"l(a" is a

poem Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings in ...

E. E. Cummings Edward Estlin Cummings, who was also known as E. E. Cummings, e. e. cummings and e e cummings (October 14, 1894 - September 3, 1962), was an American poet, painter, essayist, author and playwright. He wrote approximately 2,900 poems, two autobi ...

. It is the first poem in his 1958 collection '' 95 Poems''. "l(a" is arranged vertically in groups of one to five letters. When the text is laid out horizontally, it either reads as ''l(a leaf falls)oneliness'' —in other words, ''a leaf falls'' inserted between the first two letters of ''loneliness''- or ''l(a le af fa ll s) one l iness'', with ''a le af fa ll s'' between a ''l'' and ''one''. Cummings biographer Richard S. Kennedy calls the poem "the most delicately beautiful literary construct that Cummings ever created".

Analysis

In analyzing the poem, Robert DiYanni notes that the image of a single falling

leaf A leaf ( : leaves) is any of the principal appendages of a vascular plant stem, usually borne laterally aboveground and specialized for photosynthesis. Leaves are collectively called foliage, as in "autumn foliage", while the leaves, ste ...

is a common symbol for

loneliness Loneliness is an unpleasant emotional response to perceived isolation. Loneliness is also described as social paina psychological mechanism which motivates individuals to seek social connections. It is often associated with a perceived lack ...

, and that this sense of loneliness is enhanced by the structure of the poem. He writes that the fragmentation of the words "illustrates visually the separation that is the primary cause of loneliness". The fragmentation of the word ''loneliness'' is especially significant, since it highlights the fact that that word contains the word ''one''. In addition, the isolated letter ''l'' can initially appear to be the numeral one. It creates the effect that the leaf is still one, or "oneliness" whole within itself, even after it is isolated from the tree. Robert Scott Root-Bernstein observes that the overall shape of the poem resembles a 1.

Adaptations

Composers who have set this poem to music include: *

Peter Schickele "Professor" Peter Schickele (; born July 17, 1935) is an American composer, musical educator, and parodist, best known for comedy albums featuring his music, but which he presents as being composed by the fictional P. D. Q. Bach. He also hosted ...

in “Dim/l(a” (1967), for SATB chorus a cappella. * Maurice Wright in “l(a” (1978), for SSA chorus, trumpet, violoncello and piano.

References

External links

An Analysis of Two Poems by E.E. Cummings—An Essay by Iain Landles
{{E. E. Cummings 1958 poems Poetry by E. E. Cummings American poems Modernist poems