Cozy Apologia Essay Questions

How does rhyme shape the poem?

This poem is written in free verse, but it uses a changing rhyme scheme that shifts the ground under the reader's feet and complicates the poem. The poem uses subtly repeating sounds—for example, the repeating "l" sounds in "This lamp, the wind-still rain, the glossy blue" in line three, or the repeating "w" sounds on "Marcel, Percy, Dewey; / Were thin as licorice and as chewy, / Sweet with a dark and hollow center" in the second stanza. The language and the rhyme scheme make the poem feel comfortable and familiar; this mirrors the comfort and contentment the speaker describes in her relationship.

Is some context and knowledge of Dove's life and relationships needed to understand this poem?

This poem appears to be at least semi-autobiographical, since it is dedicated to Dove's husband and refers to Hurricane Floyd, a storm that hit the East Coast of the United States in 1999. These details give the poem a feeling of close proximity to the speaker. The poem also refers to one stream-of-consciousness moment wherein the speaker moves through fantasy and memory. The personal nature of the poem grants it significance, but the poem also feels like something quickly jotted down by the speaker, a moment she steals away from her work and her life. The separation of this poem from the speaker's other work, which almost certainly also includes writing poems, makes the reader feel almost intrusive. However, this poem appears in a book of Dove's poetry, and the poem is "for" Fred, not "to" him. The poem lets the speaker in with the amount of autobiographical detail it includes, but it is still poised and purposeful.

How does the syntax Dove uses shape this poem?

The syntax is slightly archaic in the first stanza; for example, "astride a dappled mare" and "furrowed brow" feel more familiar than the rest of the poem, like they have been pulled from a book. However, most of the poem is conversational in tone and accessible in its language. The first stanza also says, "sure as shooting arrows to the heart," and because the speaker uses an action that could fit well in this scene—shooting arrows—as a metaphor, the moment is complex and ambiguous in a way that does not continue to occur throughout the poem.

Why does the poem use questions in the final stanza?

The questions in the final stanza are even more straightforward and conversational than the rest of the poem. By writing this part of the poem in plain English, the speaker conveys that these questions are the true, unembellished crux of the poem. The questions also feel somewhat rhetorical; the speaker, through writing this poem, has answered them.

How does this poem use and convey intimacy?

This poem is very rooted in the space that the speaker is inhabiting as well as her memories. Because this poem addresses a specific "you," the speaker's partner, it comes across as a private correspondence. However, the speaker is clearly considering the outside world; the questions she asks herself in the final stanza are ones that she has heard before or has felt floating implicitly behind popular media, such as romance novels and movies. The speaker does not lump the reader in with society at large, making us feel like we have been invited into Dove's mind.