Lana Turner Has Collapsed Analysis - Literary devices and Poetic devices

Lana Turner Has Collapsed

By Frank Ohara

Lana Turner has collapsed!
I was trotting along and suddenly
it started raining and snowing
and you said it was hailing
but hailing hits you on the head
hard so it was really snowing and
raining and I was in such a hurry
to meet you but the traffic
was acting exactly like the sky
and suddenly I see a headline
LANA TURNER HAS COLLAPSED!
there is no snow in Hollywood
there is no rain in California
I have been to lots of parties
and acted perfectly disgraceful
but I never actually collapsed
oh Lana Turner we love you get up

Summary of Lana Turner Has Collapsed

Popularity of “Lana Turner Has Collapsed”: Written by Frank O’Hara, a lover of pop culture and a great poetic soul of the United States, the poem “Lara Turner Has Collapsed” is a beautifully funny poem. It first appeared in his collection, Lunch Poems, published in 1964. The poem presents the poet’s view about the headline of a celebrity’s collapse and an ordinary poet’s reaction. The popularity of the poem lies in the blend of fun and frolic with seriousness and tragedy.
“Lana Turner Has Collapsed” As a Representative of Celebrity Gossip and Lightheartedness: The poet, who happens to be the speaker, shows his love for celebrity, popularity, and glamour of Hollywood. He starts his poem with Lana Turner collapsing to show that the subject matter is very serious but it turns out fun that he starts narrating the details of his trotting and rain falling without snow and hail. Then he talks about the traffic and suddenly sees the headline of Lana Turner collapsing. He again talks about the rain, parties, and nights of California to show that it is all fun but in the midst of this fun the collapse of Lana Turner has come in handy to touch his poetic nerves and write the poem. Despite the simplicity of the details and gossiping about a celebrity, the poem shows the use of a lighthearted tone of the poet.
Major Themes in “Lana Turner Has Collapsed”: Glamor, celebrity obsession, and lightheartedness are three major themes of the poem. The poet talks about glamor in the very first line. It shows that the poet is fully immersed in the life of superstars and Hollywood, which is the reason that he has made them the subject of his poetry. He is also obsessed with celebrity status and knows that the collapse of Lana Turner would be a headline. That is why he mentions it specifically after giving details of the traffic, his walk, and the rain. This entire description and narration show his love for lightheartedness in touching very high and very low moments in a day to show that life will go on in the same way.

Analysis of Literary Devices Used in Lana Turner Has Collapsed

Frank Ohara has used various literary devices to enhance the intended impact of this poem. Some of the major literary devices used here are as follows.

Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /a/ in “it started raining and snowing” and the sound of /o/ in “I was trotting along and suddenly.”
Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line in quick succession, such as the sound of /h/ in “hailing hits.”
Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /t/ in “I have been to lots of parties” and the sound of /s/ in “and suddenly I see a headline.”
Enjambment: It is defined as a thought in verse that does not come to an end at a line break; rather, it rolls over to the next line. For example;

I have been to lots of parties
and acted perfectly disgraceful
but I never actually collapsed
oh Lana Turner we love you get up

Irony: Irony is a figure of speech in which words are used in such a way that their intended meaning is different from the actual meaning of the words. The poem is full of irony as the collapse of Lana Turner has become the subject of this poem with several other unimportant things when life is very difficult.
Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. Frank Ohara has used imagery in this poem such as “and you said it was hailing”, “was acting exactly like the sky” and “was acting exactly like the sky.”
Simile: It is a direct comparison of two things to make readers understand the thing being compared, such as “to meet you but the traffic / was acting exactly like the sky.” These verses show the use of a simile.
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 like rain, hailing, snowing, and traffic as signs of busy urban life.

Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in Lana Turner Has Collapsed

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 and Tone: Diction means the type of language, and tone means the voice of the text. The poem shows easy and simple diction with a light and funny tone.
Free Verse: It means to use verses without any rhyme scheme or metrical pattern. This poem shows the use of free verse.

Quotes to be Used

The following lines are useful to quote when talking about the world of glamor, showing one’s interest.