What Voice at Moth-Hour

“What Voice at Moth-Hour” is a poem written in first person narrator by Robert Penn Warren, a poem which consists of five four-line stanzas, in which he is principally concerned to explore the origin and nature of a voice, constantly calling him back at “moth-hour” when he finds himself situated in different locations surrounded by nature. Through the first part of the poem, Warren uses a series of repeated questions asking himself “What voice at moth-hour did I hear”, whilst working towards an answer to which he will discover later at the end. Besides, he also makes use of enjambment, rhymes and figurative languages to back up and emphasise certain ideas and themes that he will put forward in the poem.

The poem is structured into two parts; the first is when he asks questions about the voice he once heard and trying to remember what it was, whilst the second, which consists of the last two stanzas, is when he remembers the ‘simple trick’ to hear the voice again and gives the answer to the previous questions.

The poem opens by introducing directly the question carried by the title: ‘What voice at moth-hour did I hear calling’. This gives a direct and explicit entry to the poem, allowing the readers to have a clear understanding of what he is looking for, and bringing more emphasis and attention to the title, as the question mirrors it at the start of the poem. This is the very same question that will be repeatedly set at the start of the first three stanzas.

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These continuous questions can, at a certain extent, reveal the poet’s confusion and, at the same time, enhance his longing for an answer. However, it is as if he is questioning himself rather than looking for someone that could possibly help him, he is therefore submerged into a process of deep self-reflection. Moreover, the function of these questions in the poem, other than exposing poet’s confusion in the eyes of the readers, has the purpose of arousing curiosity and interest in people as the incessant questions build up suspense throughout the poem. This keeps the readers concerned and at the ...

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