Meditation at Lagunitas Man and the Natural World

The title is the only reference to a place with a proper name in the poem. It helps let us know that the poem is a pastoral, or a celebration of nature. A "meditation" is a kind of deep spiritual or philosophical reflection, and "Lagunitas" is a cool woodsy spot in northern California, with lakes and forests a’plenty. But, if you didn’t know the title of this poem, would you think that it is inspired by a specific place?

The speaker makes fun of the philosophical thinkers who say that particular things are not as good as general ideas. The imagery of the woodpecker is super-specific, even down to the "sculpted" shape of the trunk that it pecks into. The Platonic philosopher would say that the perfect, original idea of the woodpecker is "lost," which the speaker jokingly calls "tragic." But, the woodpecker doesn’t seem to mind its tragic situation very much. Its colorful, "clownish" face is a total contrast to the grim, sad view of the philosophers. It’s as if the bird says, "Lighten up! You guys think too much. You should get in on some of this ‘sculpted trunk’ action. It’s pretty sweet."

The "other notion" is that words don’t actually refer to or "correspond" with real things in nature. So, when we say "blackberry," we’re not actually talking about the sweet little things that grow on bushes; we’re talking about some perfect idea that doesn’t exist in nature. By calling the word blackberry a "bramble," though, the speaker uses poetry to connect words with nature. The real blackberry bush is a "bramble," and so is the word. The two seem to "correspond," right?

"General ideas" exist in the human mind, and "particulars" or specific things exist in nature. Although it can be fun to think about ideas, only particulars can make us feel a "violent wonder" at the existence of something. Here, the specific nature of the woman’s body makes the speaker remember a bunch of other specific things from his past. He connects with nature through his desire for her body.

The word "blackberry" has such an intense sound that we might think that the speaker remembers a time of picking or eating real blackberries on "those afternoons and evenings." But, he’s not talking about the physical fruit here. For him, even repeating the word can be a "sweet" and "tender" experience. When we’re not in the presence of nature, we can experience some of the pleasant characteristics of nature through language. Like, say, reading a pastoral poem?