“For a time I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.” – Wendell Berry, “The Peace of Wild Things” (1968)
Each time I read these words, I am moved as deeply as I was the first time I heard them (which was in a choral arrangement by Joan Szymco). These words remind me of the beauty that is found in the natural world, and how we can find solace by “coming into the peace of wild things.” This idea has been found in literature for hundreds of years (Frankenstine, Thoreau, Heart of Darkness, etc..), and The Bacchae and Cane are no exceptions.
While rewriting the first essay for our class, I took many much-needed breaks by reading some of Berry’s poetry. He wrote my favorite poem (quoted above), and so I’ve made an effort to expose myself to more of his writing. While reading his book of collected poems, I stumbled upon nothing other than pine-tree imagery. My first reaction was mere incredulity; I couldn’t believe I had actually read it, and was sure I was just spending so much time in the worlds of Euripides and Toomer that I was simply imagining it. I was of course not imagining it, and when I finally accepted what I had read, I began to view it in a much more receptive mindset.
I re-read the poem (“The Handing Down”) and began to appreciate his use of pine-tree imagery in his poetry. It made me think of all of the intertextual connections we have been exposed to, not only in this class, but in all of our English classes we have taken. I reflected not only on the connections between Cane and The Bacchae, but the connections found between Berry’s poem I cited above, Heart of Darkness, and Watchmen. It becomes more and more exciting each time I find these connections between different texts, because it’s exciting to discover where different authors and writers have found inspiration, and where they are carrying a conversation from. I think it’s important to analyze these connections because it allows us as readers to deepen our relationship with any given text, which further enables us to truly appreciate and take away from something an author has written.
If anyone is curious to hear the poem as a choral arrangement (it’s one of my favorites), I’ve included a link: