Mary Oliver and "The Swan" -Michelle Lowther

Mary Oliver is a world renowned poet and author, although she is most famous for her work as a poet. Born in 1935 in a small town outside of Cleveland, Ohio Mary Oliver now resides in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Oliver’s poetry reflects largely on nature and her vast ability to create art with words (http://www.poetryconnection.net/poets/Mary_Oliver). Mary Oliver is a poet worthy of a fan page because of her vast accomplishments both as a writer and as a woman. Although she attended both Ohio State University and Vassar College, she never obtained a college degree, making her achievements as a writer all that more astounding. Likewise, her many awards, such as the American Academy of Arts & Letters Award, a Lannan Literary Award, the Poetry Society of America's Shelley Memorial Prize and Alice Fay di Castagnola Award, along with fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts are nothing short of praise worthy and are a showcase to her many talents (http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/265). Some of her most famous works include: “Wild Geese”, “A Visitor”, “Mockingbirds”, “The Journey”, “Climbing the Chagrin River”, and “The Swan” (http://www.english.illinois.edu/Maps/poets/m_r/oliver/online_poems.htm).
The poem “The Swan” is a perfect representation of the work Mary Oliver does. This piece not only demonstrates her strong themes of nature, it is also a fantastic display of her way with words and ability to captivate the reader. In this poem, Oliver speaks of a swan drifting atop a river. Oliver uses words such as “snow bank”, “bank of lilies”, “white blossoms”, and “waterfall” to really bring the nature to life and help the reader to create the picture in their head, until they too can see the swan drifting along. Also, this excerpt from the poem demonstrates how easily Oliver captivates her audience and pulls them into the story: “And did you see it, finally, just under the clouds - A white cross Streaming across the sky, its feet like black leaves, its wings like the stretching light of the river? (http://www.english.illinois.edu/Maps/poets/m_r/oliver/online_poems.htm)”. Particularly in the poem “The Swan”, Oliver is constantly asking questions which beg the reader to imagine the surroundings as if they were their own and take them on as reality. By the end of the poem, Oliver asks questions not about the swan, but about how it’s beauty can touch you not only as a pleasing sight but much deeper asking, “And did you feel it, in your heart, how it pertained to everything? And have you too finally figured out what beauty is for? And have you changed your life? (http://www.english.illinois.edu/Maps/poets/m_r/oliver/online_poems.htm)”. Her writing style is truly enthralling.
Mary Oliver effects our culture, especially that of women in our culture, by showing the many amazing accomplishments and admiration a woman in this society can achieve and how not necessarily living up to the standards of our society (for example: go to school, get an education, and therefore be successful) can still bring great success and accomplishment to those who put their heart and soul into that which they wish to achieve.