Sneaky Simplicity (Question 11)

In his "Elegy for My Father, Who Is Not Dead," Andrew Hudgins writes extremely simply yet effectively. Throughout the poem, the speaker discusses his and his father's views of death in extremely simple sentences, summing up their differing views on death in five words: "He's ready. I am not." Yet the fact that Hudgins' writing style is simple and sparse does not mean that it lacks literary skill. The speaker's simple descriptions are reflected in his use of an extended metaphor which compares the journey from death to a possible afterlife with a boat trip. Note that Hudgins makes this comparison with an implied metaphor, the simplest form of analogy; it does not require extra words of comparison, as a simile does, but instead simply implies the two are similar. Hudgins takes this simplicity a step further. He does not focus on this comparison, but instead focuses on his and his father's opposing stances and simply uses the metaphor as backup support for his main point. This simplicity of approach reflects the simple clearheadedness of the speaker's argument. Although Hudgins' writing may seem overly simple, it is anything but.