Analysis Of The Couple By Mark Strand

Imagine leaning against a single tree in a warm, sunny meadow surrounded by nothing but the sounds of nature when, suddenly, you are confronted by your deepest fear in such a surreal way, that questioning it would be trivial. One of two things would occur at this point: either your situation would spiral into irreversible chaos, or you would realize you are in the general outline of a Mark Strand poem. This method of juxtaposing absurd instances of insight with serious personal struggle is something Strand is well-known for and is especially prevalent in one of his later collections entitled The Continuous Life. His use of this tactic throughout this collection allows him to delve into such themes as death, loss, age, and insecurity in way that is unobtrusive to the reader and could …show more content…
Specifically, the minimalistic approach Strand takes in developing its major themes of death and insecurity is refined through his use of surrealist shifts in storytelling, which obligate the reader to process both absurdity and reality as one, thus, releasing them from the requirement of conditioned reaction and allowing them to explore various, unrelated emotional avenues to form an opinion. The themes presented within “The Couple” can be best be broken down into two categories—insecurity and death—and are developed with a series of unlikelihoods throughout the poem. The first, insecurity, is exemplified by both parts of the couple. Jane, the female counterpart, is a naïve woman who, after a fruitless night of partying, is stumbled upon by the male counterpart of the couple, John—an older man experiencing unhappiness due to the mundanity of his nine-to-five, married life. As a result of their situations, they both feel the pang of insecurity which leads to the first unlikelihood: a spontaneous sexual encounter taking place upon the tracks of a dirty, city subway. While it is not an impossible situation, it is highly unlikely to happen outside of the