Aubade

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2015

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Summary

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Rhyme Scheme

A poem’s rhyme scheme is its pattern of sounds that repeat at the end of individual lines or stanzas. The regular and orderly rhyme scheme of Jackson’s “Aubade” provides a rhythmic musical quality suggesting both ease and confidence—qualities that suit the speaker of a seduction poem like an aubade.

The rhyme scheme of “Aubade” is easy to identify and follow. Each of the 32 lines of the poem ends on a consonant sound, and the rhyme scheme is as follows: ABABCDCDEFEFGHGHIJIJKLKLMNMNOPOP.

Though the rhyme scheme of the poem suggests order, the individual lines of the poems vary in meter and rhythm, giving an intimate quality to the vernacular and sensual imagery of the poem. The language of the poem follows the natural rhythm of a conversation between two people, which enhances the tone of informal familiarity. The contrasting effect of natural-sounding line-by-line language and strong consonance at the end of each line compel the reader, and ideally, the speaker’s beloved, to listen and to be enticed by the speaker’s words.

Allusion

Jackson uses the literary device of allusion in this poem. An allusion is a direct or indirect reference to something, and in this poem, Jackson alludes to “the waves of Cocoa Beach” (Line 6), the theories of “Mao Tse-tung” (Line 7), and the Bible in order to communicate the speaker’s familiarity and close relationship with his beloved.

At the start of the poem, the speaker alludes to Cocoa Beach, a beach in Florida, as a place where their beloved might want to spend the day. As well, the speaker mentions that their beloved may also be “teaching” (Line 7) the theories of Chinese Communist leader Mao Tse-tung at this time in the morning. Though the mention of the beach and the mention of Chairman Mao may appear disparate, they suggest a closeness between the speaker and their beloved; the speaker knows how their beloved spends time and refers to specific details that imply a familiarity with his beloved’s preferences and daily routines.

The Biblical allusion at the end of the poem is an unexpected and playful use of the notion of “original sin” (Line 32). The speaker of the poem invites their lover to challenge the old-fashioned notion of Biblically moral behavior by spending the day in bed together. The placement of this allusion as the final two words of the poem located in the final line of the poem also serves to remind the reader of the shortness of life; the notion of original sin guarantees that humans have an inborn proclivity to sin, and this tendency leads directly to death.

Simile

One simile is observable in the poem; it compares the body of the speaker’s beloved to a snail “in [the speaker’s] arm’s crook” (Line 19). The image of a snail is neither overtly romantic nor sensual, but it is consistent with the message of the poem encouraging the speaker’s beloved—and the reader—to make the most of time while they still can. A snail has a reputation for slow progress and the speaker of the poem desires a similarly slow start to this particular day. As well, the likening of the speaker’s beloved to a snail suggests the speaker’s arm is a protective shell covering their beloved, much like a snail’s shell covers its vulnerable body.