E.E. Cummings – I carry your heart with me 26
i carry your heart with me (i carry it in
my heart) i am never without it (anywhere
i go you go, my dear; and whatever is done
by only me is your doing, my darling)
i fear
no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet) i want
no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
and it’s you are whatever a moon has always meant
and whatever a sun will always sing is you
here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows
higher than soul can hope or mind can hide)
and this is the wonder that’s keeping the stars apart
i carry your heart (i carry it in my heart)
Dec 11, 2006 @ 20:45:18
This a beautiful poem! It this originally by Elizabeth Bishop or E.E. Cummings?
Dec 11, 2006 @ 21:07:40
Hey Staci,
…
as for as I know it’s by E.E. Cummings. I know the poem from the movie In her Shoes and loved it instantly
Feb 27, 2007 @ 20:07:11
This poem really touches something deep inside.. It’s a declaration of total devotion and unconditional love. Love it!
Mar 02, 2007 @ 04:06:58
i really liked the poem. but can someone please explain the brackets? and what does this mean:
“and whatever is done, by only me is your doing, my darling”?
Mar 03, 2007 @ 18:27:25
I totally agree with you, Elise … it’s all about love in its purest form … life should always be like that
Sr23, the brackets … well, I think you can make a distinction between the part in the brackets and the other words used.
The part in the brackets seem to underline the feelings, using images to explain them.
The other words seem more essential to me. You could read the poem and still consider it a poem when you leave out the words in the brackets.
“And whatever is done, by only me is your doing, my darling”
… so whatever he does, it’s always influenced by this person …
The poem is about love, the author carries the person in his heart. Whatever he does, this person is always with him, moves him, touches his heart, makes him feel like he’s the ruler of the universe … and he is, of his own
Now, this is just my view of it … so if anyone would like to share his/hers, be my guest
…
May 23, 2007 @ 17:15:19
i love this poem its so deep but what is the meaning to you guys
Aug 20, 2007 @ 00:52:33
i love this poem. after In Her Shoes i have been in love with it. me and my sister have this special bond and we always say i carry you heart in my heart now because of that movie!
Jan 06, 2012 @ 17:10:34
Shannon, same here. My sister and I put it each others Facebook walls and such. Frankly, I don’t think it’s about romantic love.
Aug 21, 2007 @ 18:41:02
that is so sweet, Shannon :d …
It’s def something to treasure
Sep 07, 2007 @ 17:46:36
i shed tears when i was watching IN HER SHOES. I can relate so much with it as i have only one sister and we are separated by time because of my work abroad. Sisters are the best friends you could have in this world.
Sep 07, 2007 @ 18:16:28
so true … I hope you keep treasuring the time that you do can spend together!
Btw your name “venus” … call it chance, call it fate, call it anything … but this week I’ve been working on a project called Venus at work … just thought it was an interesting “coincidence”
Sep 17, 2007 @ 12:30:23
In a magazine I found a silver bangle bracelet with this poem engraved in it – it only stated part of the poem so I went on line to find the whole poem and it is beautiful! I thought you all might like to know where to get the bracelet since you love the poem so much. Would be a nice Christmas gift ! go to pyramidcollection.com use item#P16-708
Apr 02, 2009 @ 23:48:08
What are the literary devices in this poem?im annotating it for english class.
Apr 27, 2009 @ 13:16:03
dude!! same here i hate annotationg ,,,, anybody help?
May 06, 2009 @ 17:11:08
just because this poem is in the movie about sisters does not mean thats what it is about.
this poem is about a man who is so deeply in love he wants apart of her forever. so he carries her heart in his heart with him forever.
Aug 11, 2009 @ 12:17:33
I have had this poem written to me by my boyfriend and put in my birthday card… we havent been getting on very well of late and now im findng it hard to understand what the meaning is behind what the poem is saying…anyone… please help me understand : ( !
Sep 09, 2009 @ 12:13:29
To be honest I think that the poem is ambiguous. I don’t think you can honestly say it’s not about sisters and is about a man and his love for a woman. In my personal opinion it’s about love in general. Anyone you care about and carry them in your heart. There are many types of love and I think this poem covers all of them. It’s the reader’s interpretation that makes it special and unique.
Sep 10, 2009 @ 16:09:16
Hi! I was surfing and found your blog post… nice! I love your blog.
Cheers! Sandra. R.
Feb 01, 2010 @ 14:05:34
I think it’s a little deeper all together and about himself/ the universal.. about his own sense of love and centredness. THIS is the secret that nobody knows.. that you must carry yourself in your heart to know love
Mar 09, 2010 @ 21:16:45
I believe this poem, like so many, is truly “about” whatever any reader reads into it. For me, the secret nobody knows is the depth of love I feel towards my wife, my daughters and several others.
May 09, 2010 @ 19:36:45
I just received this poem from my daughter on Mom’s Day because she felt the poem described her feelings for me, as they have evolved. I had never heard the poem before. It’s beautiful. This beautifully written, elegant poem, for me, describes love for whomever you choose to carry in your heart…perhaps even self as Sophie mentioned but for me I would like that love to be for all that lies under the stars and beyond. I must now see, “In Her Shoes”…..
Dec 01, 2010 @ 08:30:00
I also heard this poem on “In her shoes” and I had tears in my eyes. I agree with Dan said on 09-09-2009 “It’s the reader’s interpretation that makes it special and unique”. It is not about sisters or a man loving a woman or a woman loving a man. It is about what each person feels inside. I carry many people’s hearts in my heart !!!! Isn’t love grand….
Dec 08, 2010 @ 22:33:49
I’m new to your blog.
I adore this poem. I did an acoustic version of it to music, you can listen to it on my website if you are interested
Apr 14, 2011 @ 06:01:27
I looooove love love this poem! and totally agree that it can be interpreted in any which way. I remember after seeing it used in In Her Shoes I immediately fell in love — my sister and I have a similar relationship, but not as bad. I love how they make up and this poem really emphasizes the special, unbreakable bond that two sister’s share that’s unlike any other. I feel so lucky to have a sister so close to my age… I can’t imagine what people do without them!
Apr 21, 2011 @ 02:30:25
This is a beautiful poem. E.E. Cummings is definatly one of my favorites.!
If your looking to annotate this poem:
line 3-4 “and whatever is done by only me is your doing, my darling.” is in passive voice, because its showing the effect she has on him.
The very 1st line and last line is repition to restate his over all purpose in his poem. Which is to show how love can transcend through the body and soul…
I hope this helped anyone out there. I’m trying to annotate and write an essay on this poem right now.! :p
Jul 11, 2011 @ 20:20:57
I agree with everyone who’s saying that it is the readers interpretation i just posted this poem for my brother’s birthday on his facebook his my only brother and last year he had a close encounter with dead and this words describe exacly what he means to me but also is exacly how i feel about my mother,dad, husband and sons, this poem is all about love no matter the genre, at least that is what i think