Szymborska's Exploration into Individuality:
Similar to many of Wislawa Szymborska's poems, “Possibilities” addresses the topic of human existence. As a result of her experiences during World War II, Szymborska, a native of Poland, offers a unique perspective on life. In “Possibilities,” Szymborska takes on the difficult task of describing the abstract concept of human individuality. Through her wisdom and intellect, she leads the reader into an exploration of individuality. The poem’s the lack of stanzas and rhyme schemes create tones that mimic the natural disorder of life, a feeling that Szymborska is very familiar with. Szymborska creatively uses preferences to create a unique, individualized speaker that the reader can relate to. Her ability …show more content…
Szymborska's repetition of “I prefer” at the beginning of each line can be observed throughout the whole poem. Through this repetition, the speaker’s vast amounts of preferences are displayed. Each preference offers the reader a glimpse into the life of the speaker. In line 3, the speaker states, “I prefer the oaks along the Warta.” By mentioning the Warta, a river that runs through Poland, this line suggests that the speaker may be of Polish origin. Although this detail is simple, it serves an important purpose. On Earth there are billions of other individuals. Most likely, the majority of them do not “prefer the oaks along the Warta” (3). By characterizing the speaker as someone who does, Szymborska highlights the speaker’s individuality. This preference makes the speaker unique. In “Possibilities,” the speaker expresses 31 distinct preferences. Each one of these begins with the statement “I prefer.” Szymborska also uses anaphora to emphasize the speaker's strong sense of self. By using the words “I prefer,” the speaker claims ownership of his/her words. This willingness to take ownership demonstrates speaker’s confidence and strong sense of self. Throughout the entirety of the poem, the speaker’s uniqueness, individuality, and confidence are emphasized through anaphora. These three characteristics result from the speaker’s vast amount of …show more content…
In “Possibilities,” there are only seven examples of enjambment. As a result of this exclusivity, these lines are more significant. In addition to exclusivity, these lines have more significance because they are more meaningful. For example, the speaker’s statement “I prefer myself liking people/to myself loving mankind” (5-6). Compared to the previous un-enjambed line, “I prefer Dickens to Dostoyevsky,” (4) lines five and six are much more insightful. While line four establishes that the speaker is well read, it does not reveal any intellect. In “Possibilities” the majority of the speaker’s preferences are more similar to line four. These un-enjambed lines serve to establish simple characteristics and minor facts about the speaker. For example lines such as “I prefer movies” (1), “ I prefer cats” (2), and “ I prefer desk drawers” (28) give the reader some information about the speaker, but lack depth and meaning. When analyzed as single lines, these lines appear trivial. However, these lines contribute a great amount of significance to the poem when in unison with the remaining lines. When analyzed as a whole, the 39-line poem showcases the complexity of an individual. Szymborska uses enjambment to express the profound preferences of the speaker, while the
Similar to many of Wislawa Szymborska's poems, “Possibilities” addresses the topic of human existence. As a result of her experiences during World War II, Szymborska, a native of Poland, offers a unique perspective on life. In “Possibilities,” Szymborska takes on the difficult task of describing the abstract concept of human individuality. Through her wisdom and intellect, she leads the reader into an exploration of individuality. The poem’s the lack of stanzas and rhyme schemes create tones that mimic the natural disorder of life, a feeling that Szymborska is very familiar with. Szymborska creatively uses preferences to create a unique, individualized speaker that the reader can relate to. Her ability …show more content…
Szymborska's repetition of “I prefer” at the beginning of each line can be observed throughout the whole poem. Through this repetition, the speaker’s vast amounts of preferences are displayed. Each preference offers the reader a glimpse into the life of the speaker. In line 3, the speaker states, “I prefer the oaks along the Warta.” By mentioning the Warta, a river that runs through Poland, this line suggests that the speaker may be of Polish origin. Although this detail is simple, it serves an important purpose. On Earth there are billions of other individuals. Most likely, the majority of them do not “prefer the oaks along the Warta” (3). By characterizing the speaker as someone who does, Szymborska highlights the speaker’s individuality. This preference makes the speaker unique. In “Possibilities,” the speaker expresses 31 distinct preferences. Each one of these begins with the statement “I prefer.” Szymborska also uses anaphora to emphasize the speaker's strong sense of self. By using the words “I prefer,” the speaker claims ownership of his/her words. This willingness to take ownership demonstrates speaker’s confidence and strong sense of self. Throughout the entirety of the poem, the speaker’s uniqueness, individuality, and confidence are emphasized through anaphora. These three characteristics result from the speaker’s vast amount of …show more content…
In “Possibilities,” there are only seven examples of enjambment. As a result of this exclusivity, these lines are more significant. In addition to exclusivity, these lines have more significance because they are more meaningful. For example, the speaker’s statement “I prefer myself liking people/to myself loving mankind” (5-6). Compared to the previous un-enjambed line, “I prefer Dickens to Dostoyevsky,” (4) lines five and six are much more insightful. While line four establishes that the speaker is well read, it does not reveal any intellect. In “Possibilities” the majority of the speaker’s preferences are more similar to line four. These un-enjambed lines serve to establish simple characteristics and minor facts about the speaker. For example lines such as “I prefer movies” (1), “ I prefer cats” (2), and “ I prefer desk drawers” (28) give the reader some information about the speaker, but lack depth and meaning. When analyzed as single lines, these lines appear trivial. However, these lines contribute a great amount of significance to the poem when in unison with the remaining lines. When analyzed as a whole, the 39-line poem showcases the complexity of an individual. Szymborska uses enjambment to express the profound preferences of the speaker, while the