Lakia Lewis
Eng 102
Dr. C. Jason Smith
18 April 2010
The Dark Hour
by William Henry Davies
AND now, when merry winds do blow,
And rain makes trees look fresh,
An overpowering staleness holds
This mortal flesh
Though well I love to feel the rain,
And be by winds well blown --
The mystery of mortal life
Doth press me down. what
will,
And, In this mood, come now what will,
Shine Rainbow, Cuckoo call;
There is no thing in Heaven or Earth
Can lift my soul
II know not where this state comes from --
No cause for grief I know;
The Earth around is fresh and green,
Flowers near me grow.
I sit between two fair rose trees;
Red roses on my right,
And on my left side roses are
A lovely white.
The little birds are full of joy,
Lambs bleating all the day;
The colt runs after the old mare,
And children play.
And still there comes this dark, dark hour --
Which is not borne of Care;
Into my heart it creeps before
I am aware.
William Henry Davies was born in Wales on July 1871. He was a tramp in the United States and in England. His first poem "The Soul's Destroyer"(1905) won the favorable attention of G. B. Shaw. W. H. Davies died in 1940. The year "The Dark Hour" was published was between 1905 to 1916.
"The Dark Hour" has 7 stanzas with 4 lines in each stanza. The rhyme scheme is ABCB but the rhyme scheme for stanza 3 is ABCD. The second and fourth lines in each stanza, except for stanza 3, the last word rhymes with each other. Such as "Red roses on my right (line 18).”And on my left side roses are (line 19) A lovely white (line 20).
The man in the poem is outside and he feels the wind blowing cheerfully (line 1). It rain recently or it just stopped raining, so the tree look fresh from being watered by the rain (line 2). A heavy brutal force is holding (line 3) his body down (line 4). He wants to be watered by the rain (line 5). He wants the breath of life to be blown on him (line 6). Life is a mystery (line 7). Is holding him back (line 8). In his mood, he's ready for anything (line 9) He sees a rainbow in the sky and hears a cuckoo bird calling his mate (line 10). Nothing not even God or the people on earth (line 11) can help his soul (line 12). He doesn't know why he feels this way (line 13). He says it doesn't come from grief (line 14). The earth is healthy and growing (line 15). Flowers are growing (line 16). He sits between two rose trees (line 17). On his right, there are red roses (line 18). And on his left side the roses (line 19), are a beautiful white (line 20). The birds are happily chirping (line 21). Lambs have been bleating all day (line 22) Male horses chase after female horse (line 23). Children are playing in the fields (line 24). Still here come his darkest hour (line 25). The dark hour doesn't care for him (line 26). It creeps in his heart before (line 27), he see it coming (line 28).
There are a number of symbols and a number of motifs. The first motif is (1) wind, rain, flowers, and rainbow, (2) Earth and Heaven, (3) Lamb, children, mare colts and cuckoo, and (4) Dark, white, red, and green. Motif (1) is a about nature, the symbol wind "is the messenger of divine intervention", so in line 6 "And be by winds well blown, the man wants to feel the divine presence of a spirit. While rain means in the poem as live-giving, in line 5 "Though well I love to feel the rain," the man wants the rain to give him life, he wants to be reborn. Flowers mean the birth of life, so in line 16, the man is saying that life grows around me. The symbol rainbow is a bridge to paradise or it means peace. Motif (2) Earth is feminine, the great mother, while Heaven is masculine. In lines 11 and 12 "There is no thing in Heaven and Earth, Can lift my soul," basically he's saying that neither my Mother nor Father can help my soul. Motif (3) is about innocent. A lamb defines innocent, they're gentle. Colts, mares, cuckoo, and children also represents innocent, they're doing what comes natural to them in the poem. Motif (4) is about color. Dark in the poem can mean black and black means death. The man's dark hour is death. White in the poem means holy, pure, life or Heaven. While Red means fire, which can also represent Hell. In stanza 5 "I sit between two fair rose trees; Red roses on my right, And on my left side roses are A lovely white," this whole stanza means he's sitting between Heaven and Hell. He doesn't know where he will end up. Green in the poem means growth.
The tone is depression. The guy is depressed. He's seeing everything around him looking joyful and merry, but he feels like crap. There's no happy bone in his body. He's about to died; I don't think anyone would be happy if they knew they only had an hour left of life. With the depressive tone, there's sadness.
"The Dark Hour" describes a man's last hour before his death. And how he sees the world as a happy place but he feels down, because his dark hour is about to arrive. When reading this poem, you see an image of a man in the country side, or in a park, sitting in grass near two rose trees, just observing everything around him that is alive. Obversing everything before he dies.
Cited Works
Biederman, Hans. "Flowers" Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them. New York: Meridian, 1994. Web.18 April 2010 http://www.umich.edu/~umfandsf/symbolismproject/symbolism.html/
Biederman, Hans. "White" Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them. New York: Meridian, 1994. Web.18 April 2010 http://www.umich.edu/~umfandsf/symbolismproject/symbolism.html/
Biederman, Hans. "Lamb" Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them. New York: Meridian, 1994. Web.18 April 2010 http://www.umich.edu/~umfandsf/symbolismproject/symbolism.html/
Biederman, Hans. "Heaven" Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them. New York: Meridian, 1994. Web.18 April 2010 http://www.umich.edu/~umfandsf/symbolismproject/symbolism.html/
Biederman, Hans. "Earth" Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them. New York: Meridian, 1994. Web.18 April 2010 http://www.umich.edu/~umfandsf/symbolismproject/symbolism.html/
Biederman, Hans. "Green" Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them. New York: Meridian, 1994. Web.18 April 2010 http://www.umich.edu/~umfandsf/symbolismproject/symbolism.html/
Biederman, Hans. "Red" Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them. New York: Meridian, 1994. Web.18 April 2010 http://www.umich.edu/~umfandsf/symbolismproject/symbolism.html/
Biederman, Hans. "Rain" Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them. New York: Meridian, 1994. Web.18 April 2010 http://www.umich.edu/~umfandsf/symbolismproject/symbolism.html/
Biederman, Hans. "Wind" Dictionary of Symbolism: Cultural Icons and the Meanings Behind Them. New York: Meridian, 1994. Web.18 April 2010 http://www.umich.edu/~umfandsf/symbolismproject/symbolism.html/
