Non Photo-Blue

OK, so it's Friday morning. I'm late. This is my last week at my job, and of course, it's been hell. But I've had this quote in mind for a bit, so I'm glad to be dropping it now. It's from a poem by Bill Knott.

Your nakedness: the sound when I break an apple in half.

This one's been on my wall for a while, and I'll tell you why. Starting with the first word: Your. Good word. When you read it, it offers a few possibilities. One, is the speaker is talking directly to you. Hey- you! Mr. Reader! You he's got our attention after four letters. Or, it could be the perverbial second person- the speaker could be speaking to "you" as in everyone. As in, "They fuck you at the drive thru." Or another choice: the speaker is addressing a third person- someone we can't see. This one is the most common use of second person in poetry, I think.

Now word two: nakedness. I love this word. It's unusual, and perfect. Our ears are so used to hearing the word nudity instead of nakedness. Of course, nudity's not right at all. Nudity is practically a legal term these days. The first two words have a great rhythm too: your NA-ked-ness. Soft, stress, soft, soft. And ked-ness, the same vowel sound repeated sounds like a murmur. the "k" is harsh, followed by the "n" consonant, a much softer one. Sounds nice, and also unusual.

Moving on: the sound. Well, it's good he mentions sound here, because that exactly what I've focused on in this line. The connection is dramatic, nakedness and sound. We're immediately mixing sensibilities. It's not exactly mixing up sense of sight and sound. "Nakedness" does typically call an image to mind, but it does so much more than that. It's a concept; a feeling. Nakedness can be sexual, or a matter of insecurity. Nakedness is without protection. Knott is wrapping that all up and hooking it to a very tangible sensation: a sound.

What's the sound? It's the break of the apple. The key word here is break. Again, it ends on that harsh, "k" sound. You feel the crack when you say the word. There's the sexual tension in that image- breaking an apple, ripping open fruit. And ending on half: suggesting a split- of people, of a relationship. The sound of nakedness suggests the inevitability of separation, and yet, the separation is satisfying. What a great sound that is, to be ripped in half. The lines contains a great musicality and duality. It does a lot in a short space.

Plus, it has a colon. Colons are great.

I have to go walk the dog now, so I'm done.