Lazarus (A Motif for Resurrection) - “The Afterlife”
Billy Collins makes reference to the Biblical Lazarus in “The Afterlife” to accentuate the ambiguity of the afterworld. Biblically, Lazarus was phenomenally revivified ,but he did not disclose the contigencies of the afterlife.
Animals - “The Afterlife”
Billy Collins speculates, “There( the dead) are those who are squeezing into the bodies/of animals-eagles and leopards-and one trying on/the skin of a monkey like a tight suit,/ready to begin another life in a more simple key.” These lines allude to reincarnation whereby the departed people convert into animals. After the re-embodiment, the dead steer a new phase of their existence as fauna.
“Clean white shirt” - “Aimless Love”
The speaker in “Aimless Love” hankers for a love that is analogous to a “clean white shirt”. The shirt represents flawless, unqualified affection. White epitomizes an untainted love that is not blemished by uncertainty and callousness.
Tripod - “Aimless Love”
The speaker claims, “But my heart is always standing on its tripod,/ready for the next arrow.” The tripod is a motif for manifest keenness. The speaker foresees that his/her heart could be disintegrated startlingly.
Petrarch - “American Sonnet”
The speaker, who is ostensibly an American, asserts, “we do not speak like Petrarch”. This contention suggests that Petrarch’s sonnets are divergent from the American sonnets. Petrarch is a premier mastermind of masterpiece ideal sonnets birthed by the authoritative Renaissance.
