somewhere i have never travelled, gladly beyond
any experience,your eyes have their silence:
in your most frail gesture are things which enclose me,
or which i cannot touch because they are too near
your slightest look will easily unclose me
though i have closed myself as fingers,
you open always petal by petal myself as Spring opens
(touching skilfully,mysteriously)her first rose
or if your wish be to close me, i and
my life will shut very beautifully ,suddenly,
as when the heart of this flower imagines
the snow carefully everywhere descending;
nothing which we are to perceive in this world equals
the power of your intense fragility:whose texture
compels me with the color of its countries,
rendering death and forever with each breathing
(i do not know what it is about you that closes
and opens;only something in me understands
the voice of your eyes is deeper than all roses)
nobody,not even the rain,has such small hands
what does it mean, nobody exactly knows, how can u cry over a stupid poem. dont pretend it is something that it is not
This is the most beautiful poem I have ever read in my entire life. It says everything about the most deep and meaningful of all human connection, and connection is the most rewarding prospect in life. No other word to describe these words than…beautiful.
poem was my worst but after i read e.e.cummings i changed my mind.This is overwhelming
Just to let you know, there is a beautiful portuguese version of this poem in a song by Zeca Baleiro who is himself quite amazing. The song is called Nalgum Lugar which means roughly Somewhere. The song is how I first found out about the poem. I didn’t know it was an english poem by ee cummings until I ran across a commentary on some Brazilian site.
I too am glad I found this poem. It really is breathtakingly beautiful, but not in any way sappy like so many lesser poems. Even in another language this one will make you cry.
I think no analysis can possibly encapsulate the beauty of this poem. All we can do is bask in the power of its genius, and aspire to make our love just as profound. I, for one, feel blessed at its existence.
this is one of the most beautiful poems i have every read . . . i cannot read it without sobbing from its tenderness and mystery
The beauty of this poem is that ee gives us the image of the mystery of love and how we perceive it. He uses springs first rose as a metaphor of himself and there is something about his lover (the mystery)that opens him, which is the mystery of love and how delicate it truly is.
i never saw and felt such intense emotion ever before until i read about “somewhere i have never travelled, gladly beyond”. i heard this poem being narrated in the song “the first time i loved forever” and it was so beautifully spoken… i was so intrigued with it, i almost cried when i discovered that it was a poem after all! i decided that when i get married, i want it to be included in my testimonial to my future husband. tis is a poem like no other… so unique and exceptional only someone who is truly inlove with someone or maybe inlove with Love can create a poem like this…
this poem has the universal theme that love is the strongest emotion of all..not to mention that it was also the most exceptional gift the Eternal One gave to us. For love is the essence of our existence… That we wouldn’t have existed without love. The entities which escaped from pandora’s box had long been defeated by a love that is so pure and true. He who loves is the mightiest.
cassidy – i totally agree. this si such a great love poem. I put an exerpt from it in my wedding bulletin. when i got married.
louise – but isn’t that the beauty of a great poet, one that stands the test of time? The fact that cummings can express amazing depth and meaning and at the same time make the actual sound of the words and the imagery so beautiful is what separates him from the medicore. Sight, Sound and Compression – the three elements that create wonderous poetry.
cummings if my favorite poet, and perhaps one of the few i actually read. this poem is my favorite. i think it is discussing the way that this man’s lover has the power to open his closed soul. he used to be hesistant to open up to love, but some unexplainable circumstances cause his lover to get deep inside of him. this is represented most strongly, i think, through the second stanza. maybe i’m just partial to interpreting it this way because i can relate. comment and let me know what you think.
I don’t think the last line should be read so literally,it is as much about the sound of the words,as it is to their possible meaning.It’s such an exquisite and enduring image isn’t it?
I think that final line is designed to express the overwhelmingly beautiful and moving feeling that the narrator experiences when touched by his/her lover. the physical feeling is so soft/gentle/deep/penetrating/whatever, that it is comparable to a raindrop landing on your skin or perhaps a raindrop landing on a petal (hence the folding and unfolding) although it is near impossible for human touch to recreate the delicacy of a raindrop, their love (or the lover?) is so pure and true that it has the power to imitate the beauty and wonder of nature. with the same impact that nature seems to exert upon the narrator. which is quite amazing, in his/her opinion.
does that enlighten? do you agree with me?
Can anyone explain to me what the last line
.. “nobody, not even the rain, has such small hands,” is supposed to mean?..i don’t understand that.
I can never seem to get enough of this poem. I’ve read it more times than I can count.
Everytime I read it I feel like I’m in on a secret…..like I was, for a moment, given the privilege of peeking into someone’s soul
I see it as a man describing with great delight, the intense power his lover has over him.
I am writing a paper about this particular poem and how the writer is right about what costitutes true love. Any information e-mailed to me will help!
The first time that I was able to read it is when I choose it as my report in our English class.For me it is about a person who is being in-love and satisfied w/ him or her and not having to search any one.
haha hello the Glass Menagerie is a play written by Tenessee Williams. It’s a fascinating play, go read it!
I have read this inumerable times and had almost sent it to the love of my life. Nothing I have ever written compares to this nor do I expect anything will ever compare to it. To tare it apart line by line or word by word would be a travesty like cutting up a Renoir to understand its composition.
I am reading this poem at a friend’s wedding. I think the meaning can be about finding someone moving and being satisfied with him or her and not having to search any longer.
I found this Poem while searching for one as a project for class. Once I found it I thought it was wonderfully contructed! The commas meaing small pauses, and giving it that extra UMPH! This Poem should be taught to every High School in the world!!