The narrator’s fear of death begins to abate, shifting the mood. (23). While the narrator had previously been frantically trying to observe as much as possible, they are just now satisfied, having “finally noticed enough” (23) . At this moment, the poem calms down considerably. The lines themselves lengthen, lessening the jolting effect of the enjambment that had previously been common. While the narrator’s thoughts stray to death once more, this time the moths floating through the trees are the focus, wondering about their lifespan. As the narrator witnesses the moths “fluttering / in and out of shadows” (26-27) the movement of the moths through the darkness becomes a metaphor for the narrator’s own agitated explorations of life and death.
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It is established that all of these events had happened “one day” (24); the narrator has since accepted all that they had learned on that day. “You aren’t much”, the narrator says to themselves, “and grins”, understanding that although they may not be a permanent or powerful being, everything, including themselves, is significant and worthy of attention (28, 31). The contrast between the narrator’s admission that one is of little importance to the enormous entirety of the cosmos, that as individuals, we are almost inconsequential, and the smile that follows this admission creates one of the most powerful moments of the poem, a soaring climax that sends it off towards its final stanzas. Although the white moths may be tiny beings, concentrating solely on survival, the narrator still sees beauty and importance in them, leading to the conclusion that even though every person may not impact the universe as a whole, there is still value in one’s life. A single being will not affect the entire world, but that doesn’t mean that it will have no impact at all. The narrator’s “reflection / in a green pond” (29-30) shows that they are seeing themselves as in a mirror, but a mirror warped by the green presence of nature. This shows that the narrator finally sees themselves as they are, temporary and insignificant, yet important, and that it was through the …show more content…
Some nights, the narrator says, the moths will lie motionless (38) inside the moccasin flowers. Night, associated with endings and death already, is the perfect setting to address the mortality of these moths. However, the moths only remain inside the flowers “until dawn” (37). The description of the flowers as “dark halls of honey” (39) and the shape and womb-like quality of the moccasin flowers paints the reemergence of the moths in the morning more as a rebirth than a continuance of a previous life. For the narrator, this means that death isn’t the end, allowing them to face their fear, weakening the ultimate power that this fear on their life. The white moths are reborn again like pale white angels or phantoms, and through witnessing this, the narrator accepts the inevitability of the fact that all things will die, but acknowledges that death doesn’t have the final say. By confronting their fears that nothing in the world can be preserved forever, the narrator is also reborn; their emotional journey culminates in both acceptance and rejection of
It is established that all of these events had happened “one day” (24); the narrator has since accepted all that they had learned on that day. “You aren’t much”, the narrator says to themselves, “and grins”, understanding that although they may not be a permanent or powerful being, everything, including themselves, is significant and worthy of attention (28, 31). The contrast between the narrator’s admission that one is of little importance to the enormous entirety of the cosmos, that as individuals, we are almost inconsequential, and the smile that follows this admission creates one of the most powerful moments of the poem, a soaring climax that sends it off towards its final stanzas. Although the white moths may be tiny beings, concentrating solely on survival, the narrator still sees beauty and importance in them, leading to the conclusion that even though every person may not impact the universe as a whole, there is still value in one’s life. A single being will not affect the entire world, but that doesn’t mean that it will have no impact at all. The narrator’s “reflection / in a green pond” (29-30) shows that they are seeing themselves as in a mirror, but a mirror warped by the green presence of nature. This shows that the narrator finally sees themselves as they are, temporary and insignificant, yet important, and that it was through the …show more content…
Some nights, the narrator says, the moths will lie motionless (38) inside the moccasin flowers. Night, associated with endings and death already, is the perfect setting to address the mortality of these moths. However, the moths only remain inside the flowers “until dawn” (37). The description of the flowers as “dark halls of honey” (39) and the shape and womb-like quality of the moccasin flowers paints the reemergence of the moths in the morning more as a rebirth than a continuance of a previous life. For the narrator, this means that death isn’t the end, allowing them to face their fear, weakening the ultimate power that this fear on their life. The white moths are reborn again like pale white angels or phantoms, and through witnessing this, the narrator accepts the inevitability of the fact that all things will die, but acknowledges that death doesn’t have the final say. By confronting their fears that nothing in the world can be preserved forever, the narrator is also reborn; their emotional journey culminates in both acceptance and rejection of