In the Days of Prismatic Color
not in the days of Adam and Eve but when Adamwas alone; when there was no smoke and color wasfine, not with the fineness ofearly civilization art but by virtueof its originality, with nothing to modify it but the
mist that went up, obliqueness was a varia-tion of the perpendicular, plain to see andto account for: it is nolonger that; nor did the blue red yellow bandof incandescence that was color, keep its stripe: it also is one of
those things into which much that is peculiar can beread; complexity is not a crime but carryit to the point of murki-ness and nothing is plain. A complexitymoreover, that has been committed to darkness, instead of grantingit-
self to be the pestilence that it is, moves all a-bout as if to bewilder with the dismalfallacy that insistenceis the measure of achievement and that alltruth must be dark. Principally throat, sophistication is as it al-
ways has been—at the antipodes from the init-ial great truths. “Part of it was crawling, part of itwas about to crawl, the restwas torpid in its lair.” In the short legged, fit-ful advance, the gurgling and all the minutiæ—we have the classic
multitude of feet. To what purpose! Truth is no ApolloBelvedere, no formal thing. The wave may go over it if it likes.Know that it will be there when it says:“I shall be there when the wave has gone by.”
Words in this poem
- originality n.
- The quality or state of being original. [Cf. F. originalité.]
- went n.
- Course; way; path; journey; direction.
- obliqueness n.
- Quality or state of being oblique.
- incandescence n.
- A white heat, or the glowing or luminous whiteness of a body caused by intense heat. [Cf. F. incandescence.]
- dismal a.
- Fatal; ill-omened; unlucky. [Formerly a noun; e. g., "I trow it was in the dismalle." Chaucer. Of uncertain origin; but perh. (as suggested by Skeat) from OF. disme, F. dîme, tithe, the phr]
- insistence n.
- The quality of insisting, or being urgent or pressing; the act of dwelling upon as of special importance; persistence; urgency.
- sophistication n.
- The act of sophisticating; adulteration; as, the sophistication of drugs. Boyle. [Cf. LL. sophisticatio, F. sophistication.]
- antipodes n.
- Those who live on the side of the globe diametrically opposite.
- crawl v. i.
- To move slowly by drawing the body along the ground, as a worm; to move slowly on hands and kness; to creep. [Dan. kravle, or Icel. krafla, to paw, scrabble with the hands; akin to Sw. kr to crawl; cf. LG. krabbeln, D. krabbelen to scratch.]
- lair n.
- A place in which to lie or rest; especially, the bed or couch of a wild beast. [OE. leir, AS. leger; akin to D. leger, G. lager couch, lair, OHG. laga, Goth. ligrs, and to E. lie. See Lie to be prostrate, and cf. Layer, Leaguer.]
- classic a.
- Of or relating to the first class or rank, especially in literature or art. [L. classicus relating to the classes of the Roman people, and especially to the frist class; hence, of the first rank, superior, from classis class: cf. F. clas]
- belvedere n.
- A small building, or a part of a building, more or less open, constructed in a place commanding a fine prospect. [It., fr. bello, bel, beautiful + vedere to see.]
- shall v. i.
- To owe; to be under obligation for. [OE. shal, schal, imp. sholde, scholde, AS. scal, sceal, I am obliged, imp. scolde, sceolde, inf. sculan; akin to OS. skulan, pres. skal, imp. skolda, D. zullen,]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
In the Days of Prismatic Color is in the public domain. This text is taken from Poems, Project Gutenberg ebook #62833; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Marianne Moore, In the Days of Prismatic Color, in Poems (1921), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #62833, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/moore-poems/in-the-days-of-prismatic-color.html, id L02636.
Form and metre
In the Days of Prismatic Color is 30 lines in 6 stanzas. 88% of its stressed syllables fall where the metre puts the beat. The lines average 11.8 syllables. 9 lines end on an unstressed syllable, a feminine ending. 67% of the lines run on without a stop at the line end.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 2 -A-A- varia · andA · no · bandA · of
- 4 -A-AA a · dismalA · insistence · allA · alA
- 5 -A-A- init · itA · rest · fitA · classic
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| not in the days of Adam and Eve but when Adam | 13 | ·····/˘····/˘ |
| was alone; when there was no smoke and color was | 12 | ·˘/······/˘· |
| fine, not with the fineness of | 7 | ····/˘· |
| early civilization art but by virtue | 12 | /˘·˘˘/˘···/˘ |
| of its originality, with nothing to modify it but the | 18 | ··˘·˘/˘˘·/˘·/˘···· |
| mist that went up, obliqueness was a varia- | 11 | ····˘/˘···· |
| tion of the perpendicular, plain to see and | 12 | ····˘/˘˘···· |
| to account for: it is no | 7 | ·˘/···· |
| longer that; nor did the blue red yellow band | 11 | /˘······/˘· |
| of incandescence that was color, keep its stripe: it also is one of | 18 | ·······/˘····/˘··· |
| those things into which much that is peculiar can be | 13 | ········˘/˘·· |
| read; complexity is not a crime but carry | 12 | ·˘/˘˘·····/˘ |
| it to the point of murki- | 7 | ······· |
| ness and nothing is plain. A complexity | 11 | ··/˘···˘/˘˘ |
| moreover, that has been committed to darkness, instead of granting | 17 | ˘/˘···˘/˘·/˘˘/·/˘ |
| it- | 1 | · |
| self to be the pestilence that it is, moves all a- | 13 | ····/˘˘······ |
| bout as if to bewilder with the dismal | 11 | ····˘/˘··/˘ |
| fallacy that insistence | 7 | /˘˘·˘/˘ |
| is the measure of achievement and that all | 11 | ··/˘·˘/˘··· |
| truth must be dark. Principally throat, sophistication is as it al- | 17 | ····/˘˘·˘·˘/˘···· |
| ways has been—at the antipodes from the init- | 13 | ·····˘/˘˘···· |
| ial great truths. “Part of it was crawling, part of it | 12 | ·······/˘··· |
| was about to crawl, the rest | 7 | ······· |
| was torpid in its lair.” In the short legged, fit- | 12 | ·/˘······/˘· |
| ful advance, the gurgling and all the minutiæ—we have the classic | 18 | ·˘/·/˘˘·········/˘ |
| multitude of feet. To what purpose! Truth is no Apollo | 15 | /˘·····/˘···˘/˘ |
| Belvedere, no formal thing. The wave may go over it if it likes. | 17 | ·˘/·/˘··········· |
| Know that it will be there when it says: | 9 | ········· |
| “I shall be there when the wave has gone by.” | 10 | ·········· |
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