Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Linda Pastan's poem "Nocturnal" delves into the complex interplay between light, darkness, and the human fear of death, exploring how these concepts might be perceived not only by humans but also by nocturnal animals. Through vivid and thought-provoking imagery, the poem examines the instinctual responses to the unknown, particularly the dread that accompanies our awareness of mortality.

The poem opens with a speculative question: "If animals think about death, / do the nocturnal ones — the lemur, for instance, or the raccoon — consider it / a kind of light, a glare / in the future?" By invoking nocturnal creatures—animals that thrive in darkness—the speaker introduces the idea that for these beings, death might be associated with light rather than the dark that humans typically fear. This reversal challenges our usual associations, suggesting that for creatures of the night, the bright unknown could be as terrifying as the dark is to us.

The speaker continues to explore this idea, wondering if nocturnal animals view death as "a place where predators / arm themselves in God's Auorescent shield." The phrase "God's Auorescent shield" conjures an image of something divine yet blinding, a light so powerful it serves as protection for those who wield it—perhaps the ultimate predators. The use of "Auorescent" (which may be a poetic variation of "fluorescent") implies an unnatural, almost otherworldly brightness. This light, then, becomes something to fear, much like how humans fear the darkness where dangers are unseen.

The poem shifts to a reflection on human behavior: "Do they fear a wilderness of light the way we fear the dark?" Here, the speaker suggests a parallel between the fear nocturnal animals might have of light—a world that disorients and endangers them—and the fear humans have of the dark, which conceals threats and embodies the unknown. The concept of a "wilderness of light" evokes a landscape that is both harsh and disorienting, just as the wilderness of darkness is for humans.

The speaker then brings the focus back to their own experience, revealing a personal response to the fear of what lies ahead: "I sleep with lights burning in the other room, as if to fool what lies ahead." This act of leaving the lights on becomes a protective ritual, an attempt to stave off the encroaching darkness—and by extension, the fear of death. The light here symbolizes a barrier against the unknown, a way to keep the inevitable at bay.

In the final lines, the poem takes on a more ominous tone as the speaker imagines death as something "owl-shaped or prescient / as a bat, waiting to smother me / in its nocturnal wings." The image of death as an owl or bat—both nocturnal creatures—adds a layer of foreboding. These animals, associated with the night and with predation, embody the fears that the speaker tries to ward off with light. The phrase "smother me / in its nocturnal wings" suggests an inescapable, suffocating force, one that is intimately connected to the darkness and the night.

"Nocturnal" is a contemplative poem that explores the fears associated with death and the unknown through the lens of both human and animal experiences. Pastan uses the contrast between light and dark to probe the instinctual responses that both humans and animals have to their environments, particularly in relation to mortality. The poem's imagery—ranging from the glare of an unknown light to the protective rituals of leaving lights on—captures the universal anxiety about what lies beyond the known world, whether that be the literal darkness of night or the metaphorical darkness of death. In this way, "Nocturnal" invites readers to reflect on the ways in which we attempt to protect ourselves from our deepest fears, even as those fears remain ever-present, lurking just beyond the reach of the light.

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