Posted on by qscrisp

Not Waving But Drowning

It's strange how some poems come back to you seemingly unbidden. Recently Stevie Smith's 'Not Waving But Drowning' has been calling to me to be re-read. It's a very terse verse, but there's some power in it that stops it from becoming the 'old saying' that it seems always on the verge of being. Perhaps there are people out there who are familiar with the title, as a sort of idiom, but who have never read the actual poem. It's one of those. I'm never too sure about global relevance, those kind of things, but if such is needed, perhaps I could say that, even those who are only waving now will probably soon be drowning, as the 'quiet desperation' of the 'civilised world' collapses and gives way to simple desperation:

Not Waving But Drowning

Nobody heard him, the dead man,

But still he lay moaning:

I was much further out than you thought

And not waving but drowning.

Poor chap, he always loved larking

And now he's dead

It must have been too cold for him his heart gave way,

They said.

Oh, no no no, it was too cold always

(Still the dead one lay moaning)

I was much too far out all my life

And not waving but drowning.

12 Replies to “Not Waving But Drowning”

  1. There was something strange and melancholic about the year-end, I thought; there seems to be a widespread feeling of weariness and discontent. I had thought it might be something to do with the serial killings, the climate change reports, terrorism; but I’d like to believe that the weariness is with modern life itself, and to see that desperation become manifest.

  3. Oh I love that poem – thanks for putting it up, as I am supposed to be selecting and reading a poem for an upcoming radio broadcast, and that fits the bill as well as anything. Plus Stevie Smith is not exactly a household name in the Midwest. Wonderful.

  4. “I am supposed to be selecting and reading a poem for an upcoming radio broadcast, and that fits the bill as well as anything.”I’m very happy to be of service. What’s the radio broadcast in question?

  5. I have a friend who hosts a poetry program on a local radio station here in St. Louis. She has decided to start featuring interviews and readings of favorite poems from other people – and, naturally, she is starting off with the people she knows. So when she asked me, I said yes! 🙂

  6. That sounds like a nice gig. I went along to a poetry group thing before Christmas. We were asked to choose poems we liked to read out to the group. I chose one by Li Po (Li Bo, Li Bai), and some by Kaneko Misuzu, a Japanese poetess who wrote for children.

  8. I think the end of the year has been, for me, an increasing feeling of ‘How long can I go on with the same old story like this?’ And kind of like this:I like Stevie Smith. She seemed to specialise in quirky and pithy. Here’s another of hers:Happiness Happiness is silent, or speaks equivocally for friends,Grief is explicit and her song never ends,Happiness is like England, and will not state a case,Grief, like Guilt, rushes in and talks apace. My Heart Goes Out My heart goes out to my Creator in loveWho gave me Death, as end and remedy.All living creatures come to quiet DeathFor him to eat up their activityAnd give them nothing, which is what they want althoughWhen they are living they do not think so.

  9. “And give them nothing, which is what they want althoughWhen they are living they do not think so.”I’ve never wanted to die; just for things to get better.

  10. Yes, it’s an interesting last line (two lines), because I, and I think many people, would say, “No, no, no!” Although I must say, I have wanted to die on more than one occasion.I find it a disturbing poem, for all that it talks about quiet and remedy.

  11. wreckless wreck writes:

    I love Stevie Smith.’My Heart Goes Out’ is a wonderful poem. I love it. It is not sad it is comforting. When I die I am going to have it read at my funeral.

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