Biblical Allusions in e. e. Cumming’s Poetry
Edward Estlin Cummings, or better known as E.E. Cummings, was a 20th-century artist most known for his innovations in style and structure to his poetry.[1] His father was a pastor and professor so from a very early age, Cummings and his sister, Elizabeth, were taught to love the Lord.[2] Through biblical allusions, and having God as a central idea to his poems to begin with, readers can see this love and knowledge about God and His word, come throughout Cumming’s poetry as it continues to spread the message of the gospel.
In poems such as “if there are any heaven my mother will (all by herself) have,” “i am a little church (no great cathedral),” “i thank You God for this most amazing,” and “when god decided to invent,” all have Christ, or a direct aspect about Christ, as the central idea to the poem. Something that is worth noting about the style of Cumming’s poetry is the use of capitalization. He doesn’t follow the typical capitalization rules especially with personal pronouns like “I.” However, whenever he is referring to God or uses the word “God’ directly, most of the time it is capitalized. With that said, “if there are any heaven my mother will (all by herself) have,” is a poem about the type of heaven he has imaged for his mother. “not be a pansy heaven not a fragile heaven of lilies-of-the-valley but it will be a heaven of blackred roses.” These three lines and some other places in the poem are talking about his mother’s strength. Even though this poem is about his mother, the setting is still in what Cummings has imaged for heaven. In other words, this poem became famous for the message of strong mothers but continues to spread an aspect of Christianity because of the setting.
It is a very similar situation in “i am a little church (no great cathedral).” Between the title and lines such as lines 13-14; “i am a little church (far from the frantic world with its rapture and anguish) at peace with nature,” the reader can get a sense of what the author thinks of themselves. They consider themselves to be at peace with the world, even in situations when others are less than satisfied. The impact behind this poem is in the words, but also largely due to the setting and imagery chosen for the poem, a little church versus a great cathedral. The poem is known for the message it brings of peace, but the idea of God’s church will always be associated with it, therefore continuing to spread the gospel.
Now with poems like, “i thank You God for this most amazing,” and “when god decided to invent,” God is the central theme to the poem. As far as we know, E.E. Cummings never denied his faith, but his faith alone isn’t what made him famous as a poet.[3] Most of his fame is attributed to the unique style and structure to his poetry. For example, he incorporates everything from ignoring basic grammar rules like capitalization to the layout of a poem in simply two words, l(a. In the poem “i thank You God for this most amazing,” Cummings is simply thanking God for the beauty he is experiencing in the world on that day. The first stanza of “when god decided to invent” is about the story of creation. The second stanza is about the fall of man. It is a rather simple poem with only 8 lines but still very powerful. Like mentioned earlier, Cummings did not become famous because he was a Christian poet but his Christian poetry still became well known and helped spread knowledge about Christ, because of Cumming’s other work.
Unlike in the poems above, Cummings also alludes to the Bible in poems in ways that aren’t quite so clear. For example, in the poem “if everything happens that can’t be done,” the last line says; “we’re wonderful one times one,” which is a biblical allusion to becoming one in marriage. The whole love poem is leading up to this point. The poem; “a man who had fallen among thieves,” is a retelling of the Good Samaritan parable in the gospel of Luke. The title is also the opening line to the poem and uses the exact words from the parable. Also, the poem, “what if a much of a which of a wind,” talks about the hope that Christian’s have, even in the face of this instance of a nuclear holocaust. Line 24 says, “the most who die, the more we live” to support this. These poems are examples of the impact Cummings makes in indirect ways. Without Christian background knowledge, the reader would not know what Cummings is alluding too. However, once the reader does further study into either Cummings work or the Bible, they are led to the gospel.
The poem, “anyone lived in a pretty how town,” is also filled with biblical allusions. Line seven says; “they sowed their isn’t they reaped their same,” which is a biblical allusion to several places in the Bible when it talks about reaping and sowing. Job 4:8 says, “As I have observed, those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it,” and Proverbs 11:8 says, “A wicked person earns deceptive wages, but the one who sows righteousness reaps a sure reward.” Perhaps some more well-known verses include 2 Corinthians 9:6, “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously,” and Galatians 6:7-9;
“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows
to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the
Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at
the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Line 14 of the poem says, “she laughed his joy and cried his grief” which is a biblical allusion to Romans 12 when talking about sharing in the lives of others, both in good and bad times. Line 30 says “and more by more they dream their sleep” which is a biblical allusion to sleeping in the Bible. Verses like Mark 13:36, Romans 13:11 and Ephesians 5:14 are examples of this. The word sleep is used metaphorically of spiritual dullness, lack of watchfulness, or most frequently, a spiritual heaviness that must be shaken off to stay awake in this evil time. [4]
After taking a closer look into E.E. Cummings poetry, one can see the biblical allusions he makes throughout his work. From subtle ones that require background knowledge or further study, to having poems completely devoted to God. E.E Cummings lived from 1894-1962 but even now in 2018, the influence and significance of his poetry have carried his name through the test of time, all while shining some light to the Creator Himself. [5]
Bibliography
“E.E. Cummings.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 22 Aug. 2016,
www.biography.com/people/ee-cummings-9263274.
“E. E. Cummings.” Poetry Foundation, Poetry Foundation, Jan. 2018,
www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/e-e-cummings.
“E. E. Cummings.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 9 May 2018,
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._E._Cummings#Early_years.
Elwell, Walter. “Sleep Definition and Meaning - Bible Dictionary.” Bible Study Tools, Salem
Web Network, www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/sleep/.
[1] “E.E. Cummings.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 22 Aug. 2016, www.biography.com/people/ee-cummings-9263274.
[2] “E. E. Cummings.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 9 May 2018, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._E._Cummings#Early_years.
[3] “E. E. Cummings.” Poetry Foundation, Poetry Foundation, Jan. 2018, www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/e-e-cummings.
[4] Elwell, Walter. “Sleep Definition and Meaning - Bible Dictionary.” Bible Study Tools, Salem Web Network, www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/sleep/.
[5] “E.E. Cummings.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 22 Aug. 2016, www.biography.com/people/ee-cummings-9263274.
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