Analyzing Apollinaire's "Landscape"

The most intriguing aspect of Apollinaire's work is the visual dynamism of his poetry. Looking at the four individual pieces in the larger aptly-titled "Landscape" each poem exists as its own small entirely self-contained piece and as a fragment in the larger work. There is a whimsy in the writing that one could argue is inherent in such visual poetry; the "lovers lying together" poem is a human body with its arms and legs splayed in exuberance, which betrays the dark tone of the piece itself where the narrator claims the lovers he sees "will separate my members" (Apollinaire, "Landscape").

The house-shaped poem that discusses mansions, stars and divinities has its own self-referential air, and there is a delightful irony in the fact that a poem discussing stars (inherently boundless and infinite) and divinities (vague, ephemeral entities with no shape or form) are so rigidly constricted by the form of the poem. Though it is difficult to see how the poem is supposed to be read--up-down or left-right--this is part of the point. It is a poem to be read with a certain degree of ambiguity because the content of the poem is ambiguity; a mansion which, while grandiose, is still bound in its size and dimensions, serves as a place to create the limitless.

The tree-shaped poem is rather straightforward and its shape reflects the content in a direct way. Frankly I find it the least interesting of the four, though it serves a purpose in "Landscape" by acting as the second nature-based piece in which something from nature is discussed (the mansion piece discusses stars and is the first nature-based piece.).

Finally "A lighted cigarette smokes" reflects idleness and contemplation. The letters rise away from a straight and formal line and drift off like cigarette smoke would be expected to do. It is very eastern in its succinct and concise nature, reflecting the Japanese haiku in its simple yet timeless essence.