This Is Just To Say Analysis

Often referred to a "found" poem, William Carlos Williams's piece, “This Is Just To Say,” is said to be an apologetic note left for a loved one. Williams tries to disguise the incident within the poem as something minuscule and nonchalant but deeper analysis reveals this poem is an apology for a graver adulterous crime rather than just eating some plums. It’s title and overall structure sets the initial aura of nonchalance and casualness. Although simple, the diction allows the reader to recognize an intimate connection between speaker and reader as well as setting a sensual tone as he describes the plums. Further, biblical allusions connect the plums to the forbidden fruit making them a symbol for adultery. Lastly, not only does the shift of pronouns emphasize the intimate setting but it also creates the lingering feeling of a third party. The poem’s title and its structure promote the initial tone of nonchalance in order to disguise the severity of the author’s adulterous actions. The phrase this is just to say naturally has a sort of apologetic but casual tone and as a title, we can assume that the following piece is going to nonchalantly discuss a petty issue. The word just minimizes any idea that the poem might discuss something as heavy or serious as adultery. When we continue to read the poem, you realize how smoothly the title flows with the rest of the poem which further drives this preconceived notion that the poem is simple an apology note. Moreover, the poem’s visual structure also conveys the tone that this nothing more than a scribbled afterthought through its brevity and airiness. The poem consists of only 12 lines none of which overwhelm the reader being that they’re only two or three words each. But a less literal look at the structure, we can see Williams’s line breaks also create suspense where the reader has to wait for the speaker’s explanation. You have to pause at the end of the line and to let your eye skip down to the next line to know what's coming. All of these little pauses make each little line seem more significant. More interestingly, every stanza after the initial one seems to be written as an afterthought as if the speaker has trouble writing this apology. We then start to see that this might not be just some simple explanation. At a glance, the title and the structure convey the idea that the poem is an insignificant, casual note where the speaker apologizes for a small incident. But as we look further, we get a feeling that this is just a façade that curtains over a hidden, darker occurrence. Moving on to another visually deceitful literary technique, Williams’s simple but specific diction establishes a relationship between speaker and reader shifting to an intimate tone. The speaker of the poem refers to “the plums / the icebox” specifying that the reader is meant to be a certain person who already knows of these two vaguely described items (2-4). …show more content…
The concise and brief exchange of words is a clear indicator that these two people know each other well enough that they don’t need extensive description of the plums and icebox. The speaker also already has prior knowledge that the reader was “saving / the plums / for breakfast” meaning that these two people must have a close enough relationship to know what there future plans are. This vague diction allows the speaker to demonstrate how intimate he is with the speaker. Further, the speaker describes the plums as “so sweet / and so cold” (11-12). There’s something delicate and sensual about describing plums as sweet and cold even more so when the speaker specifically adds “so” to emphasize these two characteristics. Sweet and cold almost makes our mouths water as if we could almost taste the plums. The speaker’s choice of words to describe the plums are also very specific; perhaps the speaker lacks of sweetness and the cold and had to resort to the plums. After close analysis of the speaker’s diction, the plums are made out to be something other than just plums. The shift of pronouns emphasize the intimate setting between speaker and reader,