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In 1907, Oklahoma became the 46th state to be added to the United States. Before 1907, Oklahoma had been a territory that attracted thousands of settlers from the east who hoped for free, easily farmable land. Oklahoma appears in two of Stevens' poems, liking functioning as a distinct setting that allows Stevens to experiment with the importance of place in poetry. In his "Adagia," Stevens famously notes, "Life is an affair of people not of places. But for me life is an affair of places and that is the trouble" [1]. For Stevens, Oklahoma is one such place.
"Earthy Anecdote"[]
This poem describes the dance-like interactions of a firecat and a herd of bucks. The setting, Oklahoma, is essential to the reader's visualization of this poem, for it conjures images of flat, grassy plains upon which the bucks and firecat can run. "Earthy Anecdote" opens with the following two stanzas:
Every time the bucks went clattering Over Oklahoma A firecat bristled in the way. Wherever they went, They went clattering, Until they swerved In a swift, circular line To the right, Because of the firecat. [2]
"Life is Motion"
In "Life is Motion," a couple dressed in calico, the typical fabric for Oklahoma settlers, dances around a tree stump in the sheer exultation of being one with nature and each other. Like "Earthy Anecdote," the setting for this poem becomes essential for understanding its meaning:
In Oklahoma, Bonnie and Josie, Dressed in calico, Danced around a stump. They cried, “Ohoyaho, Ohoo” … Celebrating the marriage Of flesh and air. [3]
References[]
1. http://arspythia.wordpress.com/2013/04/05/wallace-stevens-from-adagia-part-one/