Social Distancing

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2020

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Summary

Background

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Themes

Social Distancing as a Means for Healing and Peace

One of the key themes presented in Herrera’s “Social Distancing” is the physical use of space as a means of building peace in a community. The unique arrangement of the lines of the poem helps make this theme more explicit: Each line that surrounds the center radiates outward, creating more and more space between it and the lines next to it. The increasing space of the poem as it flows out emphasizes Herrera’s point that “Healing begins” (Line 13) when people are more spread apart from one another.

On the most literal level, the idea behind this poem reflects health and safety recommendations for people to social distance during the COVID-19 pandemic; in a more abstract way, the space of the poem reflects on the emotional responses people might have to their self-imposed isolation during a global health crisis. The distance created by the poem, Herrera seems to be saying, is a necessary and positive step that creates “power between us” (Line 8) and allows “love” (Line 12) and “freedom” (Line 7) to grow. The specific imagery presented in Lines 1 through 6 build Herrera’s argument about social distancing: Each disparate scene is disconnected, yet flows together with the rest of the poem. In other words, by being apart, people can live in a more positive way. Published in 2020, the poem is a clear reaction to arguments about whether or not people should fully engage in social distancing; through the use of a unique spread-out form and specific language, Herrera creates an emotional appeal to his readers to stay separate, and, in doing so, to stay together.

The Connections Between Opposites

One of the more subtle elements of “Social Distancing” is the clever way Herrera pairs different images and ideas across the poem. The multiple juxtapositions create a symphonic quality in the poem: Each individual line is held in tension with the others. Opposites are presented both in action and language, while the center of the poem holds everything together.

In one line, two opposing ideas are presented together, but most contrasts happen between distinctive lines. This places emphasis on the one line that presents opposites: “fear dissolves and trust walks in” (Line 10). By placing both fear and trust in the same line, Herrera makes more explicit one of his major thematic intensions; the larger goal of the poem’s message is to convince readers to “trust” in the collective ability to navigate “healing” (Line 13). Many of the other opposing images and ideas—both the obvious like “up” (Line 4) and “down” (Line 5) and the more subtle like “crash” (Line 2) and “create” (Line 3)—are presented across the poem. Yet these, too, speak to the physical tensions between people and the ways bodies and things take up space.

Much of the movement of the poem works through these juxtaposed ideas and images. Since Herrera intends for readers to interpret the poem’s direction in many ways, the lines presenting either slight or very opposing ideas helps challenge the audience to navigate more than one reading of the poem.

The Possibility of Multiple Interpretations

The structural arrangement of “Social Distancing” opens space for an incredible number of interpretations. These multiple possibilities are critical to the poem’s meaning and cannot be fully captured or imagined by one reader alone. Indeed, in Herrera’s description of how to read the poem, he describes the option of using “various voices” to experience the language in a new way. “Social Distancing” is intended to defy, to some extent, any singular interpretation or way of reading; this is possibly, itself, a reflection of the social message of the poem.

One of the possible ways to read “Social Distancing” is as a kind of wheel, where the center line begins all others. In this way, for example, Line 1 would read, “Healing begins” (then) “grocery bags have a tendency to wobble.” In this reading, “Healing begins” would be repeated twelve times, creating an anaphoric poem emphasizing the idea of healing. Another way of reading the poem could be to read lines that fit as a line across, like “the basketball will dunk you up” (then) “fear dissolves and trust walks in,” which would heighten any juxtapositions between lines. By reading the poem in these multiple ways, even on one’s own, the text can begin to transform. Further, the reader’s interpretation begins to shift as the lines and potential meanings of the poem begin to differently fit together.

Herrera’s clever construction of the physical poem, designed by Anthony Cody, is an intentional way to emphasize several core themes of his poem. First, Herrera forces readers to view things from a different perspective. Indeed, even if it is read in a circular, semi-linear fashion the reader still has to read some lines that are angled or even upside-down. A second theme made explicit in the intended reading is that Herrera’s piece is asking people to engage in “healing” (Line 13) through social distancing. By creating multiple, disparate images that can together be seen in different ways, Herrera challenges readers to believe that even separate, people can have “power between us” (Line 8).