Response to What the Green Tree Said

"What the Green Tree Said" is a poem by MacLeish that I read and wrote about for my Scriptural Lit class. MacLeish, wrote several poems about the garden of Eden and the fall of man.

The opening words start boldly with “Wakening is forbidden” the fruit of that tree would show Adam and Eve good from evil as if it was awakening them from a sleep. MacLeish seems to start very strongly with the fact that they knew the fruit was forbidden and also reminds of of what the serpent had told Eve that the fruit would open their eyes, perhaps as one awakens and opens her eyes. Then he gives examples of nature to tell us who all this act would affect. It would affect the space, time, star, stone (representing earth perhaps), bird and beast. MacLeish seems to be suggesting that when Adam and Eve awoke to know good and evil inherently the rest of creation did as well. With the act of eating the apple accomplished now all of creation was a part of this awakening, not just the participants. Each of these are “wakers” who see what “has been hidden” the author seems to be suggesting that until now all evil has been hid from all of creation and will now be reviled. They will now be awakened to what innocence, of sleep, had hidden before. MacLeish says “Wakers will no longer rest” this line seems to be referring to the fact that once Adam and Eve took the fruit they were cast from the garden and never allowed to return. Creation had been spoiled and would never be the same again. In the last line MacLeish suggests that there would never be that sleep or innocence to nakedness and sin. They would never rest as they were commanded, or bidden, to by God when he said not to eat of that tree. The most interesting part of this poem may be that it is written in the perspective of the tree. The tree saw all that happened, saw the command being given by God, saw the taking of the fruit, saw Adam and Eve being cast out of the out of the garden. It makes me think of what it would have been like to be there and see all of this. MacLeish seems to be alluding in the title itself how sad it would be to see this awakening that would keep innocence from ever returning to creation.