i carry your heart with me by E.E. Cummings

 I chose to write about E.E. Cummings’ “i carry your heart with me”. Edward Estlin Cummings was born October 14, 1894 and died on September 3, 1962. He was a well-known transcendentalist. Transcendentalists believed in the individual’s experiences with nature, spirits, and emotions. He received his love of writing from his mother when he was a small child, and he wrote the rest of his life.

 “i carry your heart with me” was published in 1923 in E.E. Cummings’ collection of poetry entitled Tulips and Chimneys. The poem tells the story of a very intense love. Words like “heart,” “dear,” “darling,” and “fate” are all used in this poem, and many other words also are used to display the narrator’s affection (1, 3, 4, 6). The narrator begins the poem by telling his love that he carries her heart with him everywhere. By the second stanza, he declares that he needs no world, no fate, no sun or moon because his love contains all those things for him. In the final stanza, he claims that their love is so strong that it prevents the stars from coming together.  Their love is the basis of life. E.E. Cummings uses very descriptive words to portray his lovesick narrator.

“i carry your heart with me” has no rhyme scheme. E.E. Cummings often wrote poems with no set rhyme scheme. Also, another interesting form issue is there are no capitalizations and very, very little punctuation. However, the only punctuation Cummings’ poem does not lack of is parentheses. Many believe that the parentheses emphasize the love that the narrator of the poem tries to display. For example, “i am never without it (anywhere/i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done/by only me is your doing, my darling)” displays the narrator’s desire to portray his love for his lover (2-4). He simply states he is never without her heart, but in the parentheses, he goes on and on about how he goes wherever she goes and does only what she wants. Also, in the final stanza, Cummings includes some personification. He compares growing to a soul hoping and growing to a mind hiding (12, 13). Some readers take the poem as a hyperbole since the narrator exaggerates on his love for his lover so intensely. Many poetic forms are used in “i carry your heart with me”. 

E.E. Cummings wrote a very beautiful love poem. However, some question whether it was meant to be a love poem or a hilarious viewpoint on love. Many question whether anyone would write something portraying a person doting on another in such an exaggerated manner in a serious way. However, one thing is for sure, Cummings wrote an interesting poem that continues to grip people’s attentions even today. 

Written by: Elise Hartzell

11/22/2012