Hunting the Meaning of 'the Snark'

Holquist, in the heart of his article, illustrates several examples of “systematic arbitrariness” that gives “The Hunting of the Snark” its coherency (110-15). Among his illustrations is the rule of three that permeates the poem. This is first seen in first fit when the Bellman says, “Just the place for a Snark! I have said it thrice: / What I tell you three times is true.” Anything stated three times in the poem is true. This is shown again when Butcher argues his hearing the cry of a Jubjub in fit five. After the Butcher says three times “Tis the voice of the Jubjub,” says Holquist, it becomes true within the context of the poem. A Jubjub doesn’t exist in real life, but in the terms of the poem it does. And it is confirmed in the poem’s system of the rule of three (110).

The rule of three is also seen in the rhymes and portmanteaux of the poem. Holquist says the portmanteaux word is “the third element of a three part progression” (113). The two original words make up the first and second part. As a result, the portmanteaux are a “new truth” created by the system of the poem. The same kind of thing is illustrated in the rhymes. The two rhyming words are the first two parts, and the new association created by the rhyme is the third. Despite the fact that the rhyming words -- soap and hope, for example from the refrain -- have no logical relationship in the usual system of understanding, they have a relationship in rhyme. The understood meaning of soap, plus the understood meaning of hope, plus the rhyme equals three parts. Thus, by Carroll’s rule of three, there is a truth, i.e. logic.

Though Pennarun is essentially correct in saying that there is no theme in “The Hunting of the Snark,” he jumps to the conclusion without critical analysis. It is a superficial look at the poem. The lack of theme is the purpose of the poem, not the humor as he claims. “The Hunting of the Snark” is, as Holquist calls it, “an absolute metaphor” (116). To me, it takes a Zen-like position in literature without implying one should run naked though the woods or stare at a wall for four hours straight. In other words, it does not try to be more than it is. It is simply a poem

Go To Page: 1 2 3