Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Traffic" by Donald Hall paints a vivid picture of the passage of time and the impact of human absence on the familiar landscapes of the past. Through evocative imagery and reflective narration, the poem explores themes of memory, loss, and the inexorable march of time.

The poem begins by situating us in a specific, ordinary moment: "Trucks and station wagons, VWs, old Chevys, Pintos, drive stop-and-go down Whitney Avenue this hot May day, bluing the coarse air, past graveyard and florist." The depiction of various vehicles in stop-and-go traffic on a hot day establishes a mundane, everyday scene. The "bluing the coarse air" phrase vividly conveys the pollution and heat, contributing to the gritty, realistic setting.

As the poem progresses, the scene shifts from the busy avenue to an "empty brick building covered with ivy like a Mayan temple, like a pyramid grown over with jungle vines." This comparison to ancient ruins creates a stark contrast between the bustling modern traffic and the quiet, overgrown relic of the past. The building, once vibrant with activity, is now a silent monument to a bygone era, overrun by nature.

Hall's reflective tone deepens as he describes his own presence in this setting: "I walk around the building as if I were dreaming it; as if I had left my planet at twenty and wandered a lifetime among galaxies and come home to find my planet aged ten thousand years, ruined, grown over, the people gone, ruin taking their places." Here, the poet imagines himself as a traveler returning to a familiar place after a long absence, only to find it transformed and abandoned. This powerful metaphor underscores the sense of dislocation and the eerie feeling of witnessing the passage of time.

The poem then shifts focus to the people who once inhabited this space: "They have gone into graveyards, who worked at this loading dock wearing brown uniforms with the pink and blue lettering of the Brock-Hall Dairy: Freddie Bauer is dead, who watched over the stockroom; Agnes McSparren is dead, who wrote figures in books at a yellow wooden desk; Harry Bailey is dead, who tested for bacteria." By naming these individuals and their roles, Hall brings a personal, human element to the poem, emphasizing that the building's decay mirrors the loss of the people who once gave it life.

Each name and role evokes a sense of nostalgia and respect for the past, acknowledging the contributions of ordinary people whose lives and work have faded into memory. The specificity of their duties and the vivid detail of the "pink and blue lettering of the Brock-Hall Dairy" create a tangible connection to the past, making their absence all the more poignant.

"Traffic" by Donald Hall masterfully blends the mundane with the profound, capturing the intersection of everyday life with the deeper, often unnoticed passage of time. Through its evocative imagery and reflective tone, the poem highlights the transience of human existence and the enduring impact of memory and loss on the landscapes we inhabit. The comparison of the ivy-covered building to ancient ruins, combined with the personal reminiscence of those who once worked there, creates a powerful meditation on time, change, and the enduring traces of the past in the present.

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