By: Theodore Roethke
I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow.
I feel my fate in what I cannot fear.
I learn by going where I have to go.
We think by feeling. What is there to know?
I hear my being dance from ear to ear.
I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow.
Of those so close beside me, which are you?
God bless the ground! I shall walk softly there,
And learn by going where I have to go.
Light takes the tree; but who can tell us how?
The lowly worm climbs up a winding stair;
I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow.
Great Nature has another thing to do
To you and me; so take the lively air,
And, lovely, learn by going where to go.
This shaking keeps me steady. I should know.
What falls away is always. And is near.
I wake to sleep, and take my waking slow.
I learn by going where I have to go.
A. INTRODUCTION
The waking by Theodore Roethke consists optimism feeling strongly appears in this line for instance having a certain purpose of life by enjoying with feeling of fate. Besides, this poem teach us how mortal is life and the immortal of the death.
B. BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF THE AUTHOR
Roethke was born in Saginaw, Michigan, on May 25, 1908. Much of his childhood was spent in and around the greenhouse owned jointly by his father and his uncle. It is not surprising, then, that his poetry shows a familiarity with and knowledge of growing things and a reverence for life in all forms, large and small. Theodore Roethke wrote of his poetry: The greenhouse "is my symbol for the whole of life, a womb, a heaven-on-earth." Roethke drew inspiration from his childhood experiences of working in his family's Saginaw floral company. Beginning is 1941 with Open House, the distinguished poet and teacher published extensively, receiving a Pulitzer Prize for poetry and two National Book Awards among an array of honors. “The Waking” is the final poem in the collection The Waking (1953), for which Theodore Roethke received the Pulitzer Prize in poetry in 1954. Two key lines that contain the theme of the poem are repeated alternately at the end of each stanza and then again together in the last stanza. The title suggests. In 1959 Pennsylvania University awarded him the prestigious Bollingen Prize. Roethke taught at Michigan State College, (present-day Michigan State University) and at colleges in Pennsylvania and Vermont, before joining the faculty of the University of Washington at Seattle in 1947. Roethke died in Washington in 1963.
C. THE ETERNITY OF DEATH IN THEODORE ROETHKE’S “THE WAKING”
The waking tells us about the life that is symbolize by “waking” from the first stanza we know that we born, we life in this world to face the death namely “sleep”. After us “wake” (born) in this world we should be careful and do not careless in waking decision. We should not fear to the fate because fate has determined by God to us. But we should try and seriously endeavor to search the right way. Whatever will be we should do good things because everything well be judged and we have to be responsibility to our deed.
The second stanza tells us me should think first before doing something. We should use our thinking in understanding the symbol of life. We should consider our activities in this life whether air activities are good or not. We always account our “dance” (our speech, attitude, behavior, and feeling) from ear to ear namely day by day either past or future we should be careful cause we weak to sleep. We should introspect to ourselves. We need think more about our happiness and do not forget our God when we feel happy.
The third stanza tells us all our activities so close whit us. Because used to mange our activities. Our train our thinking and everything we should think twice about our deeds because God has created the ground for us. Those obligate to use everything in this world in appropriate way. Besides that we should learn and do what we should do to get a better life with we break the rule of God about goodness, truth, justice and so on.
The forth Stanza sell us God crated the beautiful of creation like tree, worm and everything in this world either animate or unanimated. All of creation has it own special function to complete each other but no one can think about the supreme substance of God. None of the creation perfects. We can learn from worm than can climbs up a winding stair it means although small thing can participate in this world to beautify the life. So we should more wise and careful in taking the future of life.
The fifth stanza tell us move about the great creation of God. The beautiful nature should be used to fulfill the daily needs of human being. We should thanks to God who as gives us opportunity to life in this world. Only by his blessing we can enjoy the world take a breath as much as possible without paying, use available creation (world) as we want by using the science and knowledge. But we should aware that in using the facilities we must use as the appropriate usage without hurting the creation and waste the time and also.
The sixth stanza tell us more about the beautifully life “this shaking keeps me steady”. Everything that happened to us makes us better than ever before. It’s mean everything what we do in this life for the sake of the future life “here after” because death is unpredictable and we can die every time and every where when God determined. From those explanations we know that death coming “I learn by going where I have to go”. I try to do the activities according for the rule that I should obey goodness, truth and purposes to the God Blessing. So we are never afraid of death.
Roethke’s “The Waking” express the eternity of death. It seems from the first stanza “I wake to sleep” this paradox shows us that bow short life is. To sleep is to acquire the vision that releases us from the involvement of our intellect and helps us drift into the acceptance of our fate. It should be wake to do a certain activities but here –the speaker- really understand that life is mortal and will ended sometimes. The contrast between “wake” and “sleep” namely how strong the power of death that brings to eternity while the life is limited time to do, to think and to feel about world. Life is a long process to face the death. The repetition of these lines gradually unfolds the meaning of the poem. The lines weave in and out through this short poem like an incantation. We follow the movement of waking and going, waking and going, until we feel like a leaf caught in the current of the lines and the words. The life also a repetition action when we do the daily activities we do the routine action until we expert in doing something. Life is such a process to understand the meaning of life that is actually really mortal while death will come to us as we do in this world.
The speaker begins by contrasting the “fear” and with “fate” namely that fate is unavoidable. This effect leads us from one verse to the next in a kind of endless movement that suggests the perpetual cycle from birth to death. It is hard to imagine another form that would express this cyclical movement more effectively than the villanelle. “I feel my fate in what I can not fear”. Normally, we fear fate because it is unknown, because it cannot be felt or anticipated. By feeling fate rather than fearing it, you accept it rather than resist it. How short life is when the fate comes to pick up the death we should be ready because we life do die, to prepare everything for the eternity and not gives up in our life although how short life is. Optimism of life and survive should be exist no matter what will happen. Feeling the fate means that understanding the journey of the life and enjoying every single situation with a great desire to improve and to find the real meaning inside.
To prove that the life is mortal and death is eternity –the speaker- used the world, “I wake sleep, take my waking slow, walk softly, learn by doing, shaking keeps me steady and also “what falls away is always. And is near” (last stanza, line 2). This sentence is very important because known the life is short we should carefully in enjoying and passing the life by walk softly (careful and not in hurry in deeding a problem). Thinking wisely in every decision and action that passes day by day will grasp the better effect of life. It is continuing by learn by going (try to understand and strengthen the purpose of life by going to the eternity of death). The event that coming continuously like a problem that comes to the people like the raining that comes without prediction and invitation teach people to be wiser and strengthen every steps that the people take.
As another strengthen the purpose of life, the eternity of death is “lights takes the tree” but who can tell us how”. When the death is comes who can run away? No one can refuse death and no one can understand why the life is ended because the fate comes to pick up the mortal to the immortal one to be responsible everything that is done in mortal period.
“Stressing although life is limited but it’s full of beauty creation of God available to complete the activity in daily life although time is interknit should be used in a good account and enjoy it as good as possible it is reflected with” Great nature has another thing to do … so take the lively air, And Lovely…”, it means although God will ask the responsibility but the provide the world to explore and to do a certain activity that makes people can survive and find happiness.
Optimism of life also reflected in this poem. “This shaking keeps me steady” (last stanza Line 1). What’s happened in this life is to test how strong we are success and failure comes and goes. But although we fall away it should have a hidden meaning and a certain advantage for the future since we can use it as a bridge to the brilliant result and sometimes we can say “blessing in disguise” toward perfect people.
The shaking keeps me steady” this paradox show us that by getting “shaking”, test, difficulties and also problem leads people to be stronger than ever before not gives up and falls away because everything and every silver has its lining.
“The carefulness of life and doing the activity to support that death is eternity, “I take my waking show”, it means the good purpose of life namely death and reaching happiness eternity makes the speaker wise in making decision by thinking the result and the effect of working. It is also strengthen by “I learn by going where I have to go”. I should understand to try to do the activities as good as possible by doing the best as the speaker can in the rule of God and in the way of God.
“Learning where to go” is a good consul a good advice to do everything in appropriate way. To be the right man on the right way is the writer hope. Learn to do the good deeds avoiding something that useful and in vain for the life even some artificial purpose to get moment happiness by sacrifice the real happiness the eternity happiness.
The whole sentences of poem tends to express ho strong death is and how eternity death is. It seem whether short or long life is, life will ends when death comes so whatever will be although life is limited we should be use this life by the best way as we can and we should prepare for the real happiness namely ready to welcome death whenever it comes because the death is eternity of life.
D. CONCLUSION
When a poem takes dead aim on the eternal we should not be surprised that it draws many interpretations. Paradox that used in “The Waking” to raise the curiosity of the reader because the language that used will be challenging. “The Waking told us that we should face the life carefully not in hurry in making decision and being wise facing the life because how long life is actually very short. It is different from the death although its coming is mysterious but it is eternal. The eternal of death demand us to do good things for the sake of happiness in the hereafter. The Poem really strengthen the important of good deeds in this life in order getting happiness after the death.
The others message of the poems are:
- Life is a very short time if compared to the death. It has the process that never predicted from the birth, child, teenager, adult and death will comes to each person based on the determination of the God.
- Life can not be predicted life only can understand by feeling and passing the life itself without fear.
- We should prepare for life as good as possible cause death can not avoided by everyone so we have to make a certain purpose of our life to support every activity.
- Every one should be responsible all of the deeds because every activity will judge in the day judgment.
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