Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Rachel Hadas's poem "Roadblock" intricately navigates themes of loss, trauma, and the existential challenges posed by death. Through a blend of surreal imagery and personal introspection, Hadas captures the tension between the desire to confront and understand death, and the paralyzing fear it instills.

The poem opens with a series of self-descriptions that immediately set a tone of unease and agitation: "Call me the bee buzzing in the museum. / The younger sister fussing through a house / still stiff with loss. / The meddling goblin in the mausoleum." These metaphors paint the speaker as a restless, intrusive presence in spaces defined by death and memory. The bee and goblin suggest a discomforting persistence and disturbance, while the younger sister in a house "stiff with loss" evokes a more personal, intimate confrontation with grief.

Hadas then transitions to a dream sequence: "My dream: with three in the front seat, we drive / under a bridge and halt. A huge gray bus / blocks the whole road, including us, / the only travelers who are left alive." This imagery of a journey interrupted by an insurmountable obstacle serves as a powerful metaphor for the experience of confronting death. The "huge gray bus" represents a literal and figurative roadblock, halting the journey of life and trapping the travelers in a moment of stasis. The fact that they are the "only travelers who are left alive" adds a layer of existential isolation and survival.

The drizzling rain and ineffective windshield wipers further enhance the atmosphere of blindness and helplessness: "It’s drizzling; the windshield wiper blades / busily gesture, yet we’re nearly blind." This imagery underscores the struggle to see clearly or make progress in the face of overwhelming obstacles. The companions' apparent indifference—"You two seem not to mind / blank windows, pulled-down shades"—contrasts sharply with the speaker's urgency and desire to "get out and explore, / to move around / the deathly obstacle."

The speaker's companions warn her to remain silent and still: " 'Don’t make a sound,' / you say. (Who are you?) 'Don’t go near that door.' " This injunction to silence and passivity highlights the tension between the speaker's impulse to confront and understand the obstacle and the others' caution or resignation.

The poem then shifts to a recollection of a real event: "Our mountain drive last month—that wasn’t dreamed. / We three again. We ran a dog down. I / alone looked back, alone let out a cry. / I saw it lying in its blood and screamed." This incident of accidentally killing a dog and the speaker's solitary reaction to it serves as a visceral reminder of mortality and the often solitary nature of grief and trauma. The act of looking back and screaming contrasts with the earlier dream's admonition to remain silent and still, underscoring the speaker's struggle with confronting death head-on.

In the final stanza, the speaker grapples with the meaning of these images and experiences: "So tell me what these images portend. / Am I a noisy bird of evil omen / or just a person, apprehensive, human, / moving ahead, kid sister into woman, / stonewalled by death each time she rounds a bend?" These lines encapsulate the central conflict of the poem: the speaker's search for understanding and the role of death in shaping her journey. The "noisy bird of evil omen" suggests a harbinger of doom, while the acknowledgment of being "just a person, apprehensive, human" reflects a more universal experience of grappling with mortality.

The transformation from "kid sister into woman" signifies a journey of maturation and acceptance, yet it is one continually "stonewalled by death." The metaphor of being blocked by death at every turn emphasizes the pervasive and inescapable nature of mortality.

"Roadblock" is a poignant exploration of the emotional and psychological impact of death. Through rich imagery and reflective language, Rachel Hadas delves into the complexities of confronting mortality, balancing the desire for understanding with the paralyzing fear it engenders. The poem invites readers to reflect on their own encounters with death and the ways in which these experiences shape their journey through life.

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