Sample Essay Analysing “How the poet expresses His views concerning time in the põem “Rising Five”
The poem “Rising Five” deals largely with the theme of time and our rather disturbing attitude towards it. We are constantly looking ahead, into the future, seeking the next stage of our lives and failing to enjoy each moment as it comes. The poet seeks to express the importance of living in the present through his use of imagery and structure, which emphasise the dangers of always looking ahead through the seasons of our lives and almost wishing away our time here on Earth.
The structure of the poem moves us from the innocent, seemingly trivial outlook of a child to the wider issue of wishing our lives away. The repetition of the word “rising” to connote almost or nearly there begins to suggest a positive outlook as the small boy is “rising five” or almost five and this is shown as a childish impatience to grow up and be older than he really is. On the other hand, this phrase is repeated, each time growing further ahead and rushing through time as in “rising June”, “rising night” and then finally “rising dead”. This last line is deliberately shocking and underlines the poet’s concerns that we rush through our lives at too fast a pace and almost run towards death before we have had a chance to live.
