Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Return" by John Ciardi is a powerful and evocative poem that captures the complexity of emotions and experiences associated with the return of bombers from a mission during wartime. Through vivid imagery and poignant metaphors, Ciardi explores themes of survival, memory, and the stark contrast between the machinery of war and the human capacity for grace and emotion.

The poem opens with an image of searchlights cutting through the night, serving as beacons for the "homing drone of bombers." This scene sets the tone for the poem, highlighting both the technological precision of warfare and the instinctual desire for home and safety that guides the pilots back from their missions. The bombers, described as striking "like neon down the plastic dome / Of darkness," convey a sense of otherworldliness, as if the machinery of war operates in a separate realm from the human lives it impacts.

Ciardi's use of the phrase "darkness palaced on our sea and sight" suggests a grandiose and imposing presence of war over the natural and human landscape. The imagery of "avenues of light flower on a stone" further emphasizes the contrast between the destructive force of the bombers' "theorem and its thunder" and the beauty and order of the world below.

As the bombers land, Ciardi masterfully shifts the focus from the grand scale of their mission to the intimate moment of their return. The transition from "air and motion into mass and weight" symbolizes the return to reality and the grounding of the pilots' experiences. The grace that "falls from metal like a dancer's glove" captures the loss of the ethereal quality of flight and the return to the tangible, physical world.

The image of the bomber crossing "to darkness like an end of love" is particularly striking, suggesting both relief at returning safely and a sense of loss or disillusionment. This moment of crossing into darkness can be interpreted as a metaphor for the psychological transition that occurs when soldiers return from the intensity of combat to the relative normalcy of home, often carrying the weight of their experiences with them.

The final stanza introduces a scene of celebration under the sky, which "Still calling home the living to their pause." The release of the "lucky and returned" from the hatches onto "the solid stone of not-to-die" emphasizes the precariousness of survival in war and the gratitude for having evaded death. Yet, the mention of their eyes as "lenses" housing "reel after reel of how a city burned" reveals the indelible impact of their experiences, suggesting that the memories of destruction and violence will remain with them long after their return.

"Return" is a profound meditation on the return from war, skillfully navigating the juxtaposition of technological prowess and human vulnerability. John Ciardi's poem invites readers to reflect on the enduring effects of war on those who participate in it, the fleeting nature of grace in the face of violence, and the complex emotions that accompany the journey back home.

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