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Creating Collective Memory

Inspiration Through Poetry

Poetry is the love language of literature. The ocean is a mysterious, unknown being living amongst us. Poets use the inspiration from the ocean to connect on a deeper level with the audience. Poems inspired by the ocean emphasizes the symbolic meaning of the ocean for each individual person. When poems involve the ocean, people make a more personal connection to the literature and feel seen in the work. The ocean is a universal topic to form a connection because every person has some sort of relationship with the ocean that poets can draw from. Poetry and the ocean are two everyday variables that have great significance over the life of everyday people, coupled together they add meaning to lives that may otherwise be filled with sadness. 

Below the ocean's surface is a dark cave. In the distance the light from he surface shines through. The fish and the coral are slightly visible in this dark cave, but the light adds in a color of blue.
Below the ocean's surface there is nothing but open water. The light shining from the surface makes the blue water visible, but with nothing swimming in the distance it is empty.

The Ocean
Nathaniel Hawthorne 1833

The Ocean has its silent caves,
Deep, quiet, and alone;
Though there be fury on the waves,
Beneath them there is none.

The awful spirits of the deep
Hold their communion there;
And there are those for whom we weep,
The young, the bright, the fair.

Calmly the wearied seamen rest
Beneath their own blue sea.
The ocean solitudes are blest,
For there is purity.

The earth has guilt, the earth has care,
Unquiet are its graves;
But peaceful sleep is ever there,
Beneath the dark blue waves.

This picture of Nathaniel Hawthorne shows him wearing a black suite. He has grey hair and a grey mustache. He is looking at the camera with a blank stare.

Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Ocean is a poem about the peace the ocean provides after death. There is fury, sadness, and guilt on the surface but after death peace and tranquility are found. The ocean has many parts from silent caves to furious waves, but all lead back to beneath the dark blue waves where there is nothing but calmness and serenity. This poem symbolizes the purity of the ocean and how people find peace in the ocean's depth. There is war and hate on earth but this poem highlights an escape, even if not through death. The ocean is an outlet for all your troubles. The deep blue sea will always be waiting for people to join and finally find peace in their lives.

A beige sandy beach with footprints imprinted in the sand. Meeting the sand at the beach is crystal clear, calm, blue water.
A beige sandy beach full of seashells, broken and perfectly intact alike. Amongst the shells is a silver key tied to a seashell by a worn down rope. In the distance, the sea waves meet the sand.

By The Sea
Emily Dickinson 1896

I started early, took my dog,
And visited the sea;
The mermaids in the basement
Came out to look at me.

And frigates in the upper floor
Extended hempen hands,
Presuming me to be a mouse
Aground, upon the sands.

But no man moved me till the tide
Went past my simple shoe,
And past my apron and my belt,
And past my bodice too,

And made as he would eat me up
As wholly as a dew
Upon a dandelion's sleeve —
And then I started too.

And he — he followed close behind;
I felt his silver heel
Upon my ankle, — then my shoes
Would overflow with pearl.

Until we met the solid town,
No man he seemed to know;
And bowing with a mighty look
At me, the sea withdrew.

This black and white image of Emily Dickinson shows her wearing a black dress with a thin black scarf. She has her hair tied in the back and is looking at the viewer with a blank face.

Emily Dickinson

By The Sea is a poem about the loneliness of a woman, finding solace in the ocean. She is moving back and forth between the realistic and mystical parts of life. Mentioning spotting mermaids and being admired by the sea but also of a warship and the destruction ensuing in reality. The sea is an outlet for this woman's loneliness since she is able to personify the ocean as a man. The poem continues on with the woman and the sea interacting as if it were a woman and a man in real life. We fully emerge into a mystical setting at this point, believing she is being courted by a man who is really the sea. Although this poem exaggerates the extent to which you can find companionship in the sea, it symbolizes the unique relationship people can create on their own. For this woman, the sea became a man born from her loneliness. For others, the sea can transform into specific missing parts of their lives.

This photograph shows a coastline of a beach. In the distance there is a beach with some people and closer up the beach is filled with large rocks. The water is dark blue and meets the rock and sand on the beach, with blue skies on the horizon.
This image shows over six dolphins swimming through a crashing wave in the ocean. The dolphins are dark grey, contrasting with the blue color of the water. As they dance through the wave, the water splashes.
Swimming through crystal clear water are four dark grey humpback whales. This is an arial view of the whales as they come up for air as they swim.

Drawn To The Sea
Trina Graves 2020

Visiting Jesus, a vision in my mind
Only recently back then, did I find
His true identity revealed at last
Connecting many dots of my past

I’d visited just once since that day
‘Stained Glass Poems’ explains the way
Now I wanted more confirmation
And a hopefully some inspiration

Giving no thought to where we’d meet
We were walking by the sea, barefeet
I felt at ease and wondered why
I didn’t feel in awe or at all shy

With no words He then told me how
The time was right, I’m ready now
My vibration raised, now we’d talk
With more significance, as we walk

I asked why so many people, like me
Are drawn so often to be at the sea
Looking out at the beautiful scene
He told of hidden depths, unseen

The vast expanse, a precious part
Of Mother Earth, right from the start
Water, so essential to all living health
Magnificent oceans.. abundant wealth

Teeming with life of every size
Largest mammal or too small for eyes
Unfathomable, mysterious, tides that turn
From whales and dolphins we can learn

Pulsating waves forever flow
Balance, give and take, they show
Wisdom evident and pure beauty
Fresh and alive, our vibrant sea

Land and sea, two domains
Duality on our Earth remains
Senses enlivened when we are near
The air is different, is so clear

Winds of the sea blow away
Doubts and fears, as we stay
Near the shore, there to be
With the elements, in harmony

A powerful magnet with the sun
People flock to relax, be at One
With these mighty attributes of Earth
A sense of wonder and true worth

A chance for people to get away
Clear their minds and be at play
No matter what age, most will be
Happy and content when by the sea

This photograph of Trina Graves shows her smiling at the camera. She has white hair and is wearing a pink shirt with a purple sweater on top.

Trina Graves

Drawn To The Sea is a poem about people's need to be near the sea and the connection they feel to this body of water. The poem is introduced with a visit by Jesus, of course, this visit takes place near the sea. Graves has these visions of Jesus and a connection with religion that is personified through the sea. The poem goes on to explain her own personal connection with the ocean and how difficult it is to stay away. The sea is a place of life, where all doubts and worrisome thoughts drift away with the tide. The overall theme of the poem is that no matter who you are, every person can be happy and content by the sea. The poem was inspired by Graves' lack of visits to the sea in her childhood and then a shift occurred in adulthood where she makes it her mission to visit different beaches to experience the sea in new ways. Her personal connection to the poem brings the meaning alive and exemplifies the feeling people are meant to have by the sea.