Moreover, in this same line, the poet uses hyperbole to express his frustration towards his writer’s block. This is apparent when he says, “everything streams”. This may mean that his sweating is so profuse, it creates the sense of waterflow. It is obvious that Lowell had so much pressure on his writing and perhaps numerous deadlines to meet in a short span of time, that he was so overwhelmed by all of it. This will make the reader feel empathetic towards the speaker as they realize how tragic his anxiety is.
Additionally, the use of enjambment here, carries the ominous sense of this line on to the others, creating an uncomfortable atmosphere for the readers as they understand how intense the writer’s anguish is.
Furthermore, he presents his anxiety through monologue style writing. This is obvious in the line, “always inside me is the child who died, always inside me is his will to die—". This line has a bit of a psycho-emotional element to it as Lowell explains how his inner child is gone forever, yet still has the will to die. This could possibly be about Lowell in the present- his inner child is dead, yet he is still has the will to die because he is still here. This would be understandable as Lowell had been suffering from bipolar disorder or “manic depression” throughout his adult life. This poem is a perfect representation of how this disorder was heavily affecting his life.
Overall, this poem is brutally personal and really shows us how much Lowell was going through. From the way he explains what he sees and what he feels, it is clear as day that Lowell had so much going on in his life. Although he was a poetic genius, he had so much trauma and hardships in his life. He himself said, 'Poetry can come out of utterly miserable or disorderly lives, as in the case of a Rimbaud or a Hart Crane. But to make the poems possible a huge amount of health has to go into the misery.'
