Theories of Time and Space

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2006

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Summary

Background

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Form and Meter

“Theories of Time and Space” is a poem of 20 lines configured in a series of 10 couplets. Although the couplets are arranged intentionally, there are no set metrical constraints or rhyme schemes used within the piece. Trethewey also does not use much sound play within the poem. The lines are all roughly the same length, but the number of stresses and syllables varies line by line. Formally, the poem is free verse, despite its use of consistent line and stanzaic lengths. Instead of metrical constraints, Trethewey relies on punctuation in the form of either enjambment or end-stopped lines to give the poem a sense of movement.

The poem’s numerical arrangement of 20 lines, divided into 10 couplets, implies some sort of mathematical evenness that speaks to the poem’s references to scientific theories of “time and space.” Traditionally, couplets rhyme in English poems; however, Trethewey’s use of couplets is more modern, divorced from traditional formal requirements. Many couplets in the poem are run-on or open, meaning the speaker’s train of thought carries beyond the first line of the couplet into the second. Moreover, the momentum of Trethewey’s couplets extends beyond the individual couplet itself. While couplets are typically considered complete, separate units within a poem, the couplets in “Theories of Time and Space” flow from one to another, creating a clear grammatical and thematic continuity throughout the poem.

Enjambment

Trethewey uses enjambment consistently throughout the poem to create a sense of flow and rhythm, as well as to formally extend some of the poem’s underlying thematic focuses. “Theories of Time and Space” consists of 20 lines, and only six of those lines are end-stopped or punctuated. Of the six end-stopped lines, only one ends with a period: “there’s no going home” (Line 2). The significance of end-stopping only one line with a period, at the beginning of the poem, rather than the end, is clear in the message of that line: searching for “home” as it is set in someone’s memory is a dead end. The rest of the poem moves from line to line without stopping. Almost every line is enjambed in reference to the continued march of time that “Theories of Time and Space” ruminates upon thematically. The only pauses come in the form of dashes and commas—which slow the progression of words but do not stop them—or through the use of colons, which usually indicate an oncoming continuation or explanation of a previous statement. Even the poem’s final line is enjambed, leaving “Theories of Time and Space” open-ended and ongoing like the flow of time itself.

Point of View

“Theories of Time and Space” is written in second-person point of view. Although there is a disembodied speaker giving orders and providing details, the poem is addressed to a general “you.” The “you” is somewhat ambiguous within the poem; however, it can be interpreted as both a direct call to the reader and as an address to all people in general because all people—all possible readers of the poem—are subject to the same “theories of time and space.”

The use of second-person within the poem gives Trethewey and her speaker a sense of authority; most of the poem provides a series of commands that the “you” must take: “Try this” (Line 4), “Head south” (Line 5), “Follow” (Line 7). The “you,” or the reader, is forced to follow the commands of the speaker, which strips the “you” of its authority and deepens the sense of time’s unstoppable power over all people. Essentially, Trethewey’s use of second-person highlights for the reader the uselessness of the search for “home” as a real place. Time remains static only in memory or photograph. Although people and places are subject to the “theories of time and space,” which dictate that no one person or place can remain the same in the face of time, the power of memory is such that we all seek to return “home” anyway.