Poem Response 25

A Noiseless Patient Spider

-Walt Witman

A noiseless, patient spider,
I mark’d, where, on a little promontory, it stood, isolated;
Mark’d how, to explore the vacant, vast surrounding,
It launch’d forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself;
Ever unreeling them—ever tirelessly speeding them.

And you, O my Soul, where you stand,
Surrounded, surrounded, in measureless oceans of space,
Ceaselessly musing, venturing, throwing,—seeking the spheres, to connect them;
Till the bridge you will need, be form’d—till the ductile anchor hold;
Till the gossamer thread you fling, catch somewhere, O my Soul.

Found at: http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/a-noiseless-patient-spider/

“Gossamer” is a cool word. I like it. A lot. And because I didn’t know what it meant, I looked it up! And then found the word “Diaphanous”! Both of which are words that I am now simply waiting around to use!

And no, I’m not going to tell you what they mean. Go look them up yourself. Because it’s fun.

This poem was a bit awkward to read at first, for me at least. Maybe it was the simplest thing in the world for you to read! But for me, it was harder. I finally got the rhythm of it after a bit, and I read it through a second time, and I liked it more after that.

It seems like the author is saying how we must be patient for the things we want, be they situations, opportunities, etc. We have to simply wait for them, and in the mean time, prepare ourselves for the moment when our “gossamer thread…. Catch somewhere” because if we are prepared, we’ll be able to fly with the wind.

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