Epilogue

Much of the space “Epilogue” takes up on the page is dedicated to visual art. First, there is the speaker’s remembered statement about “The painter’s vision…/trembl[ing] to caress the light” (Lines 6-7). The poem discusses vision in terms of “a snapshot” (Line 10), and accuracy is defined against the painting of “Vermeer” (Line 17). The poem even concludes with an image of “each figure in [a] photograph” (Line 22).

This highly prevalent motif functions metonymically in the poem. While metaphor replaces one thing with something similar, metonymy replaces one thing with something contiguous. Painting is contiguous with poetry insofar as it is also an art and, for Lowell, an art also concerned with perception and representation. While a metaphor for poetry might be something like farming (both “dig” into the earth, both seek to create sustenance of a certain manner, etc.), painting borders poetry with its relatedness without representing it as a metaphorical image.

However, a description of the manner in which this motif is included in the poem is not a full explanation of the motif’s function. Both painting and photography work to highlight different aspects of poetic craft in Lowell’s poem. Painting is associated with creative representation, of documenting with artistry: “The painter’s vision” (Line 6), and “the grace of accuracy [of the]…/sun’s illumination” (Lines 16, 17). On the hand, photography is associated with a simple documentation of facts that bypasses true artistry: “the threadbare art of my eye / seems a snapshot” (Lines 9-10), and “each figure in the photograph” before they vitalized by receiving “[their] living name[s]” (Lines 22-23).