Enjambment+--+Patrick

Reapers by Jean Toomer – The Impact of Line breaks The fair enjambment of this piece is representative of the dynamism within this piece of poetry. This literary device gives this piece of poetry the color that no prose can emulate. The syntactical freedom, in which this poem enjoys, allows Toomer to describe the scene in few words, but with a level of clarity that is rare in a prose of similar length. The significant impact of line breaks on the theme is clearly demonstrated in the ambiguity of the piece. The imagery is simple yet strong, however it is ambiguous in that there are two (and possibly many more) ways to interpret it. In lines 1-5 alone, the enjambed poem puts forth a harvest-related scene, the sharpened scythes reaping in the annual produce, highlighting the fecundity and the prospect of healthy preservation of life. However, in lines 6-8, this quickly transforms into a rather sickly scene of a field rat cut up on the blades of the mower, clearly a death-related scene. This contrast of life and death is stark, but if one were forgo the enjambment and realign the poem into sentences, the scenes do not seem to contrast. Rather they appear side by side, two events that occurred together unintentionally.

Regarding the tone, both the line breaks and the enjambment do not seem to significantly alter the tonal scale in this piece. Throughout the entire piece, the descriptive tone is of a serious and almost formal nature. The narrator’s tone is quite rational – a clear-cut recount and observation of what he saw and what he did.

And regarding the rhythmic nature of the poem, the enjambment allows emphasis and stress on certain words, which allows the imagery to be perceived in the way previously mentioned in this essay. The basic rhythm of this poem does not consist of a meter of any kind but it does come through with simply reading out the poem. The rhyme scheme is comprised of four different end rhyme couplings, which also adds onto the rhythm of this poem.

Lauren: I like how you explained that enjambments make the lines continue to flow. I personally wrote about the other poem but now that I reflect back, the lines were indeed contrasting. But due to enjambments, I didn't even notice that. I also agree to your point that enjambment helps emphasis on few words and imagery. Enjambment has the power to slow or speed up the flow and the power of changing the meaning/theme of the poem to the readers. : )