Poetry Response- Villanelle

Callie Huseman
Jernigan
English 4 AP
22 March 2011
Poetry Response
“The Story We Know”
This poem by Martha Collins in written in the form of a villanelle. This allows the poet to add greater stress to the words “hello” and “goodbye,” when she places them at the end of the repeated lines.
The poet dictates a simple conversation throughout many of the lines. This conversation is the basis of the poem. From here, she is able to expand and show how that conversation is what controls our lives. She takes the view that this conversation is the only real interaction we have and because of this, we know how all of life will end: goodbye.
This is written in a plural first person perspective. This viewpoint is used because it allows the reader to become part of the story. We, like the poet, also live stuck in this simple conversation where nothing changes. The words “we know” are repeated to give a sense that this is common knowledge.
The shift comes just after the 5th stanza. At this point, the tone moves from static understanding to a saddened realization. The first few stanzas are just the simple conversations; however, in the last stanzas, the content shifts to more of a personal experience of how others do not realize that the conversation is always the same.
In short, this poem, a villanelle by Martha Collins, uses repetition, a plural first person perspective, and an obvious shift in tone to convey the idea people never look beyond themselves in to the lives of others.