face of the natural crisis caused by human hands?
