Response to Sunday Morning

As I was browsing through people's posts and blogs, I came across Carissa's blogs on the poetry of Wallace Stevens and in particular, Sunday Morning. She brought up a lot of ideas that connected with my own opinions on Steven's secular work. Carissa mentions that she thinks that stevens is not "worshipping nature" but is instead "enjoying the feeling of peace". I would agree with this point. I don't really see Steven's descriptions and embellishments on the beauty of nature as worship or as his own form of religion, as was discussed in class. I don't see his poetry to be religious poetry at all. I think he uses religious images and references to juxtapose his own personal opinions of how one should live their life. I would even go as far to say that Stevens thinks that religious thoughts disrupt the natural peace and serenity that he feels in everyday life. For example, as the speaker of the poem relaxes on a sunday morning, she is surrounded by serene images, such as a "Coffee and oranges in a sunny chair". These peaceful and lovely thought seem to be rudely interupted by the thought of "Palestine, Dominion of Blood and sepulchre". The mood of the poem abruptly shifts from being relaxed and happy to darker and troubled. This pattern continues throughout the poem, with nature images and references being presented in a happier light and religious thoughts interrupting them.
The stanza that stood out to me the most in this beautiful poem was the beginning of the final. The speaker thinks this thought as she gazes upon the water: "The tomb in Palestine/ Is not the porch of spirits lingering. It is the grave of Jesus, where he lay". The quotation suggests that the speaker of the poem is not moved and spiritually inspired by the thought of the tomb of Jesus. To her, it is merely the tomb and nothing more. Instead, she points to real natural images and experiences that she has had that are more tangible and moving to her. She seems to be saying that she is so moved by the nature around her that she need not look anything farther to any metaphysical ideas. She would much rather just "be" and exist.