FASCINATING LITERATURE -FORGETFULNESS (BILLY COLLINS)
Billy Collins’ Forgetfulness is like a stand-up comedy routine about memory loss, delivered with poetic flair. It’s a humorous ode to those “Wait, what was I saying?” moments that creep up on all of us. From misplacing the name of your favorite author to forgetting why you just walked into a room, Collins paints a whimsical picture of Forgetfulness with wry humor . Collins' poem Forgetfulness explores the gradual and inevitable loss of memory, presenting it as a universal human experience. Through a conversational and accessible tone, Collins depicts how memories, once vivid and essential, begin to slip away over time. The poem uses a series of metaphors to illustrate the process, transforming forgetfulness into a gentle, almost whimsical force that quietly erases the details of life both large and small.
The poem opens with a striking metaphor: "The name of the author is the first to go," suggesting that memory loss starts subtly, with minor details like the name of a writer or a book. This image sets the stage for the rest of the poem, where forgetfulness is shown to be a creeping, invisible presence that strips away facts, knowledge, and experiences. Collins uses lighthearted imagery to convey the weight of this inevitable loss, describing memories "slipping away, little by little," like objects being misplaced or forgotten over time.
As the poem progresses, Collins personifies forgetfulness as a kind of thief, one that robs the speaker of cherished memories without causing panic or alarm. Instead, forgetfulness is depicted as a gentle, almost benign force, reflected in lines like "no wonder you rise in the middle of the night / to look up the date of a famous battle in a book on war." This moment illustrates how forgetfulness interrupts daily life, causing small moments of frustration or confusion. However, it is portrayed with a sense of inevitability, as if this loss is a natural part of the human experience rather than something to be feared or resisted.
Collins continues to extend the metaphor of memory loss, comparing the forgotten facts to "an encyclopedia," which once held everything but now fades into the distant past. The idea of the "the full moon" sinking "beneath the sea" also reinforces the sense of memories sinking away, no longer accessible but still out there, somewhere beneath the surface.
Collins brings a wistful conclusion,observing that the process of forgetting becomes more profound over time. The speaker reflects on how "your own life" becomes a mystery to you, and even significant memories, like the love of your life, may fade. Despite the potentially painful subject matter, the tone remains light, almost resigned, as if to suggest that forgetfulness is simply a part of the cycle of life.
Forgetfulness captures the subtle melancholy of losing memories, portraying it as both inevitable and strangely beautiful. Collins suggests that though we may struggle to hold onto details the process of forgetting is as natural and gentle as it is universal.
