E. E. Cummings'

E. E. Cummings was known for his experimentation with form, punctuation, spelling and syntax, abandoning traditional techniques and structures to create a new, highly distinctive means of poetic expression that was all his own. In the poem “Spring is like a perhaps hand”, the use of irregular word patterns is flagrant and at first seems to present a serious obstacle to understanding the poem. Through the course of the poem, however, both Cummings’ verbal devices …

…like a perhaps hand” seems initially convoluted, but by the end of the poem, Cummings’ innovative writing style exists no longer as an obstacle. Instead, the language becomes a brilliant medium by which the reader is able to comprehend the poem on a much more involved level. What makes the poem so unique is the way it unfolds, with the complications of prose dissipating while the meaning comes simultaneously within reach in just nineteen lines.