The opening line tells us that there is a “huddle” or a crowd on the greasy street. “Cars stop, nose past” these two lines indicate that there is a lot of interest in this incident. The man’s clothing gives us the impression that he is nobody special as he is wearing a “non-descript coat”. He is not making a fuss but is however relying on the kindness of strangers around him to come to his aid. There is not much he can do but lie helplessly in the street and pass away. All of these things are useful to us to help set the scene and that is what makes a good poem. The reaction of the general public to this incident is a very helpful one. A young mother drops her shopping bag to rush to the aid of the man. This woman would appear to be experienced in coping in such cases due to her calmness throughout the situation. However, on the other side of the man is a nervous youth. He feels awkward at being in the centre of the attention and wonders what say to the old man. This description of the young man’s behaviour strikes a chord with the way most young people would feel in such a situation, not knowing what to say or do. He occasionally glances nervously at the crowd in an attempt to cry out for someone to help but he cannot say anything because he is so nervous. It appears that he was in the wrong place at the wrong time but could not bear to leave the old man dying in the street. Thi.co.uk
There is a theme of gloom throughout the whole poem straight from the title. “The dull glint on soles of tackety boots” instantly conveys to us that someone is lying on the street, which obviously suggests something is not quite right. Edwin Morgan’s use of dialect in line eight of the poem, “an auld fella, he’s had it”, shows us straight away that someone has already died or is close to dying. The mother and the nervous youth “must support him into death”. This means that they can only try to comfort him as he slowly dies.
The old man, even though he is dying, is very relaxed about his unfortunate situation. It is almost as though he is accepting what will happen as he seems not to be in any pain and his eyes are fixed on the sky. He just drifts away as if it is his time to go and there is nothing he, or anyone else, can do about it.
The last two lines of the poem describe how “only the hungry ambulance howls for him now through the staring squares”. The ambulance is not physically hungry but it trying desperately to get to him through the “staring squares”. I believe that these “staring squares” are the windows of the flats and houses in the city. They are not actually staring at the ambulance but it is the occupiers of the buildings who are staring and trying to get a look at what is going on because of the “howling “ vehicle as it races by. This “howling” is not actual howling but is in fact another of Macaigs brilliant language techniques coming into this poem. It is onomatopoeia and is effective because it makes us picture and also hear the sirens of this racing ambulance in our heads howling as it desperately tries in vain to make it to the scene of the man’s accident. The “staring squares” is an example of alliteration and personification is used to describe the hungry ambulance howling.
The dialect in this poem immediately lets you know the origin of this poem. The use of slang phrases such as “wits wrang?” show that this is a poet of a Scottish background. It adds to the scene setting of the poem by making you think of a busy Glasgow street with its typically Scottish language.
This poem had a great impact on me. It made me feel sad but on the other hand made me feel moved by the way the old man just accepted that it was his time to go and he did not die in any stress or pain. It made me feel sad because of the situation the old man was in. He had no immediate family with him as he died but peaceful because of the way he accepted death. This poem also made me think of death in a positive way. The old man did not seem afraid to die, he seemed to accept and welcome it. I also related myself to the nervous youth in the poem as it made me think of how I would handle being in that situation. I would also feel a sense of helplessness, not having the knowledge or experience to deal with the same incident.
