This poem has been stuck on my mind for a while, so now I’m finally going to post about it; more specifically, the switch from the colon to the semicolon. Although this shift in punctuation may seem completely trivial, it definitely impacts my interpretation of the work. According to the Oxford Dictionary, a colon is used “between two main clauses in cases where the second clause explains or follows from the first,” whereas a semicolon is used “between two main clauses that balance each other and are too closely linked to be made into separate sentences.” Taking these two definitions into account, I think I can see why Pound made the change. In the earlier version, “the faces in the crowd” are LIKE “petals on a wet, black bough.” However, in the revised version, the faces ARE petals. The former suggests that the faces appear to be petals while the latter implies that the two are equal and the same. Therefore, I believe Pound is representing the close relationship between humanity and nature. Nature and man are on equal footing, and Pound makes his message more apparent by converting the colon into the semicolon. Since he spent 13 years contemplating this change, I’m assuming it is crucial to the interpretation of the poem, and I believe that the switch does have a significant impact on the analysis of the lines. If I had only read the more recent version, I probably could’ve guessed what Pound is conveying, but reading the earlier one definitely reinforces my beliefs. I usually don’t regard extremely short poems like “In a Station of the Metro” with much importance, but I think that the punctuation shift is worth noting, and Pound’s message is beautiful.

Anna Truong