Middle Class Vintage 

In Eleanor Wilner’s “Middle Class Vintage”, we see seclusion and a different way of living from the wealthy to the extremely poor.  Each of the nine strophes are composed of 3 lines consisting of simple words and no rhyme.  Wilner’s style is delicate.  Writing a poem of   three-line-stanzas is simple and easy to read.  Her descriptions of the surroundings and scenery are plain and ordinary. 

                                           …It’s all a it too green, quick water

                                           in this drowsy channel slows, while autumn slides

                                           its razor in the seams,…

In the first couple of strophes we infer that there are a few people camping in the wilderness.  The speaker emphasizes that nature is peaceful and quite enjoyable.  The ‘smell of pine’ and the ‘sound of water’, in the first stanza brings a pleasant atmosphere and helps paint  a picture in the imagination of the reader. 

In ancient Egypt, royal natives were buried in pyramids with their belongings.  The speaker of this poem describes their tent as a ‘temporary pyramid’ where they will have ‘a place to rest’.  This allusion is delightful because when you pass you are able to rest in  peace all alone in your own pyramid.  In this case, the subjects are not alone; they are able to rest with just themselves.  The lack of valuables can be reckoned because these people are middle class.  This allusion has everything to do with the disclosure of the poem.  This poem is solely   about the simplicity and calmness of free spirits wondering with no intent but pleasure.

“Middle Class Vintage” uses natural habitats and man made constructions.  Natural speech is the casual conversation and the deliverance of thoughts.  The speaker of this poem inhales his surroundings or experiences and exhales them in phrases and run-on  sentences.  Her language is eventful because it lists her surroundings and describes appropriate occurrences.  The naturalness exhibited supports the message of this poem.

                                               The tent flaps stir, and something like a burr

                                               Sticks to the heart, and nothing can shake it off.

                                               Situated as we are, we watch the river coursing on,

The message of this poem is to live your life the way you feel best.  Restfulness and leisure is more important than material possessions.  Though money cannot buy happiness, always remember to look at your life on your terms; do not compare it to others because you do not know what they are experiencing. 

   

 

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This page was last edited 04/25/2000