Theodore Roethke's "A Dark Line" poem's last line?

[laviniaque]

I wonder does anybody know meaning of a line from Theodore Roethke's "In a Dark Time" poem which is:

"And one is One, free in the tearing wind."

 

[emsr2d2]

Welcome to the forum. :hi:

It is always difficult to try to ascertain the meaning of just one line of a poem, without any context or the surrounding sentences. Did the poet use "One" (with a capital letter) elsewhere in the poem? Do you understand the general meaning of each word in that line?

 

[laviniaque]

Thank you. :-D

I'm glad to be here.
No, he didn't use "One" neither with a capital letter, nor small letter anywhere in the poem.
Yes, I understand the general meaning of each word in that line. I also know meaning of "in the wind."

The last verse of the poem is:
Dark, dark my light, and darker my desire.
My soul, like some heat-maddened summer fly,
Keeps buzzing at the sill. Which I is I?
A fallen man, I climb out of my fear.
The mind enters itself, and God the mind,
And one is One, free in the tearing wind.

 

[Raymott]

No, he didn't use "One" neither with a capital letter, nor small letter anywhere in the poem.

Yes, he did, if that's his poem that you've posted. You mean he didn't use it anywhere elsewhere, or elsewhere in the poem.
By the way, is this homework?

 

[laviniaque]

Ah, thank you.

But couldn't I see?.. Here is the poem.

[h=1]In a Dark Time[/h]
BY THEODORE ROETHKEIn a dark time, the eye begins to see,
I meet my shadow in the deepening shade;
I hear my echo in the echoing wood—
A lord of nature weeping to a tree.
I live between the heron and the wren,
Beasts of the hill and serpents of the den.

What’s madness but nobility of soul
At odds with circumstance? The day’s on fire!
I know the purity of pure despair,
My shadow pinned against a sweating wall.
That place among the rocks—is it a cave,
Or winding path? The edge is what I have.

A steady storm of correspondences!
A night flowing with birds, a ragged moon,
And in broad day the midnight come again!
A man goes far to find out what he is—
Death of the self in a long, tearless night,
All natural shapes blazing unnatural light.

Dark, dark my light, and darker my desire.
My soul, like some heat-maddened summer fly,
Keeps buzzing at the sill. Which I is I?
A fallen man, I climb out of my fear.
The mind enters itself, and God the mind,
And one is One, free in the tearing wind.

 

[laviniaque]

No, that's not homework. It's from a play that I'm trying to translate to Turkish.

 

[emsr2d2]

You didn't need to write out the whole poem. The point was that you said that he didn't use "One" anywhere in the poem. He did. He used it in the last line, which you quoted originally. You should have said that he didn't use "One" anywhere else or elsewhere.

 

[Rover_KE]

Is the last line of this poem the only bit you didn't understand? I can't make head or tail of any of it.

People write all sorts of bullspit and call it poetry, but as this guy is thought by some to be 'one of the most accomplished and influential poets of his generation' (Wikipedia), who am I to criticise?

That's another wasted five minutes of my life that I'll never get back.

 

[laviniaque]

No, of course not only the last line. I know it's very difficult, but I need to translate the last line for the play.

 

[Rover_KE]

It looks like you will have to translate it literally and let the audience try to make sense of it for themselves.

Good luck with that.

 

[laviniaque]

Thank you. You're interested of my issue. I know "in the wind" means imminent, impending. But I can't contextualize the word "tearing."

I guess, "free in the tearing wind" means could be that the man is going to die.

Thank you again for your help.

 

[emsr2d2]

For me, a "tearing wind" suggests a very strong wind, it is tearing across the land. Of course, that's on the assumption it's pronounced "tare-ing". The word "tearing", pronounced "teering" also exists and can mean to induce tears to appear in the eyes. Wind can do that to you too.

 

[laviniaque]

Oh, thank you, this was very helpful. I've already discussion with a friend of mine about which meaning is could be.

 

[laviniaque]

I've just think now... I guess, the poet used both of these meanings.

 

[Raymott]

Are you claimng to understand the poem? I have no idea what he's trying to say. If you have an opinion on what it means, why not share? We may be able to confirm or rule out some possible meanings.

 

[laviniaque]

No, not at all. I'm just a learner. I've just trying to make possible inferences based upon where the poem's last part in the play.

I'm trying to interpretationing the phrase, according to what happens in that part of the play as well. Otherwise, I'm not dare to claim to understand Roethke.