Brahma
If the red slayer think he slays,
Or if the slain think he is slain,
They know not well the subtle ways
I keep, and pass, and turn again.Far or forgot to me is near;
Shadow and sunlight are the same;
The vanished gods to me appear;
And one to me are shame and fame.They reckon ill who leave me out;
When me they fly, I am the wings;
I am the doubter and the doubt,
And I the hymn the Brahmin sings.The strong gods pine for my abode,
And pine in vain the sacred Seven;
But thou, meek lover of the good!
Find me, and turn thy back on heaven.
Summary of Brahma
- Popularity of “Brahma”: This pithy poem about man’s unity with the universe was written by a popular American poetic icon, Ralph Waldo Emerson. He is stated to have composed it in 1856 but the poem appeared in a publication, the Atlantic, a year later in 1857. The poem beautifully presents his views about himself as an entity, a representative of humanity, having every role to play. The popularity of the poem lies in the presentation of this philosophy of transcendentalism.
- “Brahma” As a Representative of Transcendentalism: Making the language as the tool of expression, the poet presents the first-person speaker who plays with the words slayer, slays, and slain, saying that he himself is everything this word represents as a noun, verb or even adjective. The speaker states that he has the insight to see vanished gods that appear in the shape of “shame and fame.” He further argues that when others think that they have left him out, they see that actually, it is he who is present in everything, whether it is a doubter or the doubt.
He even claims that the hymn the Brahmin sings is another shape of his existence. He claims that even gods who go in search of the sacred Seven, the major principles of Hinduism, feel the pain of finding their abode. Presenting this premise, he argues that if a meeker lover is to find the good on this earth, he must turn back from heaven to him to find it out. This shows the inherent goodness of man and his unity with the heavenly powers. - Major Themes in “Brahma”: Man’s inherent goodness, unity with the universe, and man’s central status in the world are three major thematic strands of “Brahma.” He argues about man’s unity in the universe in that he is the slayer, the slain, and the one who slays. In this way, he lives in everything, whether it is a god or a natural element or even an abstract idea such as “the doubt” or “the good.” This also shows man’s inherent goodness as well as man’s central position in the scheme of this world. Whenever a person needs direction to do good, he must turn to a man and not heaven. Even the heavenly entities represented by gods are actually lying deep in the heart of the man who does not need any intermediary to reach these deities. This shows how Emerson dilates upon his philosophy of the divine and man’s place in the universe.
Analysis of Literary Devices Used in Brahma
Ralph Waldo Emerson’s skills in using literary devices have no parallel in poetic writing. Some of the major literary devices used by him are as follows.
- Allusion: It means to give reference from history, literature, religion, or culture to relate things and point out the significance of such references. The poem shows the use of allusions to Brahmin and the sacred Seven to show the poet’s knowledge of Hinduism.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /a/ in “If the red slayer think he slays” and the sound of /o/ in “Far or forgot to me is near.”
- Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line in quick successions, such as the sound of /s/ in “sacred Seven.” However, some commentators also call terms having an intervention of single or double-lettered words in them as alliterations if they have the same initial consonant sounds, such as “Far or forgot” which shows the use of /f/.
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /t and w/ in “They know not well the subtle ways” and the sound of /f/ in “Far or forgot to me is near.”
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. Ralph Waldo Emerson used imagery in this poem, such as “Far or forgot to me is near”, “The vanished gods to me appear” and “They reckon ill who leave me out.”
- Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between objects different in nature. The poet has used different metaphors, such as “I am the wings” and “I the hymn the Brahmin sings” to show that the poet claims to be a bird as well as a hymn. Or he compares himself to a bird or a written sacred prayer.
- Parallelism: It means the use of parallel phrases or clauses. The poem used parallelism, such as “When me they fly, I am the wings.” It has an equal number of words in both clauses.
- Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from the literal meanings. The poem shows symbols such as slayer, shadow, sunlight, wings, Brahmin, and sacred Sevel to show man’s centrality in the universe.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in Brahma
Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is an analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.
- Diction: It means the type of language. The poem shows very good use of formal and poetic diction.
- End Rhyme: End rhyme is used to make the stanza melodious. Ralph Waldo Emerson used end rhyme in this poem, such as slays/ways and slain/again.
- Quatrain: A quatrain is a four-lined stanza borrowed from Persian poetry. Here each stanza is quatrain.
- Rhyme Scheme: The poem follows an ABAB rhyme scheme, and this pattern continues until the end.
- Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. There are four stanzas in this poem, with each comprising four verses.
- Tone: It means the voice of the text. The poem shows a philosophical, religious, and dedicated tone.
Quotes to be Used
The following lines are useful to quote about the inherent goodness of the people.
The strong gods pine for my abode,
And pine in vain the sacred Seven;
But thou, meek lover of the good!
Find me, and turn thy back on heaven.