Themes in Spring

“April” is given its own line for emphasis. The poem has thus far explored the narrator’s dissatisfaction with the symbolism of spring and the overall banality of life. The halting quality of the poem, with its alternating long and short lines, reaches its most urgent, lurching halt here. At only two syllables, “April” is a line devoid of all the typical poetic styles and meters. By stripping away all poetry from the line, Millay drives home the meaninglessness of “April.”

The image of the “empty cup” is an expression of the modern, secular condition. The world itself is “empty,” void of meaning. It is up to each individual to “fill the cup,” so to speak. The act of poetic reflection represents one such method of creating meaning. Even if the poem cannot imbue April with meaning, the recording of one’s frustration or despair is meaningful in itself.

This line implies a type of desperation for the world to be charged with meaning and significance. It is not enough for the narrator to “smell”” the earth and feel the hot sun, she must determine the underlying meaning of these physical experiences.