Night Clouds
The poem “Night Clouds” is an ode to the clouds at night, lovingly referred to as “white mares” (l. 1). The speaker describes the clouds as precious and beautiful mares that gallop elegantly along the night sky, always close to heaven. In the last lines, the mares are urged to run as quickly as they can in order to avoid “the tigers” (l.8) with their poisonous red tongues, which likely refers to dawn.
November
In the poem “November,” the speaker is sitting inside, attempting to write (potentially) this very poem but feeling empty and depressed due to the cold and dark month of November. They describe how all the plants outside the house are lifeless during this time and even their cat prefers solitude during this month, leaving the speaker lonely.
Obligation
In the poem “Obligation,” the speaker details the need to shower their beloved with gifts. They address their beloved directly, presumably a female as she is described to be wearing an “apron” (l. 1), calling her “dearest of my heart” (l. 10) and describe how they would love to be able to give her an endless number of precious gifts. Instead, in the second stanza, the speaker confesses to only be able to give her “these poor things” (l. 9), revealing either the speaker to be poor or seeing their beloved above everything else in value.
