Poetry Explorer

Classic and Contemporary Poetry

THE SNAKE by THEODORE ROETHKE

Poem Explanation Poet Analysis

First Line: I SAW A YOUNG SNAKE GLIDE
Subject(s): ANIMALS; SNAKES; SERPENTS; VIPERS;
I saw a young snake glide
Out of the mottled shade
And hang, limp on a stone:
A thin mouth, and a tongue
Stayed, in the still air.

It turned; it drew away;
Its shadow bent in half;
It quickened, and was gone.

I felt my slow blood warm.
I longed to be that thing,
The pure, sensuous form.

And I may be, some time.



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