Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained | ||||||||
The woman is described as being of a size larger than human, with disheveled hair, her appearance blood-stained, and her actions frantic and destructive. She stands knee-deep in the water, handling the remnants of violence with a kind of pernicious diligence. This figure, often called the Bean Nighe or the Washer at the Ford, is a well-known figure in Celtic mythology, said to be an omen of death. She is seen washing the bloody clothes of those who are about to die. Here, she claims her lineage from the Tuatha de Danaan, a supernatural race in Irish mythology. When the warrior Kelloch attempts to approach her, his companions shrink back in fear. Instead, Congal, another warrior, steps forward to question her. When he asks who she is and why she is doing this horrifying task, she reveals herself as the Washer of the Ford and ominously predicts Congal's death by showing him what appears to be his own severed head. This poem is a powerful evocation of the gruesome foreboding associated with the Washer at the Ford in Celtic folklore. The poem ends with the woman disappearing, leaving only the running water behind, a stark reminder of the mortality and impending doom that she signifies. Copyright (c) 2024 PoetryExplorer | Discover our Poem Explanations and Poet Analyses!Other Poems of Interest...BETWEEN THE WARS by ROBERT HASS I AM YOUR WAITER TONIGHT AND MY NAME IS DIMITRI by ROBERT HASS MITRAILLIATRICE by ERNEST HEMINGWAY RIPARTO D'ASSALTO by ERNEST HEMINGWAY WAR VOYEURS by JUAN FELIPE HERRERA THE DREAM OF WAKING by RANDALL JARRELL THE SURVIVOR AMONG GRAVES by RANDALL JARRELL SO MANY BLOOD-LAKES by ROBINSON JEFFERS |
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