Hello and welcome to the Discourse. Wallace Stevens was known for his simple and succinct yet deep thought-provoking poetry. The Emperor of Ice-Cream is one such poem that was first published in 1922 and was added to Stevens’ poetry collection Harmonium in 1923. The title of the poem may appear ambiguous and so the poem can be interpreted in different manners. “Emperor of Ice-Cream” is a sort of oxymoron. Emperors are symbols of might and power. However, ice cream melts too soon. The ice cream represents the taste and thus symbolizes Desire. The line “The only emperor is the emperor of ice cream” thus suggests the strength of desires. On the other hand, Ice-cream symbolizes cold and represents Death too and the poem is concerned with the universality of death. Ice Cream is ephemeral, just like life, and thus The Emperor can be interpreted as Life.
Structure of The Emperor of Ice-Cream :
The poem consists of 16 lines composed in two stanzas of eight lines each. Lines are written in loose iambic meter mostly 4 or 5 beats per line. The poem lacks any rhyming pattern but there is proper end-rhyming in some instances ("seem / ice-cream," "come / dumb," "beam/ice-cream.") The poem is presented by an omniscient narrator in a commanding voice. Wallace used metaphors, similes, and irony, along with Alliteration, Consonance, and Assonance.
Themes of The Emperor of Ice-Cream :
Like many other poems by Wallace Stevens, The Emperor of Ice-Cream also has many different philosophical themes embedded in them. The very obvious themes of the poem include the juxtaposition of Reality vs Appearance. The narrator commands “Let be be....” and demands the acknowledgment of Reality over pretensions and illusionary appearances. The poet offers a contrast between reality and appearances as a choice between ‘being' and ‘seeming’.
Another important theme is that of Life, Death, and Lust. Life is fleeting while Death is the ultimate reality and to experience life, one needs to engage in lust and follow their desires. The experience and pleasure of the world as known through the senses, such as taste, is the feel of life. Savoring joy and pleasure and indulging in the taste of that ice cream which is life, is the correct manner. The poet says that one should accept the reality of Death as that becomes the reason to embrace and cherish the sensuality of life.
Summary of The Emperor of Ice-Cream :
Stanza 1
Lines 1-3
“Call the roller of big cigars,
The muscular one, and bid him whip
In kitchen cups concupiscent curds.”
The speaker is an omniscient narrator preparing for a ceremony or party. He uses present tense verbs (‘Call’, ‘bid’) in a dominant voice and summons a strong muscular man who is the ‘roller of big cigars.’ The muscular man is asked to whip up the ice cream in kitchen cups.
Cigars and Icecream both represent the taste and are symbols of sensuality. ‘Cigar’ is a phallic shape that sets the sensuous tone of the poem in the very first line. The term ‘whip’ is another sensuous word and increases the curiosity of the reader to know who is to be whipped? The answer is ‘concupiscent’ curds in kitchen cups. Concupiscent means lustful, or ‘filled with sexual desires.’ The sexually desirable ice cream sets the erotic edge of the poem.
The poet has used alliteration/consonance (‘c’ or ‘k’ in line 3). These lines offer a sense of intimacy as if the narrator is talking to someone in the kitchen, right next to him or very near.
Lines 4-6
“Let the wenches dawdle in such dress
As they are used to wear, and let the boys
Bring flowers in last month's newspapers.”
The poet maintains his dominating tone along with the erotic edge in these lines and commands “wenches” to wear their usual dresses for the occasion and not pretend too much. “Wenches” means young girls who are not independent, often the term is used for prostitutes, or girls indulged in sexual pleasure. The poet says that the girls shouldn’t be tasked to prepare themselves as there is no special occasion, they may keep dawdling in their usual dresses. The poet stresses on the dressing of girls as if they are waiting for physical fulfillment that may come from the muscular ‘roller of big cigars.’ Also, the boys are called and the poet suggests that these boys too must not endeavor too much. They may bring flowers wrapped in old newspapers. This offers a romantic turn to the poem.
The narrator is commanding that there’s no need to be ostentatious and gaudy. Girls may wear common dresses as there is no need to wear formal expensive dresses while boys may bring flowers wrapped in last month's or even older newspapers instead of decorative garlands and flowers beautifully set in expensive vases. Furthermore, the ice cream is to be whipped in simple kitchen cups as there are no expensive china or crystal dishes. This suggests that the household is not very affluent nor is the neighborhood. The visitors are suggested to visit in common dresses and bring flowers without ostentations. Perhaps the household cannot afford an expensive mixer and thus, the muscular man has been called to whip up the ice cream. These lines also suggest that maybe the ceremony is no fun party, but a funeral, there is nothing fanciful, nothing romantic, or nothing special about death and its aftermath; indeed, death is too ordinary and natural to be shocking.
Lines 7-8
“Let be be finale of seem.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.”
These two lines further clarify the nature of the ceremony. The dominating narrator commands that the things must be left as they are. Let “be” (how things actually are) “be" the "finale” (the ending) of “seem” (false appearances). The poet commands that let reality dispel all illusions and let us embrace the truth of life, and death. While life is an illusion, death is an inevitable reality. The emperor of ice cream suggests the coldness of death. It also suggests the ephemeral nature of life which melts and passes away like ice cream. The poet further commands that even at the funeral, the only emperor, the only thing important is the ice cream, the exemplary symbol of pleasure and indulgence. He suggests that there is no need to mourn and feel sad but it is the time to accept death as the ultimate reality and not bother too much about it.
Stanza 2
Lines 9-12
“Take from the dresser of deal,
Lacking the three glass knobs, that sheet
On which she embroidered fantails once
And spread it to cover her face.”
The narrator clarifies that the occasion is a funeral procession right at the beginning of the second stanza.
The narrator commands his listener to go to the other room and check the dresser of the deal. ‘Deal’ is a common low-quality wood whose furniture is cheap and easily available. It further suggests that the household is not affluent. The narrator commands the listener to take the specific sheet from the dresser which was embroidered by the lady who passed away. It was her favorite sheet that she carved with so much interest and love. Perhaps the lady was ill for a long and that is why she failed to mend the sheet which lacks ‘three glass knobs’ or buttons. The narrator commands the listener to use it to cover the dead body of the lady. He insists that her face should be covered.
Lines 13-14
“If her horny feet protrude, they come
To show how cold she is, and dumb.”
The word ‘horny’ is used again to light the erotic tone but in a different manner. These lines suggest incompleteness. The sheet lacks three buttons and hence is incomplete. The sheet itself is incomplete to cover the dead body of the woman, perhaps, it is short. The phrase ‘horny feet’ suggests that the dead person had many desires yet to be fulfilled. Her horny feet signify the death of sexuality. The narrator commands that her face must be covered and it doesn’t matter much if her feet poke out as they are simply a reflection of the stark reality that this woman is “cold,” dead, and “dumb.”
Lines 15-16
“Let the lamp affix its beam.
The only emperor is the emperor of ice-cream.”
The poet says that death is universal and inescapable and thus, lets the visitors confront it. Do not fix the sheet to cover her feet and let the light bring forth the reality of death upfront. The poet suggests that the death of the lady is a lesson for all. He suggests that the only way of life worth living is to enjoy it to the fullest and cherish its ephemeral sensuality. Talking of austerity, control, and abstinence is futile because life is too short, and it will melt and pass away just like ice cream. There’s no reason to control life because there is no way to control death. The poet also presents a choice for himself. He is in the kitchen where the ice cream is to be whipped. Should he go to the other room where the dead body of the lady is resting, or should he linger around the ice cream? He then claims that the only emperor of human life is ice cream which represents: the vivid, disorderly, indulgent desires and instincts in which we all participate. The poet asserts an ironic fact of life: that we ignore certain tragedies to keep living.
The poet stresses the classic tradition of carpe diem, one should seize the day while one can do so, and one can do so only when one embraces the fact, the reality of death.
So this is it for today. We will continue to discuss the history of American English literature. Please stay connected with the Discourse. Thanks and Regards!
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