Constantly Risking Absurdity by Lawrence Ferlinghetti — Analysis & Translation

Original Poem

Constantly Risking Absurdity by Lawrence Ferlinghetti Constantly risking absurdity1 and death whenever he performs above the heads of his audience the poet like an acrobat climbs on rime2 to a high wire of his own making and balancing on eyebeams above a sea of faces paces his way to the other side of day performing entrechats3 and sleight-of-foot tricks and other high theatrics and all without mistaking anything for what it may not be For he's the super realist who must perforce4 perceive taut truth before the taking of each stance or step in his supposed advance toward that still higher perch where Beauty stands and waits with gravity to start her death-defying leap And he a little charleychaplin5 man who may or may not catch her fair eternal form spreadeagled in the empty air of existence

Translation (English)

Constantly taking the risk of looking silly and even dying whenever he performs above the heads of his audience The poet, like an acrobat climbs on rhymes to a high wire he makes himself and balances on the audience's eyes above a sea of faces walks his way to the other side of the day performing jumps and foot tricks and other dramatic acts and all without mistaking anything for what it might not be For he is the super realist who must necessarily see the tight truth before taking each step in his supposed progress toward that even higher place where Beauty stands and waits with seriousness to start her daring leap And he a little Charlie Chaplin-like man who may or may not catch her beautiful eternal form spread out in the empty air of being

About the Poet

Lawrence Ferlinghetti (20th Century)

Lawrence Ferlinghetti was an American poet, painter, and social activist. He co-founded City Lights Booksellers & Publishers and was best known for his poetry collection 'A Coney Island of the Mind'. Ferlinghetti's work often explored social and political themes.

Historical Context

Literary Form: Free verse
When Written: 1958
Background: The poem explores the precarious nature of the poet's craft, likening it to the daring and risk involved in acrobatics. It reflects Ferlinghetti's interest in the role of the poet in society and the pursuit of beauty and truth.

Sources: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/52319/constantly-risking-absurdity-15, https://poemanalysis.com/lawrence-ferlinghetti/constantly-risking-absurdity/, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Ferlinghetti

Detailed Explanation

In 'Constantly Risking Absurdity,' Lawrence Ferlinghetti uses the metaphor of an acrobat to describe the poet's role and the inherent risks involved in the pursuit of truth and beauty. The poet, like an acrobat, performs above the audience, balancing precariously on the 'high wire' of his own creation. This high wire represents the delicate balance of crafting poetry, where each word and line must be carefully chosen to convey truth without falling into absurdity. The poem suggests that the poet must be a 'super realist,' perceiving the 'taut truth' before taking each step, much like an acrobat must be aware of each move to avoid falling. Ferlinghetti also introduces the concept of Beauty, personified as a figure waiting to take a 'death-defying leap,' symbolizing the elusive and often dangerous pursuit of artistic beauty. The poet, depicted as a 'little charleychaplin man,' may or may not succeed in capturing this beauty, highlighting the uncertainty and vulnerability inherent in the creative process. The poem's structure, with its enjambment and free verse form, mirrors the acrobat's fluid movements and the poet's continuous struggle to maintain balance.

Themes

Literary Devices

Word Dictionary

Word	Meaning	Translation	Transliteration
absurdity	foolishness	the quality of being ridiculous or unreasonable	ab-sur-di-tee
rime	rhymes	words that sound similar at the end	raim
entrechats	dance jumps	a ballet jump where the dancer crosses their legs in the air	on-truh-shah
perforce	necessarily	by necessity	pur-fors
charleychaplin	like Charlie Chaplin	resembling the famous silent film comedian known for his comedic and sometimes clumsy persona	chaar-lee chap-lin
spreadeagled	spread out	stretched out with arms and legs extended	spred-ee-gld
super realist	extremely realistic	someone who perceives reality with great accuracy	soo-per ree-uh-list
taut	tight	stretched or pulled tight	tawt
gravity	seriousness	the quality of being serious or solemn	grav-i-tee
theatrics	dramatic acts	staged performances or dramatic actions	thee-at-riks
sleight-of-foot	foot tricks	clever or skillful movements of the feet	slait-uhv-foot
eyebeams	gazes	the focus or direction of one's gaze	ai-beemz
perch	high place	a high or elevated position	purch
advance	progress	movement forward	ad-vans
existence	being	the state of being alive or real	ig-zis-tuhns