Response, Week 9

Estes's first line indentation in “Nevers” serves several purposes. First, like many other pieces in the Tryst collection, the form creates a more violent typewriter effect for readers when they reach to read the next line. This violent effect often mimics or reflects the harsh content that has otherwise been subdued (the Hiroshima bombing in “Nevers” or the fratricide in “Via Sacra”). In this particular piece, the indentation is not as severe as many other pieces, and appears the standard half-inch indentation used in prose writing. This creates a visual effect of a fictional elaboration or a critique of the matter discussed, well suited for the historical rendition of the operas and the Hiroshima bombing. The physical effects of reading also reflect the wistfulness of regrettable history detailed in the poem—lost loves and wartime efforts—as readers are forced to physically move their heads further back (or left) than they originally began. This motion creates an almost reluctant revisiting to the “past” of the page.