Monet's Waterlilies

Today as the news from Selma and Saigon
poisons the air like fallout,
I come again to see
the serene, great picture that I love.

Here space and time exist in light
the eye like the eye of faith believes.
The seen, the known
dissolve in iridescence, become
illusive flesh of light
that was not, was, forever is.

O light beheld as through refracting tears.
Here is the aura of that world
each of us has lost.
Here is the shadow of its joy.

Commentary: “Monet's Waterlilies” is about the Mr.Hayden escaping the world of war and devastation, from the famous war torn country of Vietnam and even Civil Rights, by visiting his favorite piece of art: “Monet's Waterlilies”. “Monet's Waterlilies,” by Robert Hayden, is a very thoughtful and reflective poem.  In this piece, he demonstrates metaphor, in the line, “the scene, and the known/dissolve in iridescence, become /illusive flesh of light”. In another he shows how similes can be use by using the line “the eye like the eye of faith believes”, also personification as seen in line 1 and 2 when he writes “...news from Selma and Saigon/poisons the air like fallout.” He is talking about a famous painting; this work of art is a master piece and a thing of gorgeousness with a personality of an angle. This is more than a painting of a simple pacaso, this painting holds precious memories and history He doesn’t use a specific pattern for line breaks, but it seems like he starts a new line whenever he begins a new idea. This poem affects a lot of because mostly everyone has that one special place the go to escape their negative thoughts and clear their head to think about life in itself.