The pantoum is a Malay poetic form which repeats whole lines in an interlocking pattern. The second and fourth lines of any quatrain (4-line stanza) become the first and third lines of the quatrain that follows. In the pantoum's last stanza, the first and third lines of the opening are finally repeated as the fourth and second lines. The order of those lines can be reversed, but an ideal pantoum will end with the poem's opening line - creating a kind of circle.

PANTOUM OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION by Donald Justice

Our lives avoided tragedy
Simply by going on and on,
Without end and with little apparent meaning.
Oh, there were storms and small catastrophes.

Simply by going on and on
We managed. No need for the heroic.
Oh, there were storms and small catastrophes.
I don't remember all the particulars.

We managed. No need for the heroic.
There were the usual celebrations, the usual sorrows.
I don't remember all the particulars.
Across the fence, the neighbors were our chorus.

There were the usual celebrations, the usual sorrows
Thank god no one said anything in verse.
The neighbors were our only chorus,
And if we suffered we kept quiet about it.

At no time did anyone say anything in verse.
It was the ordinary pities and fears consumed us,
And if we suffered we kept quiet about it.
No audience would ever know our story.

It was the ordinary pities and fears consumed us.
We gathered on porches; the moon rose; we were poor.
What audience would ever know our story?
Beyond our windows shone the actual world.

We gathered on porches; the moon rose; we were poor.
And time went by, drawn by slow horses.
Somewhere beyond our windows shone the world.
The Great Depression had entered our souls like fog.

And time went by, drawn by slow horses.
We did not ourselves know what the end was.
The Great Depression had entered our souls like fog.
We had our flaws, perhaps a few private virtues.

But we did not ourselves know what the end was.
People like us simply go on.
We have our flaws, perhaps a few private virtues,
But it is by blind chance only that we escape tragedy.

And there is no plot in that; it is devoid of poetry.

i like it. this line especially: We had our flaws, perhaps a few private virtues.

what else have you got? either in pantoum or about depression?

i asked my calm husband why he's not wringing his hands about our impending personal financial annihilation. he said he's not too worried about us because "we're ahead of the learning curve. we've been poor for a long time."

how's that for making souffle out of scrambled eggs?

I like it too, though I wonder if the seeming silence of the Great Depression's suffering was related to the absence of television.

Re poetry from the great depression, here's something. I didn't write it, but I did have my way with it while it was sleeping. Do you know what it's from? Googling not allowed. First correct guesser wins a mouse click of appreciation...and a spare dime.

The Three Cries of History

The great owners
with access to history
with eyes to read history
and to know

the great fact
when property accumulates
in too few hands
it is taken away

and that companion fact
when a majority of the people
are hungry and cold
they will take
by force
what they need

and the little screaming fact
that sounds through all history
repression works only
to strengthen
and knit
the repressed

the great owners
ignored the three cries.

I would guess Steinbeck, for obvious reasons, followed by Marx (Karl or Groucho), followed by Sinclair (Lewis or Upton), followed by Dylan (Bob), followed by Guthrie (Woody or son).

Take care,

Joe

Hi, MA - There were some great lines in this pantoum ("thank god no one said anything in verse," "time went by, drawn by slow horses"). I think the pantoum is a very hard form to work with -- how does one avoid a sing-songy and repetitious tone while conforming to the form? I think Justice has actually done a pretty good job by using these very elegant phrases, which bring the reader to a momentary stop to consider them and thereby short-circuit the repetition.

You would guess correctly the first time, Joe. From Grapes of Wrath. I'll PayPal the dime.

PV, so did you present a found poem -- some prose from Grapes of Wrath that you broke into jagged lines???

If you haven't already, read "Traveling Through the Dark." It's a great poem for discussion. It involves a dead deer.

MA

I think the pantoum is a very hard form to work with -- how does one avoid a sing-songy and repetitious tone while conforming to the form?

Some day I really should sit down and read more Donald Justice poems. Among other things, he's great with traditional forms like the sestina, villanelle, pantoum. He's also great with nostalgia -- as in this poem.

The interesting thing about poetic repetition is to go back and see how the poet slightly modifies the line rather than merely repeats it.

(and I hope you saw august's great commentary on Marie Ponsot's poem)

Hi, MA, Here's one more comment on pantoums, coming at them sorta tangentially. Check out today's Frazz cartoon here:

<link>

The cartoon is not at all intended to be about pantoums, but there's something to be said for an "elegant mean." Because I think what bugs me about pantoums is just how obsessive-compulsive one has to be to arrange all those lines in an order that makes sense and flows. The worst part is, I love obsessive-compulsive. I could get totally absorbed in that kind of wordplay to the detriment of all the other things I should be doing.

It's like walking past a table with a half-worked jigsaw puzzle on it (actually, I can walk right past a jigsaw puzzle, but I still think that's a good example).

And yes, I saw August's fine commentary. I still remember posting Ponsot for an OPP and being pleasantly surprised to find out that someone here knew her personally. The context he provided for the poem was nice ... makes me want to read a few more from that volume.

so did you present a found poem -- some prose from Grapes of Wrath that you broke into jagged lines???

I found and fractured, but haven't presented. The depression poem reminded me of those lines and the rest was the pure inspiration of Sarah Palin.

I did just read the Stafford poem and immediately I recalled it from years ago. I had gone looking for it once, remembering the subject but not the title or the author. I think I had confused it with Jeffers' Hurt Hawks. Now I see why. That's a great suggestion. Thanks.

I will have to dwell a while on this line:

It is usually best to roll them into the canyon:

Usually?! What does the frequency of the situation say about the greater moral dilemma for which this scene is a metaphor?

It's great.

Found it here:

<link>

And Hurt Hawks is here:

<link>

And but now I'm equating the unborn fawn and the egg inside/grandma’s unborn daughter’s/
folded ovaries...from the last Ponsot poem you posted...so I think I'll watch some TV now.

Nice choice! I'll gladly play the chorus. Your point about slight changes in the repetition of lines is well taken. I noticed the changes but didn't stop to consider them carefully until you pointed them out. There is movement towards a deeper understanding in them. There are so many sturdy lines in this that I have difficulty picking a favorite. More importantly, the poem has even more substance when taken whole. The first couplet is 'somewhat' repeated in two places.

Our lives avoided tragedy
Simply by going on and on.
and
People like us simply go on.
and
But it is by blind chance only that we escape tragedy.

Across the fence the neighbors were our chorus
and
The neighbors were our only chorus.

No audience would ever know our story.
and
What audience would ever know our story?

Beyond our windows shone the actual world.
and
Somewhere beyond our windows shone the world.

Your continued contribution to PFray is very much appreciated.

Regards,
Eljem