Searching/Not Searching by Muriel Rukeyser
"Searching/Not Searching" is a poem by Muriel Rukeyser that encapsulates the quest for meaning and connection in a complex world, emphasizing the importance of communication and personal responsibility in responding to societal challenges. The poem opens with an inquiry into the nature of the seeker, suggesting that both women and men engage in this search for deeper understanding and "magic." Rukeyser draws on historical and literary references, particularly to the Elizabethan era, to illustrate a blend of personal and political themes, which reflect her optimistic yet realistic worldview.
The poem is divided into several sections, each contributing a unique perspective on inspiration and outrage, highlighting figures such as the biblical prophet Miriam, who embodies celebration and resilience. Rukeyser's work engages with the notion of wholeness in the face of silence and inactivity, affirming the power of witness and expression. Notably, the poem addresses the stark contrast between political rhetoric and the harsh realities of technological destruction, ultimately reaffirming hope in the ability of language and connection to foster unity. Through her exploration of these themes, Rukeyser invites readers to reflect on their own roles in the pursuit of truth and community.
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Searching/Not Searching by Muriel Rukeyser
Excerpted from an article in Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition
First published: 1972 (collected in The Collected Poems of Muriel Rukeyser, 1978)
Type of work: Poem
The Work
The poem “Searching/Not Searching” carries an epigraph attributed to the poet Robert Duncan: “Responsibility is to use the power to respond.” This might almost be taken as Rukeyser’s motto, as her entire adult life and most of her poems responded sharply to the world events that she witnessed.
The first of the fourteen sections of “Searching/Not Searching” asks, “What kind of woman goes searching and searching?/ . . . or what man? for what magic?” The answer is that Rukeyser’s kind does. Throughout the world, she “searched for that Elizabethan man,/ the lost discoverer, the servant of time.” This reference is to the latter part of the sixteenth century, when classical humanism (providing a noble vision of the dignity of humanity) and the medieval tragic sense of life (providing an awareness of death) were united into a heroic picture of humanity that was circumscribed by the sense of human mortality. This unification parallels Rukeyser’s unification of the personal and the political; in the light of her unflagging optimism and her sense of reality, Rukeyser might almost be called Elizabethan.
Rukeyser’s commitment to speaking out (or bearing witness) is renewed in the poem’s second section, “Miriam : The Red Sea.” The section’s title refers to a prophet of the Old Testament, the elder sister of Moses and Aaron who led the celebration of the Hebrew women after the crossing of the Red Sea. Rukeyser, as Miriam, says “I along stand here/ ankle-deep/ and I sing, I sing,/ until the lands/ sing to each other.”
As critic Louise Kertesz explains, each section of “Searching/Not Searching” is “another witness to wholeness and unity, despite the discouragement of silence and unresponsiveness.” Further, each section provides a particular image, either of inspiration or of outrage, which gives the poet strength to continue her quest. For example, in the third section, “For Dolci,” in Kertesz’s words, “the direct vision and speech of children will help the poet in her search to speak the truth.” In section 4, “Concrete,” Rukeyser’s poems are poured down as concrete is poured, both forming the foundation for the future, helping to alleviate the poet’s sense of futility.
Inspiration also comes from a Vietnamese epic heroine who sells herself to save her father, from the Sistine Chapel, and from Rukeyser’s dying friend Hallie Flanagan (the director of the Works Progress Administration Federal Theatre Project), who taught Rukeyser the most important element of a theatrical production: “The audience the response.” Outrage is felt in the tenth section, “The President and the Laser Bomb,” in which a politician’s proclamation of peace is juxtaposed with an image of destructive technology.
The poem, however, closes with a declaration of hope in the power of communication. What the poet has found in her quest for truth is that communication between people “was the truth.” Through their words and deeds, everyone is “trying to make, to let our closeness be made,/ not torn apart tonight by our dead skills.”
Bibliography
Ciardi, John. Mid-Century American Poets. New York: Twayne, 1950.
Herzog, Anne F., and Janet E. Kaufman, eds. How Shall We Tell Each Other of the Poet? The Life and Writing of Muriel Rukeyser. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1999.
Kertesz, Louise. The Poetic Vision of Muriel Rukeyser. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1980.
Moss, Howard. The Poet’s Story. New York: Macmillan, 1973.