David Caplan is a doctoral candidate at the University of Virginia. In the following essay he considers the hopelessness that "Autumn Begins in Martins Ferry, Ohio " expresses.

Grammarians should love James Wright's poem, "Autumn Begins in Martins Ferry, Ohio." As many grammar textbooks lament, casual writers rarely take seriously transitional words such as "consequently," "so," and "therefore." As a consequence, these words are often used indiscriminately, tacked on to sentences that seem to be a little short or to lack sufficient rhetorical grandeur. Where these grammatical lapses occur, errors in logic frequently follow; for example, causation is implied where no causation exists.

"Therefore," however, is the most important word in "Autumn Begins in Martins Ferry, Ohio." It is only the word which warrants a complete line; three words comprise the next shortest line. Furthermore, "therefore" is conspicuously placed at the start of the final stanza. There the...