New Criticism "The Intentional Fallacy" and Stevens

Throughout the course of the semester, my ever changing concept of "literary criticism" skewed my traditional belief in the boundary between "literature" and "literary criticism."  From the first day of class, I understood the reasons behind the Frye text and the "satellite" apologies we learned yet pieces of "literature" like DQ and "Idea of Order" didn't quite fit with "literary criticism".  The semester progressed and thanks mostly to Frye and his theory of displaced myth, I began to see the ability of works of literature to act as literary criticism.  From this point, the fundamental boundary between the two, ingrained in my noggin since my early scholarly endeavors,  transformed more into a bridge.  It began with Don Quixote.  Thanks to the insights of literary scholars far more intelligent than I, I gained insight into just what Frye keeps yammering about.  

"The Idea of Order in Key West" however, stayed a bit more elusive.  I saw the displaced myth.  I saw the beauty of the poem solely for the sake of its beauty.  I even saw the "order."  I failed to see the criticism.  The poem revealed itself in similar fashion to my discovery of Don Quixote, through the words of someone else.  In the true nature of this class I claim my ideas only as my own insomuch they imitate thoughts of others.

While researching New Criticism for our presentation on Friday, I read an essay by two new critics, W.K. Wimsatt and Monroe C. Beardsley, entitled "The Intentional Fallacy."  They argue in the nature of New Criticism against finding the "intention of the author."  They believe knowing the intention of the author provides no insight to the poem especially if that intention revolves somewhere around historical setting, gender relations or the society in which the author lives.  Essentially the major "fallacy" surrounding poetry is "intention."   In their essay they write: 

"The poem is not the critic's won and not the author's (it is detached from the author at birth and goes about the world beyond his power to intend about it or control it).  The poem belongs to the public.  It is embodied in language, the peculiar possession of the public, and it is about the human being, an object of public knowledge."

This quote certainly pertains to the relationship between Stevens and the poem however the true value of this statement pertains more explicitly to the poem itself.  

"The Idea of Order at Key West" portrays a girl singing a ballad along the sea so unbearably beautiful it eclipsed the power of the mighty sea.  Like a great artist, the girl creates something beyond the boundaries of nature (Frye's anagogic) and some lucky speaker receives the great benefit of witnessing the creation.  The true power of the work becomes immediately apparent to the author during its creation however he fails to understand how as scene in lines 28-30  "...But it was more than that/ More even than her voice, and ours, among/ The meaningless plungings of water and wind."  I imagine if I witnessed Dante writing The Divine Comedy or Shakespeare writing Hamlet, I would see the beauty unfolding but comprehension the substance behind the beauty would remain elusive.  As stated by Wimsatt and Beardsley, beauty, purpose, and art emerge from the completed poem, completely detached from the author, dispersing among the people.  The true excellence of what she sang only becomes apparent when she removes herself from the song and the speaker and Ramon Fernandez are left solely with the art and not the artist.  The song "Mastered the night and portioned out the sea,/ Fixing emblazoned zones and fiery poles,/ Arranging, deepening, enchanting night" not the singer.  We may praise the genius of the artist however the art changes the structure of the world.  The speaker feels left in "Ghostlier demarcations, keener sounds" because of the "words of the fragrant portals" and most importantly the words themselves not the intended meaning of the words by the singer.  

One may read "The Idea of Order at Key West" however one sees fit.  The beauty of New Criticism lies in the ability to find meaning solely in the text and that text may illuminate on countless meaning.  Thanks to the words of Wimsatt and Beardsley I believe an argument can be made that "IOKW" is a work of literary criticism not only because of the displaced myths in the poem but the poem itself praises the ideas of Criticism.

Ultimately as we approach the end of semester, every preconceived notion of "Literary Criticism" and this class in general proves false.  Literature is Literary Criticism and Vise Versa.  The boundaries between the two not only seem to be bridges but one continuous plane making the study of the art form all the more profound.