Silence

Silence - meaning Summary

Silence as Witness

Cummings’ short poem treats silence as a watching, delicate presence. The image of a "looking bird" and phrases like "turning edge of life" suggest silence as a liminal, attentive moment between states, observing change without intervening. The fragmentary layout emphasizes stillness and motion together, implying that silence both witnesses and shapes transition—an active, perceptive force that arrives before closure, like an inquiry before snow.