The Cat and the Sea
It is a matter of a black cat
On a bare cliff top in March
Whose eyes anticipate
The gorse petals;
The formal equation of
A domestic purr
With the cold interiors
Of the sea's mirror.
R. S. Thomas, Poetry for Supper (1958).
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
"The Cat And The Sea"
I am here to report that Life does indeed imitate Art. I take my afternoon walks along a bluff above Puget Sound. On most days, the Olympic Mountains (sometimes their snowy heights, sometimes only their tiered, green-blue foothills) can be seen across the water to the west. A few days ago, I saw a black cat sitting in a field with the Sound as a backdrop. He or she was likely out on the prowl from one of the nearby houses. And here is the Art (set in March as well):
The Cat and the Sea
It is a matter of a black cat
On a bare cliff top in March
Whose eyes anticipate
The gorse petals;
The formal equation of
A domestic purr
With the cold interiors
Of the sea's mirror.
R. S. Thomas, Poetry for Supper (1958).
Richard Eurich, "Cornwall" (c. 1958)
The Cat and the Sea
It is a matter of a black cat
On a bare cliff top in March
Whose eyes anticipate
The gorse petals;
The formal equation of
A domestic purr
With the cold interiors
Of the sea's mirror.
R. S. Thomas, Poetry for Supper (1958).
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3 comments:
The artwork is lovely. Cornwall is a place that I have yet to visit.
Wonderful images in the poem. I'm wondering what "it" in the first line could refer to.
Thank you for dropping in again, From My Easy Chair. As for the "it" in the first line: given the usual drift of Thomas's poetry, I would say (and this may sound a bit grand) that "it" may refer to the relationship between us, God, and reality -- Thomas, a cantankerous and questioning minister, was ever preoccupied with this admittedly large question. This "it" comes up quite often in his poetry.
Interesting. Thank you.
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