Robert Frost's "The Oven Bird" and Iconic Realism (Click onto this title to hear and see an ovenbird.)

(Oven Bird photo from Google Images)

The Oven Bird

by Robert Frost

There is a singer everyone has heard,


Loud, a mid-summer and a mid-wood bird,


Who makes the solid tree trunks sound again.


He says that leaves are old and that for flowers


Mid-summer is to spring as one to ten.


He says the early petal-fall is past


When pear and cherry bloom went down in showers


On sunny days a moment overcast;


And comes that other fall we name the fall.


He says the highway dust is over all.


The bird would cease and be as other birds


But that he knows in singing not to sing.


The question that he frames in all but words


Is what to make of a diminished thing.

Robert Frost's poetry portrays the enigma of humanity through his observations of nature. His poem, "The Oven Bird," is no exception. The high-pitched song of this bird reminds the busy human of the lessons learned through the simplicity of nature.

The iconic structure here is the oven bird, a woodland icon, representing the natural progression of life. In the tenth line, Frost points out, "He says the highway dust is over all." This line is unusual in that it follows vivid, natural imagery that awakens the reader to the conflict between humanity's impact versus the seemingly insignificant bird. A bird whose voice sounds like a song to us, but to the bird, it's simply communicating to other birds in a natural way, "not to sing.”

In this poem, Frost also illustrates through the passage, "Mid-summer is to Spring as one is to ten," the necessity of a natural sequence and the devastation that can exist when humanity interrupts or neglects this natural progression. 

Irish Music and Iconic Realism in Sydney Owenson's piece, "When Floating O'er"

 

Sydney Owenson (Lady Morgan) and Harp

from my book cover, 

a special acknowledgment to the New York Public Library

From my presentation at an annual Conference of the Association of Franco-Irish Studies, Dublin, Ireland: 

The Irish melody, “When Floating O’er: Cathleen Nolan” from Sydney Owenson’s 1803 collection, Twelve Original Hibernian Melodies, demonstrates an iconic vision and focuses the audience’s attention on iconic elements associated with late 18th - early 19th century Ireland that deal with transformation. This particular piece demonstrates my semiotic theory of iconic realism in that it complies with the following necessary components of my theory: 

1.    The presence of a realistic icon: a representation of Cathleen ni Houlihan. 

2.   Deliberate placement of the icon within the midst of a unique, realistic setting out of place for this particular icon: lyrical and musical choices. 

3.  A created dissonance between these two entities as the catalyst that generates audience enlightenment of a cultural dilemma in need of transformation: Irish awareness of cultural valor.  

In Owenson’s compilation entitled, Twelve Original Hibernian Melodies, published in 1803, one melody, “When Floating Oér,” contains lyrics that relate directly to the Irish iconic figure, Cathleen Ni Houlihan. She situates the essence of this character as one who is ubiquitous yet elusive, much like segments of Irish culture at the onset of the nineteenth century.  

Not only did Owenson’s nineteenth century listening audience experience the pleasant melody of this tune, they also were able to interpret the lyrics as an Irish romantic memory or a realization that a change in the historical relevance of Irish history was at hand. Playing this piece and other Irish melodies on her harp, Owenson exhibited iconic realism by bringing attention of Irish history, plucked on soothing strings. Perhaps, her attempt was to lull her audience into a state of acceptance or awaken them gradually by means of intense harmonics. 

Thus, the utility of music as a means of representing the semiotic theory of iconic realism involves a multiple sensory application in connection with sound wave production and its effect on human cognition. Whether the connection originates from a classical music composition, sounds of nature, or a synthesized production, juxtaposition of an iconic sound with an aspect of realism produces an auditory response that ultimately can lead to an audience’s awareness of positive change, be it cultural or individual.

St. Basil's Cathedral and Iconic Realism

Photo from Google Images

The Cathedral of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos on the Moat, commonly known as St. Basil's Cathedral, Moscow, could be an example of iconic realism in two ways:

St. Basil was a man of humble eloquence, a true scholar who lived in Cappadocia during the 4th century. This cathedral, now a museum, is located in an area of the world in which many communist leaders have disregarded the human right of freedom of expression, yet it bears the namesake of one who dedicated his life to these rights, and thus, illustrates iconic realism. This iconic cathedral, a major landmark of Moscow, brings an awareness of the cultural need for individual expression, spiritual enlightenment, and freedom to pursue scholarly endeavors.

Moreover, this cathedral was constructed by supporters of Ivan the Terrible to commemorate his military victories. A towering cathedral of delicate design with vibrant colors in fanciful appearance, constructed to honor a man of war, this dichotomy demonstrates the semiotic theory of iconic realism in that the juxtaposition causes generations to re-evaluate the negative repercussions associated with warring factions. 

The Semiotic Theory of Iconic Realism and Sydney Owenson (Lady Morgan), Writer and Patriot

 

Sydney Owenson Morgan and Harp 

(My book cover photo, permission to use photo, given by the New York Public Library)

The theory of iconic realism is one I discovered while researching Sydney Owenson’s national tale, The Wild Irish Girl.  I had noticed the manner in which she established the iconic images of Ireland and England in realistic settings that were normally not associated with these images. 

She incorporates the field of semiotics, dealing the meaning of Irish terms and their connections with English interpretations. My semiotic theory of iconic realism involves any artist’s placement of a realistic, iconic object or person in a unique realistic setting in which this icon does not usually appear, to create a vivid representation of the icon within the designated realistic setting. 

Since both the icon and the realistic setting represent conceptual realism within a given culture which the artist’s rendering represents, this unexpected juxtaposition results in a vital perception. These two unusual entities, positioned by the artist, create awareness in the audience of a need for a change within the culture. 

Anne Cleary and Dennis Connolly, Video Artists and Iconic Realism

Anne Cleary and Dennis Connolly

Photo from Google Images

This is a segment from a presentation that I was in the midst of presenting at a New England Conference for Irish Studies. However, I came down with the Norovirus. Ugh! What a horrible virus!  Anyway, I had to leave the room very quickly, unable to complete my presentation. Thus, here 'tis: 

Anne Cleary and Dennis Connolly are partners in life and have lived in Dublin, Ireland and Paris, France. They collaborate to create video art. Their films are dependent on audience interaction, with their audiences inclusive of common individuals ranging in ages from young children to older adults. This artistic team illustrate the iconic human act of moving through Dublin, Ireland or any metropolis. However, many of the individuals do not connect with each other. The significance of this is the key to understanding the iconic realism in this work of art. 

These individuals emulate a common, human activity, yet this act, captured by the videographers’ observing eye to express lack of physical contact, creates certain dissonance. The message from this careful configuration of a ubiquitous eye and common human activity could be that humanity longs to embrace life fully; however, certain parameters prevent this occurrence. Other possible interpretations may involve a sense of detachment. Regardless of the interpretation, these artists exemplify iconic realism in that there is an iconic structure, the human eye behind a camera, placed in a realistic setting that does not conform to the accepting reality of intimacy. Through this juxtaposition, the artists illustrate cultural liberation through video images, an innovation in this current age of reality viewing. 

To view a brief example of their video art, click HERE. 

Salvador Dalí and Iconic Realism

      The Rose by Salvador Dalí

       photo from Google Images

    Below contains excerpts from my book, The Theory of Iconic Realism: Understanding the Arts through Cultural Context .

     

      Suspended in an azure sky, a full, red, dew-kissed rose hovers over a muddy, obscure landscape with a visual representation of humanity strategically painted directly beneath the rose, as if this figure receives the flower’s beauty.  A delicate cloud wisps above the rose, giving the impression of an omniscient breath.  In this painting, the artist, Salvador Dalí, presents the colorful visual stimulus to illustrate an iconic representation of a rose, traditional symbol of love. Moreover, the rose has long been associated with the Blessed Mother. Since May and October have also been associated with Mary, the Mother of Jesus, it is fitting to discuss this painting during the month of May or October. 

Dali places this garden flower in a detached yet dominating position within his fair sky. Although the foreground has a realistic tone, the central position of this suspended rose has a surreal quality. Through this configuration, Dalí stimulates the consciousness of his audience with his visual associations to reality of the rose, the two people, and the landscape. Using mainly primary colors, he places the rose above rather than within the landscape, hovering directly above the humans. He creates a form of symbolism representing an overseeing life force that captures a viewer’s imagination. Could he be depicting eternal Love? 

Through this painting, Dalí incorporates iconic realism by rendering an iconic form (the rose) within a realistic setting in which the iconic structure is not traditionally perceived (hovering in mid-air over a desert landscape) in order to bring an audience to a renewed awareness of the significance and transformation that occurs with the primal cultural activity of human interaction with the Divine.  

Icon of an Apple and Iconic Realism

(I took this photo of my MacBook Pro.)

As a community determines the identity of a symbol, its structure becomes more eminently definable as interpretations transform this signifier into a more singular representation, an icon. For example, at one time an artistic rendering of a bitten apple might lead one to associate it with the Biblical story of Eve in the Garden of Eden or perhaps a ripened fruit, ready for the preparation of an apple pie or some other edible delight. 

However, since the latter part of the twentieth century, within the mobile global community, a bitten apple signifies an international computer enterprise, an icon for technological innovation. Hence, a community determines multiple associations with a symbol and gradually, through consistent development, will move this symbol to its prominent association as a recognizable icon for the duration that the icon remains a visible entity within the community. 

(The Theory of Iconic Realism: Understanding the Arts through Cultural Context  p. 25)