I Ask You by Billy Collins

Being a student of English, I have to take the course of Literature. The first and important aspect of Literature is Poetry and this is the very first poem we have to analyse. I decided to share what I think of this poem with you guys. Hope it is helpful to you.

First stanza

* The whole stanza is one big rhetorical question, where the poet tells of his intentions of changing his current predicament.

* The poet adopts the persona  of someone who likes to write and based on his emotions or mood in the latter part of the poem, it's safe to assume that he, after all, is just a poet in this poem as well.

* The atmosphere of the first stanza is of boredom; as if, the poet is tired of his surrounding and wishes to change it.

* The verse "floral wallpapers pressing in" is the metaphor  of his frustrations with the regular setting.

* The verses such as "white cabinets full of glass" and "the telephone silent" are also the analogies of the poet's loneliness or isolation.

Second stanza

* The stanza repeats the isolated mood of the previous verses but this time, the setting is outdoors. It also shows the careless attitude of the poet as the outdoors seem to be forgotten to be taken care of.

* The poet uses metaphors  to explain the passing of time and people moving on in the last couple of lines of the second stanza.

* Tone of the verses is dreary and vacant, showing how tired the poet seems to be.

* Imagery is sad and pensive.

Third stanza

* Authorial intention changes in this stanza as he suddenly realizes that he has everything he needs and he doesn't need to change anything.

* The verses "not even a job ... with cracked green leather seats" are the symbols of his contentment with his current situation and his satisfaction with his "table". He means that he doesn't need a car, no matter how cheap it is, since he is already happy with his "table". The lines also hints that for a poet, his writing materials are all that he needs. He doesn't need the luxury or comfort a common man yearns as he is already comfortable with his writing instruments.

Fourth stanza

* The verses are written in figurative language to explain the atmosphere of this stanza. In fact, the whole poem uses figurative language.

* The tone of these verses are of fullness and gratification, since the poet is appeased with what he owns. In fact, this time he describes his surrounding with new zeal.

* The verses "these three candles ... singing in perfect harmony" shows that the mood of the setting is now harmonious. The poet refers to this by the above mentioned metaphor of three candles singing. Candles cannot sing but the poet finds their soft crackle as good as music.

Last stanza

* The poet uses the words "short bass candle" as a hyperbole to explain his harmonious situation. Again, he compares the soft, almost inaudible squeak of the candle to create a thoughtful atmosphere to describe his state of peace in his surrounding.

* He hints at a little excitement in this stanza via the verses "while my heart/thrums under my shirt --".

* The poet asks for forgiveness not because he has committed any mistake. Rather he excuses himself from his readers as he hints that now he will be busy imagining new things with a fresh mind.

* The verses of the last stanza depicts a lonely setting, just like before, but this time with a more rousing perspective, since the poet, who once loathed and got frustrated with loneliness, finally begins to enjoy it.

Remarks: The authorial intention of this poem over-all is to tell the readers that a poet or a writer finds his happiness and satisfaction within his writing instruments and a contemplative atmosphere. All the riches in the world cannot give him the pleasure like a simple "writing table" gives him.

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