--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird\"…" description: "\"“Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird\" I Among twenty snowy mountains, The only moving thing Was the eye of the blackbird. II I was of three minds, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ec9/wallace-stevens-846_blackbird_thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird_1656956.jpg" --- # Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird" I Among twenty… ![“Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird" I Among twenty snowy mountains, The only moving thing Was the eye of the blackbird. II I was of three minds, Like a tree In which there are three blackbirds. III The blackbird whirled in the autumn winds. It was a small part of the pantomime. IV A man and a…” quote by Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ec9/wallace-stevens-846_blackbird_thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird_1656956.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ec9/wallace-stevens-846_blackbird_thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird_1656956.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ec9/wallace-stevens-846_blackbird_thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird_1656956.jpg) > ““Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird" I Among twenty snowy mountains, The only moving thing Was the eye of the blackbird. II I was of three minds, Like a tree In which there are three blackbirds. III The blackbird whirled in the autumn winds. It was a small part of the pantomime. IV A man and a woman Are one. A man and a woman and a blackbird Are one. V I do not know which to prefer, The beauty of inflections Or the beauty of innuendoes, The blackbird whistling Or just after. VI Icicles filled the long window With barbaric glass. The shadow of the blackbird Crossed it, to and fro. The mood Traced in the shadow An indecipherable cause. VII O thin men of Haddam, Why do you imagine golden birds? Do you not see how the blackbird Walks around the feet Of the women about you? VIII I know noble accents And lucid, inescapable rhythms; But I know, too, That the blackbird is involved In what I know. IX When the blackbird flew out of sight, It marked the edge Of one of many circles. X At the sight of blackbirds Flying in a green light, Even the bawds of euphony Would cry out sharply. XI He rode over Connecticut In a glass coach. Once, a fear pierced him, In that he mistook The shadow of his equipage For blackbirds. XII The river is moving. The blackbird must be flying. XIII It was evening all afternoon. It was snowing And it was going to snow. The blackbird sat In the cedar-limbs.”” [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The poem presents multiple perspectives on a blackbird, illustrating how observation changes meaning. **In simple terms:** Seeing the blackbird from many angles changes its significance. Key Takeaway Consider multiple viewpoints. Themes perception art language nature Mood contemplative poetic Type literary inspirational When to use this quote - reading - art criticism - creative writing Key Concepts literature poetry philosophy Questions to Reflect On - What does the blackbird symbolize for you? - How does shifting perspective alter your understanding? A Different Perspective Interpretations can become overly analytical, missing emotional impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Autumn wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autumn-wind/) [Birds Flying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/birds-flying/) [Blackbird Flew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blackbird-flew-716322/) [Blackbird Snowy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blackbird-snowy-716319/) [Green light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/green-light/) [Looking Blackbird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looking-blackbird-716321/) [Sight Blackbirds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sight-blackbirds-716318/) [Snow Blackbird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snow-blackbird-716320/) [Snowy mountains](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/snowy-mountains/) ## Related quotes > [It was evening all afternoon. It was snowing And it was going to snow. 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Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-howard/) > [When your location is a snowy mountain in the winter the obstacles are pretty extreme.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-rice/when-your-location-is-a-snowy-mountain-in-the-winter-the-obstacles/) [Travis Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-rice/) > [“I have seen," he said, "the most beautiful scenes of my own country; I have visited the lakes of Lucerne and Uri, where the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-shelley/i-have-seen-he-said-the-most-beautiful-scenes-of-my-own-country-i/) [Mary Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-shelley/) > [“it bore no scent, but was an air wholly fresh and clean and young, as if it had not before been breathed by any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien/it-bore-no-scent-but-was-an-air-wholly-fresh-and-clean-and-young-as/) [J.R.R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien/) > [Tell me when it's over " Thalia said. Her eyes were shut tight. The statue was holding on to us so we couldn't fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/tell-me-when-it-s-over-thalia-said-her-eyes-were-shut-tight-the/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [A couple from Sydney or Melbourne might leave on the same day for their holiday: the wife might go sun-bathing at Surfers Paradise, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-mikes/a-couple-from-sydney-or-melbourne-might-leave-on-the-same-day-for/) [George Mikes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-mikes/) > [“snowy mountains are, and the sea, they say, with the distant”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/various/snowy-mountains-are-and-the-sea-they-say-with-the-distant/) [Various](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/various/) > [“I contempleted the lake; the waters were placid, all around was calm and the snowy mountains... the calm and heavenly scene restored me and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-shelley/i-contempleted-the-lake-the-waters-were-placid-all-around-was-calm/) [Mary Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-shelley/) > [“You don't understand. My brain consists of large, snowy mountains, and you just caused an avalanche.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-rodriguez/you-don-t-understand-my-brain-consists-of-large-snowy-mountains-and/) [David Rodriguez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-rodriguez/) > [“It started when we were little kids. Free spirits, but already tormented by our own hands given to us by our parents. We got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-kiedis/it-started-when-we-were-little-kids-free-spirits-but-already/) [Anthony Kiedis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-kiedis/) ## More by Wallace Stevens > [Poet, patting more nonsense foamed From the sea, conceive for thecourts Of these academies, the diviner health Disclosed in common forms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/poet-patting-more-nonsense-foamed-from-the-sea-conceive-for-thecourts/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [The way through the world is more difficult to find than the way beyond it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/the-way-through-the-world-is-more-difficult-to-find-than-the-way/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [The magnificent cause of being, The imagination, the one reality In this imagined world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/the-magnificent-cause-of-being-the-imagination-the-one-reality-in/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [Music falls on the silence like a sense / A passion that we feel, not understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/music-falls-on-the-silence-like-a-sense-a-passion-that-we-feel-not/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [The life of the city never lets you go, nor do you ever want it to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/the-life-of-the-city-never-lets-you-go-nor-do-you-ever-want-it-to/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [After a lustre of the moon, we say We have not the need of any paradise, We have not the need of any seducing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/after-a-lustre-of-the-moon-we-say-we-have-not-the-need-of-any/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [I am what is around me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/i-am-what-is-around-me/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [“We live in an old chaos of the sun, Or old dependency of day and night, Or island solitude, unsponsored, free, Of that wide…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/we-live-in-an-old-chaos-of-the-sun-or-old-dependency-of-day-and-night/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [“Lunar Paraphrase" The moon is the mother of pathos and pity. When, at the wearier end of November, Her old light moves along the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/lunar-paraphrase-the-moon-is-the-mother-of-pathos-and-pity-when-at/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [Poetry is the scholar's art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/poetry-is-the-scholar-s-art/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [“The stars are putting on their glittering belts, They throw around their shoulders cloaks that flash Like a great shadow's last embellishment”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/the-stars-are-putting-on-their-glittering-belts-they-throw-around/) [wallace stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [Unfortunately there is nothing more inane than an Easter carol. It is a religious perversion of the activity of Spring in our blood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/unfortunately-there-is-nothing-more-inane-than-an-easter-carol-it-is/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [The word is the making of the world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/the-word-is-the-making-of-the-world/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [A diary is more or less the work of a man of clay whose hands are clumsy and in whose eyes there is no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/a-diary-is-more-or-less-the-work-of-a-man-of-clay-whose-hands-are/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) > [It is never the thing but the version of the thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/it-is-never-the-thing-but-the-version-of-the-thing/) [Wallace Stevens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) [Explore all 352 Wallace Stevens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/) ## More Autumn wind quotes > [“Fall" Fall, falling, fallen. That’s the way the season Changes its tense in the long-haired maples That dot the road; the veiny hand-shaped leaves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-hirsch/fall-fall-falling-fallen-that-s-the-way-the-season-changes-its-tense/) [Edward Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-hirsch/) > [“Dmitri’s nerves calmed as he walked through the hedgerow maze, easily finding his way to the centre, sitting awhile. He had walked the grounds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-dominique-taxer/dmitri-s-nerves-calmed-as-he-walked-through-the-hedgerow-maze-easily/) [Carmen Dominique Taxer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-dominique-taxer/) > [When I speak My lips feel cold - The autumn wind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matsuo-basho/when-i-speak-my-lips-feel-cold-the-autumn-wind/) [Matsuo Basho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matsuo-basho/) > [Youth is like spring, an over praised season more remarkable for biting winds than genial breezes. Autumn is the mellower season, and what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-butler/youth-is-like-spring-an-over-praised-season-more-remarkable-for/) [Samuel Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-butler/) > [The melancholy days are come, the saddest of the year, Of wailing winds, and naked woods and meadows brown and sear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-bryant/the-melancholy-days-are-come-the-saddest-of-the-year-of-wailing-winds/) [William C. Bryant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-bryant/) > [“An old man emerged from the ditch, a creature Of mud and wild autumn winds capering Like a hare across a bouldered field, across…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-erikson/an-old-man-emerged-from-the-ditch-a-creature-of-mud-and-wild-autumn/) [Steven Erikson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-erikson/) > [“To reclaim our natural power and this birthright of real magic, we must get naked and face ourselves. The truth of Who You Really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-nordby/to-reclaim-our-natural-power-and-this-birthright-of-real-magic-we/) [Jacob Nordby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-nordby/) > [“He ran from her suddenly, swift and quiet like a mountain cat among the high peeks of Eld mountain. She watched him dive in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-a-mckillip/he-ran-from-her-suddenly-swift-and-quiet-like-a-mountain-cat-among/) [Patricia A. 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The stalks hum, the loose husks whisk skyward in half-playing swirls, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldo-leopold/the-wind-that-makes-music-in-november-corn-is-in-a-hurry-the-stalks/) [Aldo Leopold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldo-leopold/) > [Corn wind in the fall, come off the black lands, come off the whisper of the silk hangers, the lap of the flat spear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sandburg/corn-wind-in-the-fall-come-off-the-black-lands-come-off-the-whisper/) [Carl Sandburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sandburg/) > [The autumn wind is a Raider, / Pillaging just for fun; / He'll knock you around, / And upside down, / And laugh when he's conquered and won.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-sabol/the-autumn-wind-is-a-raider-pillaging-just-for-fun-he-ll-knock-you/) [Steve Sabol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-sabol/) > [“I recall the gentle whispers of the autumn wind and our long walks on crunchy leaves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bhuwan-thapaliya/i-recall-the-gentle-whispers-of-the-autumn-wind-and-our-long-walks-on/) [Bhuwan Thapaliya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bhuwan-thapaliya/) > [“The title on the front of the sketchbook was written in bold cursive: 'Libby's Book of Butterflies.' One of the edges was folded, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-dobson/the-title-on-the-front-of-the-sketchbook-was-written-in-bold-cursive/) [Melanie Dobson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-dobson/) [Browse all 39 Autumn wind quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autumn-wind/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird\" I Among twenty snowy mountains, The only moving thing Was the eye of the blackbird. II I was of three minds, Like a tree In which there are three blackbirds. III The blackbird whirled in the autumn winds. It was a small part of the pantomime. IV A man and a woman Are one. A man and a woman and a blackbird Are one. V I do not know which to prefer, The beauty of inflections Or the beauty of innuendoes, The blackbird whistling Or just after. VI Icicles filled the long window With barbaric glass. The shadow of the blackbird Crossed it, to and fro. The mood Traced in the shadow An indecipherable cause. VII O thin men of Haddam, Why do you imagine golden birds? Do you not see how the blackbird Walks around the feet Of the women about you? VIII I know noble accents And lucid, inescapable rhythms; But I know, too, That the blackbird is involved In what I know. IX When the blackbird flew out of sight, It marked the edge Of one of many circles. X At the sight of blackbirds Flying in a green light, Even the bawds of euphony Would cry out sharply. XI He rode over Connecticut In a glass coach. Once, a fear pierced him, In that he mistook The shadow of his equipage For blackbirds. XII The river is moving. The blackbird must be flying. XIII It was evening all afternoon. It was snowing And it was going to snow. The blackbird sat In the cedar-limbs.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Wallace Stevens" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird-i-among-twenty-snowy/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Autumn wind" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird-i-among-twenty-snowy/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ec9/wallace-stevens-846_blackbird_thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird_1656956.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ec9/wallace-stevens-846_blackbird_thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird_1656956.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ec9/wallace-stevens-846_blackbird_thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird_1656956.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Blackbird\" I Among twenty snowy mountains, The only moving thing Was the eye…” — Wallace Stevens", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Wallace Stevens", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stevens/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Thirteen Ways of Looking at a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird-i-among-twenty-snowy/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stevens/thirteen-ways-of-looking-at-a-blackbird-i-among-twenty-snowy/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```