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A poem by Billy Collins about the act of drowning and the art of poetry. The speaker compares the drowning to the art of poetry, which is both a surrender and a transformation.
- Summary
- Structure
- Meaning
- Themes
- Poetic Techniques
- Analysis of The Art of Drowning
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The poem begins with the speaker asking why and how the idea of life flashing before one’s eyes came into being. He is mystified by it and encourages the reader to consider the same question. As the poem progresses he discusses how inadequate and distressing this experience would be. He also proposes a number of alternatives, such as a photo album ...
‘The Art of Drowning’ by Billy Collins is a five stanza poem that is separated into uneven sets of lines. The first and second stanzas contain five lines and the third, fourth, and fifth: six lines. Collins chose to write this poem in free verse, this means that it does not have a pattern of rhyme or rhythm. But, that doesn’t mean the poem is witho...
‘The Art of Drowning’ by Billy Collins is not an art in itself. The poet specifically discusses the “act” of drowning oneself. The poet itself is metaphorical in sense. It can be a reference to the emotional turmoil one faces in his life. The poet compares the subconscious mind to a sea without any depth. It submerges one’s true self into its unkno...
‘The Art of Drowning’ by Billy Collins touches on several themes in this poem. The themes are complex. It deals not only with the act of drowning but also with life, memory, mind, and reality. Every theme introduced by the poet is significant concerning the overall subjectmatter of the poem. The major theme of the poem deals with drowning itself. T...
Half rhyme, also known as slant rhyme, can be seen through the repetition of assonance or consonance. This means that either a vowel or consonant sound is reused within one line or multiple lines of verse. One great example is in the final stanza with the words “bottom” and “forgotten”. One of the most important, and easy to spot, techniques used i...
Stanza One
In the first lines of ‘The Art of Drowning’the speaker poses the question that forms the basis of all the stanzas to come. He expresses his curiosity about where the idea that your life flashes before your eyes before you die comes from. Immediately it is clear that he doesn’t believe this is possible, partially, or and it’s entirety. Lines three through five of the first stanza outline the common belief that the horrorsof death are tempered by moments from one’s past. He speaks about how whe...
Stanza Two
The second stanza is also five lines and includes some of the speaker’s ideas of more pleasing alternatives to the sudden flash of a memory. He poses two different possible deaths, both of which have to do with drowning. It is likely he chose to drown as the main cause of death in this poembecause it is not instantaneous, (therefore leaving time for this flash of memory). It is also an almost universal fear. The speaker asks, or wonders to himself, if it wouldn’t be more pleasurable “for a mo...
Stanza Three
As is the case with a number of Billy Collins’ poems, there is an element of humor in ‘The Art of Drowning’. In the third stanza, he asks three more questions. Each one poses an alternative to the flash of a memory. The first he suggests is a “short animated film”. He follows this up immediately with another suggestion, that may be a “slide presentation” would be more appealing and appropriate at the end of life. Just as with the photo album, both of these experiences are longer, more drawn o...
A humorous and imaginative poem that explores the moments before death and the cliché of life flashing before one's eyes. The poet questions the origin and meaning of this idea and suggests alternative ways of remembering one's life, such as a photo album or an essay.
- Female
- October 9, 1995
- Poetry Analyst And Editor
A humorous poem that imagines different ways of dying and what one might see before death. The speaker wonders if there is a better way to review one's life than the cliché of a flash before one's eyes.
0822938936. The Art of Drowning is a book of poetry by the American Poet Laureate Billy Collins, first published in 1995. John Updike described the collection as "Lovely poems—lovely in a way almost nobody's since [Theodore] Roethke 's are.
- Billy Gene Collins
- 1995
Analysis (ai): "The Art of Drowning" explores the concept of a drowning person's life flashing before their eyes, challenging the romanticized idea of a cinematic review. The poem questions the practicality and accuracy of such a phenomenon, proposing instead that the final moments may simply be dominated by the mundane sight of a fish.
Billy Collins is a popular and acclaimed poet who wrote The Art of Drowning in 1995. The book contains poems that mix humor with insight on the everyday, reading and writing, and poetry itself.
A poem that explores the idea of seeing your life flash before your eyes while you drown, and questions the value and accuracy of such a vision. The poet challenges the notion of a brilliant revelation or a final truth in the face of death, and imagines alternative forms of reviewing one's life.
