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Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained | |||
"The Dried Sturgeon" by Robert Bly is a vivid and introspective poem that transcends a simple encounter with a lifeless fish to delve into themes of mortality, the passage of time, and the profound depths of human consciousness and nature. Through the precise and evocative imagery of a dried-out sturgeon found on the riverbank, Bly reflects on the inevitable cessation of life and the intricate relationship between the physical world and the metaphysical contemplations it evokes in us. The poem begins with the narrator's descent from the mundane structure of a bridge in Rock Island, Illinois, to the natural setting of a riverbank as October's chill permeates the air. The juxtaposition of the man-made "iron toad" of a railway bridge against the "rose sky of sunset" and the "confused" riverbank strewn with leaves sets the stage for a meditation on the intersection of human progress and the timeless cycles of nature. Discovering the "dried-out fish" on the bank, a sturgeon that has lost all its "sudden motion," the narrator engages in a tactile exploration that becomes a gateway to deeper reflection. The detailed description of the sturgeon, from its "speckled nose bone" to the "dark hole where the gills once were," serves as a metaphor for the exploration of life's ephemeral nature and the entry point into the "darkness" that lies beyond the visible, material world. Bly masterfully extends this exploration into a philosophical rumination on darkness and its symbolic association with the unknown, the subconscious, and the afterlife. The darkness "under the bunched leaves" and "ten feet down in sand" is not just physical but emblematic of the mysteries of existence and the human psyche. The mention of a pine tree by a roadhouse, encapsulating "all of the humans’ night in one needle," and the dream of a hunchback who imagines himself "straight and whole again" in a landscape where "the earth is flat and crooked," illuminates the yearning for transformation and the search for meaning amidst life's imperfections and illusions. The sturgeon's physical attributes, particularly the scales that are "dry, swift, organized, tubular, straight and humorless as railway schedules," further symbolize the regimented, often unforgiving nature of life's journey, likening it to the inexorable forward motion of a train. The imagery of "the big clamp of the box car, tapering into sleek womanly death" evokes a sense of fatalistic beauty, suggesting that death, much like life, possesses its own form of elegance and inevitability. Through "The Dried Sturgeon," Bly not only laments the loss of life and the brutal reality of death but also invites contemplation on the layers of meaning that underpin our existence. The poem is a poignant reminder of our transient place within the natural world and the interconnectedness of all living beings, urging readers to reflect on the deeper currents that flow beneath the surface of everyday life. In this encounter with a dried sturgeon, Bly finds a profound connection to the universal themes of mortality, the search for meaning, and the beauty that resides in the natural cycle of life and death. POEM TEXT: https://poetrymagazines.org.uk/magazine/record615d.html?id=1304
| Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...DRIED STURGEON (VERSION A) by ROBERT BLY DRIED STURGEON (VERSION B) by ROBERT BLY THE PRODIGAL SON by ROBERT BLY BLUEFLAGS by WILLIAM CARLOS WILLIAMS BABY MAY by WILLIAM COX BENNETT THE LAY OF THE LABOURER by THOMAS HOOD THE NEW COLOSSUS by EMMA LAZARUS |
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