The World (poem) Summary

The poem begins with the speaker trying to reassure his wife. He opens the window and pushes aside the curtain at her request, allowing her to see the trees outside their window at night. The speaker compares their love to light that is slightly gray and then implies they share a moment of physical intimacy. As the speaker's wife sleeps a gray figure appears in their room and approaches their bed. The speaker realizes the figure is his wife's deceased brother. The figure perceives the speaker as the intruder but the speaker tells him his wife is happy now. He succeeds in warding him off, and his wife awakes as the sun rises.