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Poet: Ralph Waldo Emerson (Ralph Waldo Emerson Art)
Poem: The Rhodora
Poem of the Day:
Jul 16 2002
Comment 6 of 6, added on November 19th, 2009 at 5:31 PM.
The speaker marvels at the beauty and transformative power of blossoms of the Rhodora which he encounters in a damp, dark: comer of the woods. Its tiny petals alone are able to interact with and even change the character of the other elements within the surrounding environment, as displayed when these "purple petals, fallen in the pool,/ Made the black water with their beauty gay" (lines 5-6). By merely exuding its natural beauty in an effortless appeal to the senses, the flower is able to exert a more visually dominant outstanding force over the more physically predominant water. Such beauty needs no explanation; it exists for the sole purpose of being appreciated as a sensory pleasure. "Beauty is its own excuse for being. ..." (Line 12) and requires no other justification. It need not be tangible and is meant to be enjoyed in and of itself; for, as Emerson notes in "Nature," "Nature satisfies by its loveliness. ...Without any corporeal benefit" (Emerson 192). The simple observation of nature and its elements is pure delight.
crystal from Philippines
Comment 5 of 6, added on April 21st, 2006 at 8:56 PM.
Wow. What I wouldn't give to have a man tell me that! - Leslie
Isn't that the message of the poem? It's great how we didn't expect to find grace from a man, and it's analogous to the poem's message of finding unexpected beauty.
Jason from United States
Comment 4 of 6, added on November 20th, 2005 at 5:03 AM.
ıt is the most meaningfull poem we have ever read.ıt reflects the differences between looking and seeing. Rhodara is the beauty among bad things. how many of us can see this kind of beauty?
eylül, gülriz, gülşah from Turkey
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Comments
The speaker marvels at the beauty and transformative power of blossoms of the Rhodora which he encounters in a damp, dark: comer of the woods. Its tiny petals alone are able to interact with and even change the character of the other elements within the surrounding environment, as displayed when these "purple petals, fallen in the pool,/ Made the black water with their beauty gay" (lines 5-6). By merely exuding its natural beauty in an effortless appeal to the senses, the flower is able to exert a more visually dominant outstanding force over the more physically predominant water. Such beauty needs no explanation; it exists for the sole purpose of being appreciated as a sensory pleasure. "Beauty is its own excuse for being. ..." (Line 12) and requires no other justification. It need not be tangible and is meant to be enjoyed in and of itself; for, as Emerson notes in "Nature," "Nature satisfies by its loveliness. ...Without any corporeal benefit" (Emerson 192). The simple observation of nature and its elements is pure delight.
crystal from Philippines