As the Dead Prey Upon Us
The poem starts with the narrator claiming that the dead who hunt the living are not really spirits, but rather feelings of guilt living inside every person. The responsibility of being hunted falls on the person who suffers because they ‘’woke up’’ the spirits by screaming at them, or rather by thinking excessively about their feelings and actions, which only made things worse, aggravating the feelings of guilt. The first stanza presents general ideas, which can be applied to every person reading his poems but then, in the next stanza, the poem becomes more personal, the narrator talking directly about his feelings.
In the next stanza the narrator talks about the moment he pushed the car he rarely used and how this activity set in motion the dead who lived inside the car. This stanza could mean that the narrator set in motion a chain of events, by thinking about the dead, and because he remembered them, their memory came back to haunt him. This stanza also shows how humans have little control over everything happening in their lives and how once an event is sent in motion, it rarely can be stopped or its progress halted by outside forces.
The dead choose to act in a normal way, human almost, gathering in the living room, together with the rest of the living who apparently, do not sense the presence of the dead inside their homes. One of the ghosts decide to answer when he is asked about the life they have in Hell and he describes their life as being ‘’poor’’ and how their life is characterized by a constant feeling of boredom. Thus, going against popular belief, Hell is described as a place where nothing happens, where the souls are dammed to an eternity doing nothing. This also shows that for the modern world, accustomed to having everything they want on the spot, boredom is the mcruelest punishment which can be inflicted on them.
The scene changes in the next stanza and two more characters are introduced: an Indian woman and a deer talking a ‘’Negro talk’’. The narrator and the Indian women walked the deer around the room, searching for shoes and socks for the deer because the deer was beginning to acquire ‘’human possibilities’’. This scene is extremely symbolic, making reference to the moment when the black society began to gain rights and be considered equal with the white population and with the other minorities in the country. The other groups tried to find the deer ‘’socks and shoes’’, basic elements every person should be allowed to have.
The souls are hunted by their missed opportunities and so they return from the dead in an attempt to rectify them and make up for the lost time. The only time when a soul does not return is when a life was lived to the fullest and thus the readers are urged to do just that, being warned and showed what will wait for them otherwise. The poem ends with the image of the mother, in the chair, a grim reminder of a life wasted away, image used to transmit the idea of regret and impossibility of redemption.
Variations Done for Gerald Van De Wiele
The poem begins with the narrator describing an intricate and detailed scenery, sometime at the end of spring. The end of the season is marked by the falling of the petals from apple trees, the presence of doves, bees and the full moon of April. The land is plowed in the countryside and the world in general is characterized by a sense of renewal and myriad of activities. From this picturesque image, the narrator moved to discuss the nature of the human soul and its imperfection. While the soul tries to make it so it will be in a constant state of happiness, ironically it is only interested in studying the nature of misery and pain. The soul is imperfect and envy is a common characteristic of the human soul, even though no one is ready to admit it. The human soul is affected by the passing of time, something over which it has no control over whatsoever.
The attention is once more focused on the trees and on the falling flower. This beautiful image is tainted by the presence of various people walking over the fallen petals without even noticing them. Spring becomes chaotic, with bees all over the place, with loud birds and even louder nights, with people who are only interested in work and do not have time for anything else in their life. Every soul is in ‘’default’’, acting without thinking and being stuck in a chain of events they have no power over. Their actions are not the result of their careful consideration but rather of habit and the fear of the characters to be criticized by those around them. The attention of the narrator then turns once more to the spring trees, their flowers thrown to the ground by the rain. There is constant activity, day and night, people working tirelessly everywhere. Nature comes back to life while secrets come to light. The only thing which remains constant at the end of the poem is the envious nature of the human soul, impossible to be eliminated.
The action of the poem is set in Gloucester where the narrator finds himself meditating about his past and the memories he has about his father. The first stanza takes place in the present but throughout the poem various events happening through time are mentioned as well. Gloucester is the main element described here, the city where the narrator grew up but left a while ago. The city is portrayed as depraved, filled with poor people struggling to survive. The narrator is now in his adulthood, with a family of his own when he decided to return to his hometown.
The place the narrator decides to visit is the former library where his father used to work. The space is filled with emotional value for the narrator who remembers fondly the time he spent there while his father was alive. When the narrator returned with his wife and small child, there was a new librarian running the place, a man with a tragic story common in Gloucester. The image of the man in the shop is emasculated by the knowledge that he was cheated on by his wife. In comparison with the new librarian, the narrator’s father is described as having been a strong man who demanded respect without speaking a word.
The poem then jumps forward again, a few years after he returned to the library with his wife and child. The narrator is now alone, thinking about the city and the way it changed from the state it was in when he last visited. Even though the city is portrayed in negative terms, the narrator’s daughter somehow decided to move to Gloucester. The move may imply that the daughter is also one of the people in the city who needs help and so the narrator’s decision to return to the city can be seen as his attempt to try and save her.
