Theme of Marrige in Ciardi's poems

A detailed Summary of Theme of Marrige in Ciardi's poems

The most universal ritual symbolizing a sacred union of a man and a woman, marriage, may be expressed by the joining of hands, an exchange of rings or chains, by the tying of garments, or by the symbol of an archway. Historically, the church has deemed marriage as a lifelong and sacred union that could be dissolved only by the death of one of the spouses. John Ciardi seems to capture the basic theme of marriage and the unification of two beings by using imagery and tone in his poems "Most Like an Arch This Marriage" and "Men Marry What They Need."

Ciardi's "Most Like an Arch This Marriage," describes marriage as an archway that can stand against the forces of nature and gain its strength from two pillars that come to one point: "...It is by falling in and in we make the all-bearing point."(909) Ciardi seems to be describing the archway that often appears on top of a wedding cake. That archway stands as a symbol of unity, renewal, perfection, and as a symbol of hope.

The dictionary describes an arch as "...a typically curved structural member spanning

While both of Ciardi's poems are similar in theme and tone, the imagery in "Men Marry..." is quite different. The reader can see a couple that has been married for a while but every new day is a new beginning. The couple live "...by the spitting shore" (30) and as long as they have each other nothing can break down their "...walls of skin and struts of bone."(30)

In "Men Marry What They Need" Ciardi still is talking about the theme of marriage, but he digs deeper into the soul to tell us that men need woman because they need someone to look up to,someone to care for, and someone to take care of them. The reader gets this feeling of need when "Men marry their queen, their daughter, or their mother / by hidden names, but that thin buzz whines through."(30) Similar to "Most Like an Arch This Marriage,""Men Marry What They Need" still gives the reader a sense of unification. "...Inside our walls of skin and struts of bone, / man-woman, woman-man, and each the other." tells the reader that a married couple lives together as one person, each knowing the other's th

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Approximate Word count = 719
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Miscellaneous

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