Water Gardens by Sean O'Brien

Sean O'Brien

Sean O'Brien, a distinguished poet hailing from the United Kingdom, has etched his name in literary history as one of the rare individuals to clinch both the T.S. Eliot Prize and the Forward Poetry Prize for a singular poetry collection. Currently holding the position of a creative writing professor at Newcastle University, O'Brien's literary prowess extends far beyond his award-winning collection, "The Drowned Book," published in 2007. In addition to his 11 poetry collections, O'Brien has left an indelible mark as a critic, essayist, short story writer, novelist, and playwright. His multifaceted contributions to the literary world have earned him not only prestigious awards but also a coveted membership in the Royal Society of Literature.

The Drowned Book

"The Drowned Book," a masterpiece penned by Sean O'Brien, represents a unique departure from conventional poetry collections. Published in 2007, this collection stands out for its exceptional unity, a departure from the typical thematic divisions found in poetry compilations. The collection is described as “a sustained elegy for lost friends, landscapes and decaying culture”. O'Brien, influenced significantly by his contemporaneous translation of Dante's Inferno, infuses the collection with themes of darkness, water, and the underworld. In describing "The Drowned Book," O'Brien emphasizes its comprehensive nature, portraying it not merely as a poetry collection but as a cohesive literary work. The themes explored in the collection range from rivers, boats, and lighthouses to water gardens, ferries, and fish, creating a rich tapestry that showcases O'Brien's profound exploration of the elements and the depths of human experience.

O'Brien's Literary Landscape

O'Brien's poetic vision is deeply rooted in his life and career, as well as his literary influences. Born and raised in Hull, a port city in northern England, O'Brien developed a keen interest in maritime culture and history, which is reflected in his frequent use of water and sea imagery in his poems. His literary contributions extend beyond poetry; O'Brien founded the literary magazine The Printer's Devil, co-wrote a radio adaptation of Yevgeny Zamyatin's dystopian novel "We," and has been a regular broadcaster on radio. Drawing from the tradition of English Romantic poets like Wordsworth and Coleridge, O'Brien explores the sublime and the natural world, but with a darker and more ironic tone.

Poems in "The Drowned Book" such as "The Drowned Book," a haunting elegy for his father who died in a boating accident, "The River," a lyrical meditation on the flow of time and history, and "The Lighthouse," a metaphorical journey to the underworld, illustrate O'Brien's mastery of imagery, symbolism, and language.

Water-Gardens

“Water-Gardens” by Sean O’Brien is a poem about a water garden that is full of history and memories. The speaker describes the faces and objects left behind by the people who came before and imagines the spirits of those who have passed on still lingering in the garden. The poem also explores the passage of time and the decay that comes with it, as evidenced by the damp books and flooded graves. The poem creates a haunting and somewhat unsettling atmosphere as if the water garden is a place that is both beautiful and haunted by the past.

The poem uses the water garden as a metaphor for the human condition, which is subject to death, change, and loss. The water garden is both a source of life and beauty and a reminder of mortality and decay. The speaker reflects on the transience of human existence and the fragility of memory.

The poem is set in Hull, O’Brien’s hometown, and references some of its local landmarks, such as the Boulevard mansions and the King Death pub. The poem also evokes the history and culture of Hull, which was heavily bombed during World War II and suffered economic decline in the post-war era. The water garden represents the survival and resilience of the city and its people, as well as the traces of their past.

The poem employs a tercet form, which consists of three-line stanzas with a variable rhyme scheme. The tercet form is often used in lyric poetry, which expresses the emotions and thoughts of the speaker. The poem uses enjambment (the continuation of a sentence or phrase across a line break, to create a flowing and natural rhythm), alliteration, assonance, and consonance.

Stanza-wise Explanation

    Water looked up through the lawn

    Like a half-buried mirror

    Left out by the people before.

The poem begins with the image of water in a garden reflecting the surroundings like a mirror. The water is described as half-buried, suggesting that it is not entirely visible, and it is left out by people who came before. This sets up the idea of the water garden as a place with a long history.

There were faces in there

We had seen in the hallways

Of octogenarian specialists,

The next lines introduce the idea of mortality through the image of faces in the water. These faces are likened to those seen in the hallways of specialists who deal with bronchial matters, suggesting a connection to illness and death. Octogenarian means someone who is between 80 and 89 years old, implying that the faces are old and frail.

Mortality-vendors consulted

On bronchial matters

In rot-smelling Boulevard mansions.

The stanza continues with the idea of specialists as “mortality-vendors,” selling their services to those facing mortality. The reference to “rot-smelling Boulevard mansions” suggests a sense of grandeur and a connection to decay and death. The word rot suggests a state of decay, and the Boulevard mansion suggests a sense of wealth and luxury. But now the mansion has fallen to neglect and disrepair. The glory days of those mansions are long gone. (The Boulevard mansions are located in Hull, the poet’s hometown, and they were once prestigious residences for wealthy merchants and industrialists.)

We stood on their lino

And breathed, and below us

The dark, peopled water

Was leaning and listening.

The speaker then describes standing on the linoleum floor (a material with a hard shiny surface, used for covering the floors. The linoleum floor is also a sign of decay and cheapness, as it is a synthetic material that replaced the original wooden or stone floors.) and breathing, while the dark water below is personified as "peopled" and listening. This suggests a sense of unease and the idea that the water garden has a life of its own.

 There on the steps of the cellar,

 Black-clad Victorians

 Were feeding the river with souls.

The second part takes a darker turn, introducing the idea of Victorians feeding souls to the river. The Victorians are described as “black-clad,” suggesting mourning or death, and the idea of feeding souls to the river creates a connection between the water and death. The cellar is also a symbol of death and darkness, as it is the lowest part of the house and is often used for storing wine or other perishable goods.

 They left us their things,

 Reefs of blue ware

 In the elder-clumps,

The stanza continues with the idea of the Victorians leaving behind their possessions, including blue ware and elder-clumps. These objects suggest a connection to the past and a sense of time passing. The blue ware is a type of pottery that is glazed with cobalt oxide, giving it a distinctive blue color. It is also associated with the Victorian era and the British Empire. The elder clumps refer to clusters of elder shrubs or trees growing in the water garden. Elder also suggests a connection to the past or older generations, which in turn suggests the passing of time.     

Tins full of rust in the shed,

             And on the bookshelves

English poets, all gone damp

With good intentions, never read.

The poem then describes the objects left behind more specifically, including tins full of rust in the shed and English poets on the bookshelves. The reference to the poets being “gone damp with good intentions” suggests a sense of decay and neglect. The owners of the books had intended to read those books, but for some reason, they could not follow through on those intentions. This phrase suggests a sense of loss or missed opportunities. The English poets on the bookshelves are likely to be the Romantic poets, such as Wordsworth, Coleridge, Shelley, and Keats, who wrote about nature, emotion, and imagination. They also died young or tragically, which adds to the sense of mortality and loss. (gone damp suggests that the books have been affected by moisture)

Their miles of flooded graves

Were traffic jams of stone

Where patient amphibian angels

Rode them under, slowly

The final lines of the poem describe the miles of flooded graves as "traffic jams of stone" where patient amphibian angels ride the graves under slowly. This creates a sense of movement and transition, and the idea of amphibian angels suggests a connection to the natural world and the idea of life continuing after death. (Traffic jams of stones- the graves are so densely packed that they resemble a crowded scene of traffic jams. It implies a sense of disorder and confusion.)

Their voices came back

From sinks and gratings,

The treasure seekers

Gone downstairs, while all the time

In King Death’s rainy garden

We were playing out.

The speaker hears the voices of the dead coming back from the sinks and gratings, where the treasure seekers have gone downstairs, implying a connection to the water garden and the idea of death. The treasure seekers are the children who are playing in the water garden, looking for objects or secrets, but they are also metaphorically descending into the underworld, where death awaits them. The speaker contrasts the innocence and ignorance of the children with the reality and inevitability of death, using the phrase “while all the time”. The water garden is also called “King Death’s rainy garden”, implying that death is the ruler and owner of the garden, and that the rain is a symbol of sorrow and mourning. The speaker concludes the poem by saying that the children are playing out their lives in the water garden, implying that they are unaware of the dark and sinister implications of their surroundings. (sink suggests a connection to drainage system, gratings refers to the metal cover used to cover the openings of drains. The echoes are coming from the people who came before and left their mark on the water garden.)

Analysis

"Water-Gardens" by Sean O'Brien is a poem that explores the themes of decay, time, and mortality through the metaphor of a water garden. The speaker observes the faces and objects left behind by those who came before and imagines the spirits of the dead still lingering in the garden. The overall tone of the poem is haunting and evocative, with a sense of mystery and intrigue that is created by the interplay between past and present.

The poem begins with the image of water looking up through the lawn like a half-buried mirror, left behind by people before. This image suggests that the garden is a place where the past is still visible and active, and that the speaker can see reflections of what has come before. The faces that the speaker sees in the water are those of "octogenarian specialists" who were once consulted on "bronchial matters" in "rot-smelling Boulevard mansions." This suggests that the water garden is a place where memories of the past are preserved, even as the people and places that created those memories have decayed and faded away.

The next stanza describes the speaker standing on the lino of the garden and breathing, while below them the dark, peopled water is "leaning and listening." This creates a sense of intimacy and connection between the speaker and the garden, as if they are both part of the same living, breathing entity. The black-clad Victorians on the steps of the cellar feeding the river with souls further emphasizes the idea that the garden is a place where the past is still alive and present, and where the dead still have a voice.

The following stanza describes the objects left behind by those who came before, including reefs of blue ware in the elder-clumps, tins full of rust in the shed, and on the bookshelves, English poets gone damp with good intentions. These objects suggest that the garden is a repository for memories and history, and that the things that people leave behind are a way of preserving their legacy. The use of the phrase "gone damp with good intentions" emphasizes the idea that even the best of intentions can be forgotten and lost over time, and that the passage of time can erode even the most enduring of legacies.

     The final stanza describes the miles of flooded graves in the water garden as "traffic jams of stone," where patient amphibian angels ride them under slowly. This suggests that the garden is a place where the dead are remembered and celebrated, but also a place where the passage of time is evident and irreversible. The use of the phrase "patient amphibian angels" emphasizes the idea that the garden is a place where nature and the supernatural are intertwined and that the forces of nature are ultimately more powerful than anything that humans can create.

"Water-Gardens" is a haunting and evocative poem that explores the themes of decay, time, and mortality through the metaphor of a water garden. The interplay between past and present creates a sense of mystery and intrigue, while the use of vivid imagery and metaphorical language creates a powerful and evocative atmosphere.