Thought Set Free

Thought Set Free

Richard Wilbur's poems "Mind" and "The Writer" seem vastly different at a first time reading. Further study show two poems with a message of inner conflict overcome by independent problem solving.

"The Writer" refers to Wilbur's daughter who is composing a story on the typewriter. Wilbur paints a picture of his daughter's struggle to compose using a combination of maritime metaphor and simile. "In her room at the prow of the house" starts the imagery of a great ship. "Like a chain hauled over a gunwale" gives a nautical are to the sound of typewriter keys, adding to the reader's mental image. According to Isabella Wai's "Wilbur's The Writer", the author plays with this metaphor but gives the impression that it oversimplifies the complexities of writing. Failing to demonstrate the intensity of a vigorous struggle associated with the creative process or with the imposition of an artistic order upon reality. (Wai) Wilbur employs a second metaphor. He compares his daughter to a starling that become trapped in the room where his daughter is working. Mohan Ramanen work, "Wilbur's The Writer" states "The change of imagery underscores its unity because of the sense of one voice speaking and considering options and weighing choices."(Ramanen) This image paints a picture of the bird's struggle to escape the room just as the words struggle to escape his daughter's mind.

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Attempt after attempt is made with negative results, but with pure internal determination release is found.

Wilbur's superior use of metaphor and simile is displayed again in his poem "Mind". In the first stanza of the poem, the comparison of the human mind to a bat is presented. Mathew Birsall is critical analysis mentions "The bat is senseless, yet able to remain in the air. The mind is suspended in liquid, allowing comparisons