1. “I Carry Your Heart with Me (I Carry it in)”
e. e. cummings
“I Carry Your Heart with Me (I Carry it in)”

2. About e.e. cummings Born in Cambridge in 1894
Wrote first poem at age 10
Studied at Harvard
Released first poetry book in 1917
Served in WW1, taken into custody by the French for anti-war sentiments

3. More about e.e. cummings
Spent life between Europe, rural CT, and Greenwich Village in New York
Known for his use of unorthodox form and punctuation
One of the most widely read US poets
Received multiple awards for poetry throughout life
Passed away in 1962 in Massachusetts

4. I carry your heart with me

5. analysis
An explanation is made for every assertion given (seen in parentheses throughout the poem)
The tone is different in the parentheses
References to the earth compare his lover to gigantic bodies, saying she is everything to him, romantic hyperbole
The form highlights certain aspects of the poem
The single line at the end
“I fear” put off to the side

6. analysis Can be applicable to romantic, agape, and familial love
The third stanza gets to the heart of the matter, reiterating that selfless devotion is essential to true love
Carries a sonnet-like tone or that of a ballad, though deviating from number of lines
Modern enjambment balances out the clichés within the poem to give the writer a balanced voice

7. analysis
Great use of parallelism and anaphora over stuffy rhyme and meter while still making the poem “lyrical”
Repetition of the "here is the" clause in lines creates a familiar rhythm without sticking to a particular meter
Not a traditional setting with swans and gardens
Takes place within the speaker’s heart

8. analysis
Title prepares the reader to view the poem with experimental “fresh eyes”, so to speak
Alliteration is present in lines 3 and 4
“dear”, “done”, “darling”
Not overrun with sweet and sappy adjectives, instead punctuated with comparisons and modern ideas
"you are whatever a moon has always meant."