Thoughts on “Donelson”
In contrast to the majority opinion, “Donelson” was the one poem that I understood the most out of those that we read for Friday’s class. I felt like I was reading a story, and even though it was long, there was a lot of emotion portrayed through the reactions of the townspeople to reading the news. I felt myself constantly comparing how Melville describes the way the villagers received the news updates to how we receive them today. Judging by the times written above each italic stanza, it seemed that the news from the battle was coming in pretty quickly and the crowds of people that waited for the post on the bulletin board showed the importance of the immediacy of news during that time. It seemed that Melville was careful to describe each event with great detail and accuracy, which allowed the reader to feel like they are part of the crowd, awaiting the next update. The change between regular type and italics made the poem seem like it was being read by many different voices as opposed to one narrator. This contrast also helped the reader immerse themselves into the poem.
I actually agree with you, unfortunately when I first read Donnelson, I didn’t understand the format, so I lost myself before I could even read the poem for its true self. Once Professor Phillips interpreted and helped explain how Donnelson is and what it is saying, I re-read the poem again and could feel the anticipation from the people who needed to know the news, and how hard it might have been back then to get news. All people could do was believe the first batch of information that gets sent in. And it hit my heart pretty hard reading those last lines, knowing that even though our side won, who actually lost?
While “Donelson” was the longest of the poems I too agree that the story line was easiest to follow. I did wonder why the majority of the poem was written in italics though. Why was it not the other way around?
I think Melville chose to italicize the part of the poem that articulated the postings on the town bulletin board to convey an understanding of dimensionality and articulate that while one story was happening in real time, the other had already occurred. Melville solidified the immediate action of the townspeople by keeping that font clear and concise. The change in font between both story lines also alludes to the notion of a second voice, giving the poem its own sense of depth and tension. Though often reliable, this bulletin board was the only source of news civilians could obtain concerning the war and their loved ones involved. Compared to the clarity of the original font, the italics portray a sense of uncertainty that is consistent throughout the poem. This uncertainty alludes not only to the accuracy of the news but also to the uneasiness of its recipients.