Deconstruction:
Nemrov, Howard. “The Town Dump” The Norton Introduction to Poetry. J. Paul Hunter, Alison Booth, and Kelly J. Mays. 9th edition. New York: Norton, 2007. 195.
Deconstruction lends itself to this poem because of the multiple meanings present in the literary work. The images and meanings can be interpreted in several different ways. While the reader can assume and choose which meaning to follow, one may not choose the correct meaning. Nemrov uses a city dump to represent an actual city but also as a reminder to not take possessions for granted; the “one man‘s trash is another man‘s treasure” complex. This entire poem is a symbol. One object is used to represent another; nothing stands for what the reader thinks it does. Since everything can be interpreted in several ways, one can never be sure of the meaning, and attempting to define what the symbols stand for would be pointless because the reader is not the author.
Critical Questions:
1.) Why did Nemrov feel it was necessary to white this poem based on symbols? Why would he not be straight and to the point?
2.) Could Nemrov have wanted to convey the point that no matter how much certain aspect of life might annoy us, every single part is important to a functioning society?
3.) What other meanings, aside from life, could you conclude this poem is about?
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