William Carlos William

The reading for today is Danse Russe by William Carlos Williams. This poems falls into the genre of work by the imagists. Danse Russe is a story of a man admiring himself in a mirror as he dances in front of it naked at night. I think that this poem is in some way an admiration of the human form as the narrator admires his body in the mirror. I also like the final line of the poems in that it questions the validity of the thoughts of others. While everyone else in the house sleeps the narrator is capable of performing this dance. It is as though he is fearful of the judging thoughts of the other members of the household if they were to witness this dance. However, at night, despite his body's imperfections and the strangeness of his actions the narrator believes in the genius and correctness of his actions.