Reflective Discursiveness

Discursiveness, particularly in its poetic form rather than its philosophical scope, serves as a mimesis of the thought processes, inherently descriptive in nature. It is often perceived as a way to mirror the way thoughts flow and evolve, rather than presenting a strictly linear or coherent argument. Although postmodern poetry frequently presents these thought processes as fragmented, plural and discontinuous, the lexical elements (such as abstract nouns and descriptors) within discursiveness often restrict connotation despite the fragmented nature of the discourse. According to T. S. Eliot, poetry is ‘something quite different from a collection of psychological data about the minds of poets’; implying that the poetic form of discursiveness transcends mere psychological introspection.

Four poets who exhibit a notable inclination towards discursiveness are William Wordsworth, John Ashbery, J. H. Prynne and Lee Harwood. Each approaches discursiveness with their unique stylistic variations, yet they all share an underlying penchant for reflecting on thought processes through their poetry. Consider, for example, Wordsworth’s ‘Tintern Abbey’:

That time is past,
And all its aching joys are now no more,
And all its dizzy raptures. Not for this
Faint I, nor mourn nor murmer; other gifts
Have followed; for such loss, I would believe,
Abundant recompense. For I have learned
To look on nature, not as in the hour
Of thoughtless youth; but hearing often-times
The still, sad music of humanity

In this stanza (as in all the excerpts of poetry by the poets I will discuss) every phrase propels the reader forward, building a sense of meaning that is constructed retrospectively. The semantic load of each line is designed to accumulate and enable interpretive closure only after the passage has been fully engaged with. Wordsworth's poetic structure here emphasises a forward movement, where the meaning emerges from the overall message rather than from the isolated semantic components. This highlights how the passage adheres to a logic of uninterrupted statement, where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

Wordsworth exemplifies discursiveness through his reflective meditation on nature and personal growth. The imagery of ‘aching joys’ and ‘dizzy raptures’ conveys a sense of past emotional experiences that are now left behind. This vivid description is followed by a contemplative shift where Wordsworth contrasts his previous ‘thoughtless youth’ with his current, more reflective perspective. The phrase ‘the still, sad music of humanity’ symbolises the deeper, more profound understanding he has gained, showing how past experiences have enriched his perception of the natural world.

Wordsworth’s discourse moves from specific memories to abstract reflections on loss and gain, creating a sense of retrospective meaning. The structure of the stanza, where each line builds upon the previous one, reflects a progression from detailed description to philosophical insight. This forward-moving narrative allows the reader to grasp the overall meaning only after engaging with the entire passage, highlighting the poem's discursive nature. The emphasis on how the past informs the present and the integration of personal and universal themes exemplify Wordsworth’s ability to weave descriptive imagery with deep, introspective thought.

John Ashbery’s ‘The Picture of Little J. A. in a Prospect of Flowers’ offers a complex example of discursiveness through its interplay of memory and abstract reflection.

Yet I cannot escape the picture
Of my small self in that bank of flowers:
My head among the blazing phlox
Seemed a pale and gigantic fungus.
I had a hard stare, accepting
Everything, taking nothing,
As though the rolled-up future might stink
As loud as stood the sick moment
The shutter clicked. Though I was wrong,
Still, as the loveliest feelings

The poem begins with a detailed memory of ‘my small self in that bank of flowers’, where the contrasting images of vibrant flowers and a ‘pale and gigantic fungus’ suggest a disconnection between the external beauty and the speaker’s internal experience. This initial imagery is deeply sensory, creating a snapshot of youthful awkwardness and self-awareness that is immediately juxtaposed with a more abstract reflection on the passage of time.

The poem shifts from concrete observation to philosophical rumination, evident in the lines ‘I had a hard stare, accepting / Everything, taking nothing’, and ‘As though the rolled-up future might stink / As loud as stood the sick moment / The shutter clicked’. This transition highlights Ashbery’s exploration of the tension between present experiences and future uncertainties. The final acknowledgement that ‘Though I was wrong, / Still, as the loveliest feelings’ captures a sense of irony and emotional depth, emphasising how the beauty of the past moment persists despite its inherent contradictions. Ashbery’s discursive style here invites readers to engage with the complexity of thought and memory, blending detailed imagery with reflective contemplation.

Similarly, J. H. Prynne’s ‘Frost and Snow, Falling’ exemplifies discursiveness in a different mode:

So that when the snow falls again the earth
becomes lighter and lighter. The surface con-
spires with us, we are its first born. Even
in this modern age we leave tracks, as we
go. And as we go, walk, stride or climb
out of it, we leave that behind, our own
level of contemplation of the world

In this stanza, discursiveness is highlighted through a philosophical reflection on natural phenomena. The imagery of snow making the earth ‘lighter and lighter’ contrasts with the notion of the surface conspiring with humanity, suggesting a deep, almost symbiotic relationship between nature and human presence. Prynne’s description of leaving ‘tracks’ as one moves through the snow conveys a sense of ongoing interaction between individuals and their environment, reinforcing the idea of a continuous, contemplative engagement with the world.

The stanza’s discursive nature is evident in its seamless blend of concrete observation and abstract reflection. Prynne moves from the tangible effects of snow on the earth to a more contemplative consideration of human movement and its impact. The discourse evolves from a straightforward description of natural events to a broader reflection on the human experience, illustrating how the physical world serves as a backdrop for deeper philosophical inquiry. This integration of description with introspective thought allows readers to engage with both the sensory and conceptual aspects of the poem, underscoring its reflective and discursive qualities.

A further illustration of discursiveness can be seen in Lee Harwood’s ‘For Paul/coming Out of Winter’:

On a bright winter morning
sunlight catching the tops of white buildings
a tree outlined against the sea
a wall of flints
 
To be able to stop and see this
the luxury           of being alive
when the waves crash on the shore
and a fresh wind streams up the narrow streets
a moment like this lightens the darkness
a little, lifts the heart until
you can walk down the hill near careless

Harwood’s stanzas embody a form of discursiveness that marries the immediacy of observation with reflective thought. The initial imagery—sunlight, white buildings, a tree, a wall of flints—creates a vivid, almost static snapshot of a winter morning. This visual clarity then transitions into a meditative reflection on the luxury of being alive and the emotional uplift provided by such moments. Harwood’s use of descriptive language (‘sunlight catching’, ‘waves crash’, ‘fresh wind’) captures the sensory experience of the scene, while the subsequent reflection on this experience as a ‘luxury’ underscores a deeper, contemplative layer.

In Harwood’s work, discursiveness is evident in the way the poem shifts from concrete images to abstract reflections on life and perception. The descriptive elements of the poem—details of the winter morning—serve as a springboard for philosophical reflection on the nature of experience and the emotional impact of such moments. The interplay between detailed observation and reflective thought exemplifies a seamless integration of description and introspection, where the descriptive elements serve to anchor the philosophical musings.

That discursiveness is so amply evident in postmodern works could be interpreted as an ironic utilisation of this rhetorical device. In this context, such discursiveness serves as defamiliarization to disrupt the perceived transparency typically associated with more conventional poetic discourse. While this interpretation is plausible, it raises questions about whether irony and defamiliarization are fundamentally detached from a descriptive aesthetic. The efficacy of irony, in particular, relies on the reader's ability to recognise it. The fact that irony can be identified suggests that ambiguity is either absent or significantly constrained, and that a form of closure is being pursued. The poet's intention is for the reader to discern the irony, which in turn prompts a compliant response from the reader. This raises the question: How else could irony operate without this tacit agreement between poet and reader?