Comparing Poems 'November And Mark Bibbins' Groupie

Dave Lucas’s “November” and Mark Bibbins’ “Groupie” have similar themes and tone but different topics, settings, and poetic stylings. These poems express the melancholy of unrelated endings. By exploring the poet’s goals and examining theme, tone, poetic diction, end-stop, enjambment, and use of color in imagery, the reader can see how the poems reflect each other in their exploration of mournful endings.

Both poets aim to share the persona’s feelings of melancholy at the passing of an exciting time period. The persona in “November” mourns the loss of October’s bright hues and begrudgingly settles in for the gray of winter. In “Groupie” the persona mourns the loss of adoration and settles in to watch the slow motion train wreck of the dysfunctional groupie and rock star relationship. Both poems express disenchantment through the themes of change, endings, and inevitable decay. These poems

also share a similar tone. Both poems are somber but the sobriety is laced with different emotions.
In “November” the persona can look forward to the return of spring, and eventually the brightly colored leaves of next October. The somber tone is softened by the cyclical pattern of seasons so the persona’s melancholy is laced with subtle hope. The hope is presented in the notice of the “clotted, orphaned nests” that show in the barren tree branches (Lucas 9). The nests, albeit empty now, are symbols of life. The morose expression of loss is lessened by the memory of new life, and the knowledge of seasonal shift. However, the persona in “Groupie” has less to look forward too. The persona’s melancholy is amplified by his feelings of guilt and anger. The poem opens with an admission of lying about money, and trauma. “The makeshift stomach pump” metonymy reminds the persona of a drug overdose which he tries to dismiss, but cannot forget (Bibbins 1, 2). The persona is simultaneously repulsed and drawn in by “the guitar god” (Bibbins 3, 4). The poet builds the persona’s anger to climax in line seventeen when the groupie curses his rock star. The persona’s anger is accompanied by guilt, not for being angry, but for continuing to engage the rock star and to come at his call. The morose expression of loss is amplified by the persona’s conflicting emotions.
Both poems effectively use poetic diction.

Lucas uses poetic diction to elevate his poetry. With less formal use of language his poem would be reduced to an obnoxious complaint. However, the use of hyphen to connect “leaf-lisp” “cold-tea” and “struck-match-sweet” elevates the diction of the poem and triggers sensory responses; the vision of fallen leaves swirling, the feel of the cold, wet air, and the smell of the sulfur match head mingles with the sweet-smell of early decay (Lucas 2,4). Bibbins uses poetic diction not so much to elevate his text, but to imbibe the poem with more meaning. He uses double entendre and more metonymy when presenting the new girl as “a rail to rail against” which not only describes the way the rockstar views his groupies but also conveys the groupies’ ideas of themselves (Bibbins 11). The new girl’s function is shared in that line; like the other groupies she is with the band for the band members to use as they see fit. The vulgarity and slang in the poem is juxtaposed with the layers of meaning created by Bibbins ingenious word choice and

arrangement.
“November” and “Groupie” both feature end-stop lines and enjambment. The use of end-stop line in “November” creates a sighing rhythm. At the end of lines one, seven, and the final line, Lucas utilizes full stops. The long sentence from line two to line six is a list of November attributes. The list presents the dying colors, the increasing cold, and the stained leaf litter which Lucas attempts to mythologically purify with fire. The pauses created by the end-stops are lengthened thereby adding drama to the emotive nature of the piece. “Groupie” uses end-stop differently. Instead of adding a sighing pause, these end-stops provides subject breaks. There are five topics of discussion in the poem; a historical account, introduction to the new girl, presentation of the lipstick, the persona’s emotions, and the reality of the situation. The use of end-stop delineates the subject matter of the poem so the reader can better understand each element. In both poems, enjambment carries the reader deeper into the mourning. The fluidity of the lines creates feelings of inevitability, rendering both persona and reader powerless to change the circumstances or stop the forward motion, thereby increasing the feelings of impending doom.
As previously mentioned, “November” uses dying color. Both poems use color in scene painting. The death of color creates the setting in “November.” His bright copper leaves are tarnished and the smoky sky is the color of whale vomit. Lucas’s scene, overtaken with dark and dirty gray, mourns the “bright gush” of October (Lucas 1). Equally morose, Bibbins’ persona creates “Foie Gras, / Primordial Soup, [and] Contusion” colored lipsticks (Bibbins 12, 13). Not only are these colors unpleasant, but they serve as symbols of gavage, living slime, and bruises. The symbols convey aspects of the detrimental relationship that exists between the devoted groupies and the ambivalent rock star gods as well as echoing the stomach pump in the opening lines. The groupies voluntarily wearing the lipstick speaks of their willingness to participate in their own demise and again, highlights the groupies’ unhealthy devotion to the rock stars.
Although these poems are different in setting, content, shape and presentation, they reflect one another. “November” uses third person point of view to explore the same themes as “Groupie” explores in the first person. “Groupie” uses unrhymed couplets where “November uses two uneven stanzas to capture the persona’s mournful tone. Without rhyme both poems share the end of what was, and a sad acknowledgement of what awaits. They are both masterful expressions of what it feels like to experience a mournful end.