Both poems deals with man co-existence with Nature, and how man no longer relies on Nature as much as we used to. My understanding is that man no longer lives in harmony with Nature, but equally coexists in constant rivalry for superiority with man currently victorious as we are the most powerful and intelligent race of species on this planet. Innocent animals being harmed, forests cut down, water polluted and the food chain interrupted.Although our selfish desires has led to the destruction of inferior and less intelligent species and their environment – Nature.
In cooperation both poems involve the discussion of air animals and their loss of habitat. The phrase from RTW “birds are few” and Laments list of birds: “cormorant”, “tern”, “gull” and “wader” co-relate. Increasing rates of industrialism effects land which were once the bird’s natural nesting areas, resulting in the increasingly “few” number of birds that still remain today. The songs of birds usually symbolize freedom, describing the loss of this large auditory element of Nature conveys the image of natural freedom being “smothered” by the noise pollution that industrialisation has created.
Cheng adapts the romantic poet’s involvement of Roman and Greek Gods as an illusion to nature. Gods such as the Greek god “Proteus” and the Roman God “Neptune” gods of the sea, which have now been “entombed in the waste we dump”. Both these gods are from western culture, I believe with the use of western Gods, Cheng is implying western society was the first that began with industrialism more than a century ago. Gods are known be immortal whereas humans are not, although immortality may be one of the many ambitions man kind in in constant search to achieve. The comparison between mortality of humans and the immortality of the Gods is particularly effective in demonstrating the extent of human’s destruction, however as Gods are immortal no matter how much “waste” we “entomb” them in, they will eventually break free and take revenge on humanity. As the Gods are immortal their life is endless thus with every destruction there is always rebirth, in comparison once humans face and end that is it, this conveys the concept on self-destruction that the humans are causing by destroying the environment.
The idea of a rebirth is also present in Lament, “For vengeance, and the ashes of language”. Ashes are used to describe language which shows the self-conflicting nature of humans with one another of different beliefs, religions, cultures etc. As previously mentioned the belief of rebirth from ash may be used to represent the self-destruction humanity has on itself, although with this destruction will come a reborn improved humanity.
Wales are a common element of both poems, word such as “struck dumb” and “helpless” are used to describe the largest animal known to man. The wales is significant as it ways of life are mysterious toward man, showing mankind may forever loose a co-existing species that they never go to truly understand.
“Wound widening in the sky and “the burn earth” both imply the result of mankind’s destruction on the planet. The “wound widening in the sky” implies the hole in the ozone layer above the earth atmosphere which has affect humanity in many parts of the world e.g. New Zealand. Additionally the “burnt earth” suggests global warming cause by the “smog” and pollutants of humanity. With this use problems humanity is commonly aware of represented as a forms of gustatory imagery , both poems allow the reader to better understand the combined effect of what may seem like small problems. Finally these two images show how by we are not only destroying the earth but inadvertently destroying ourselves.
Clarke refers to the Gulf War, a reasonably recent event that deals with modern problems, such as the fight for oil and the vast damages caused by the increasing sophistication of modern technology. Whereas Cheng refers to more abstract images, incorporating names of poets of the Romantic period, and classical Greek Gods, yet using those metaphors, he outlines many modern problems, implying that the damage that we are causing in our time is “smothering” humanities glorious past. The fact that Boey refers to Greek and Roman gods, and Clarke refers to the Gulf war, brings out the fact that both the West and the East are causing damage, by fighting internally and with each other. In my opinion both poems convey the impression that if humanity continues in its current state, the resolution of our global problem will not be found by simply expecting a natural resolution, instead we must take action for our mistakes in order to build a brighter future.