On an even level

[LewisJian]

Well said, I'm not much of a city boy myself so it speaks to me on an even level.


Hi,
A reader read one of my poems and said the above to me. What does "on an even level" mean? Thanks

 

[Tdol]

I guess they mean that it does not communicate very strongly to them, but the meaning isn't very clear. Was the poem about city life?

 

[LewisJian]

Thanks, Piscean and Tdol, for your help.
Here is the link to my poem: http://www.thepoetryforum.co.uk/showthread.php?69342-Please-Don-t-Ask-Me

 

[MikeNewYork]

For me, "on an even level" means that he could relate to what the poem had to say.

 

[LewisJian]

For me, "on an even level" means that he could relate to what the poem had to say.

Thanks, Mike, for the help.
So does it equal to "I have the same experience// I have been there?"

 

[Peedeebee]

I think it means the poem (or poet, speaking) and the reader (being spoken to) are similar. They have similar experience or they are of equal status. Neither one is superior to the other, they feel as if they have an affinity with each other. (Or at least the reader feels that.) So I agree with Mike's comment.
It's a bit like the idiom- "we are on a level playing field".

 

[MikeNewYork]

Yes, Lewis.

 

[BobK]

:up: I've never heard the phrase "on an even level" by the way - "on an even keel" or "on a level playing field" (both metaphors, the first being nautical*).

Pronunciation note: those two '-eve-' words are pronounced differently: /'levǝl/ but /'i:vǝn/.

b

*PS The keel is the heavier part of a ship's hull. A ship or boat 'on an even keel' is level.

 

[Tdol]

Thanks, Piscean and Tdol, for your help.
Here is the link to my poem: http://www.thepoetryforum.co.uk/showthread.php?69342-Please-Don-t-Ask-Me

It's not possible to see the poem without signing up.