Thought-provoking research essay topics and approaches

¶ … Stone Hammer Poem & Surfacing

The concept of language has changed a great deal over time, to the point where, in the present, the same words our ancestors used can have different meanings. Language is mainly a method to communicate, somewhat like a social contract that all people agree with in order for society to function properly. Robert Kroetsch's poem "Stone Hammer Poem" and Margret Atwood's novel "Surfacing" are both examples of how the general role language usually plays does not apply to all people.

At a first glance, one might consider Kroetsch's poem to have little effect on the reader because of its ambiguous nature. The poem actually resembles an amalgam of words put together by a mad man that had no clear reason for doing so. However, this can be accounted for the public's superficiality, and the general indifference such writings are welcome with. In order to understand this text, people need to abandon their preconceptions and attempt to recognize the theme of the poem instead of trying to relate to its words and their normal substance.

Language offers much more freedom than one might think. Kroetsch had clearly discovered this and took advantage of this quality in his poem. Everything seems to be backwards in the writer's world, and this has been made possible through his efforts to confuse his audience by presenting it with a totally new perspective. One can go as far as coming to believe that Kroetsch had attempted to play a prank on readers, in an attempt to prove that everything that they held on to had been questionable.

Whether or not he should be taken for granted is unclear. What is obvious is that the poet has displayed a strong rejection for regular language. Nothing is comprehensible relating to the poem's main theme and it is possible that not even Kroetsch has a solid idea of what it means.

It is very surprising that in spite of the author's nature, his writings are not necessarily written in a caricatured way. His sympathy for the old Canadian West is sometimes distinguishable through the mixture of words that he produces. It is as if he is certain that language can have a strong effect on people, even though he does not use it in the conventional way they expect him to. The poem can be considered to be pretty much dedicated to the Canadian landscape and its inhabitants over time. The stone is eternal in the prairie, it serves several purposes and stands witness to people coming and going. It is of value to some, while for others it is meaningless. The stone hammer had witnessed a great deal of events during its life and is able to tell the history of many happenings.

The writer's work can be related to works of fiction, but the difference is that he truly wants his poem to involve a real story. Considering that his story is broken off in various parts of the poem while the language is supposed to have a different meaning, and that he basically enjoys to invert everything, a sense might be found for the text. At times, it is obvious that the writer intends his poem to have a story, as he maintains an apparent continuity throughout the writing.

The language that Kroetsch uses initially confuses the audience, as the writer wants it to serve as a means of mystification. It is easier to understand the poem by not taking the language present in it for granted and by reversing the meaning of the words. Perhaps the best thing to do about the poet's work is to try and accept it as it is. An endeavor at understanding and translating the text would maybe have disastrous results, both for the reader and for the writer. The mystery, which is representative for Kroetsch, would simply disappear once someone would give a translation for his poem.

Readers are likely to think that the poem is too authoritarian in the beginning. Their inability to understand its meaning when trying to relate to the exact meaning of the words used Kroetsch used would be frustrating. However, this is essentially wrong. The author wants people to feel free and to think what ever they want to instead of limiting themselves to a simple and rather restrained idea at the time they read his poem.

The protagonist in "Surfacing" is to a certain degree comparable to Kroetsch, as she too is discontented with the strict nature of language and with the fact that it does not give people total freedom. The use of language however affects Atwood's creation to a higher degree. It transpires the will to virtually abandon everything related to speech in favor of assuming the attributes of an animal. The narrator feels as if it had not been natural for her to use the conventional way of communication among humans, as it had not been hers to begin with.

The reader is originally led to believe that it is only the American language that she does not favor, but as matters advance it becomes obvious that she is actually referring to language in general. The author does not like people and since she believes language to be a key feature in being human, hence her extreme dislike for language.

Not only does she hate language, but she cannot use it properly when she needs it. Language is unfamiliar to her and she concludes that certain people could talk to her without her being able or willing to have any reaction to their words. Her main goal is to identify herself with nature and she thinks that the only way of doing this is to abandon language.

Kroetsch leaves the impression that he considers conventional language to be a barrier standing in front of those wanting to understand the meaning of things. Similarly, the narrator in "Surfacing" is sure that language is the only thing standing between her and her happiness. She does not enjoy the fact that she has to link objects to words every time she wants to express something. In her opinion, perfection would involve words and objects being as one instead of being separated. Her desire to subject herself to the laws of the animal kingdom is owed to her conviction that animals do not need words in order to relate to objects. Moreover, she is fueled by the thought that the "language barrier" is not present in the animal world, thus allowing the animals to achieve enlightenment through their very nature.