Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Philip Levine's "The Horse" is a powerful and haunting exploration of the aftermath of the Hiroshima bombing, viewed through the lens of a surreal and tragic image. The poem addresses themes of suffering, memory, and the resilience of life amidst overwhelming destruction. Dedicated to Ichiro Kawamoto, a lover of humanity and Hiroshima survivor, the poem blends stark imagery with deep emotional resonance.

The opening lines describe a grotesque and pitiable creature: "the horse alive without skin, naked, hairless, without eyes and ears searching for the stableboy's caress." This horse, stripped of its natural form, symbolizes the profound suffering and disfigurement caused by the atomic bomb. The community's initial reaction to "shoot it" is overridden by an inexplicable decision to let it live, resulting in the horse's further agony as it blindly collides with walls and obstacles. The iron fences that "corkscrewed in the street" and bicycles "turned like question marks" reflect the chaos and confusion in the aftermath of the bombing, where familiar structures are twisted beyond recognition.

As the narrative unfolds, the poem captures the surreal and apocalyptic scene: "The river burned all that day and into the night, the stones sighed a moment and were still, and the shadow of a man's hand entered a leaf." These images convey a world turned upside down, where even the natural elements are consumed by fire and silence. The burning river and sighing stones suggest the pervasive and enduring impact of the bomb, extending beyond immediate human suffering to the very landscape itself.

The fate of the horse and the stableboy underscores the human cost of this tragedy. The stableboy, "his back crushed by a hoof, his mouth opened around a cry that no one heard," becomes a symbol of the many silent, unheard victims. The repetition of the community speaking "of the horse again and again" emphasizes the way traumatic memories persist and haunt the survivors. Their "mouths opened like the gills of a fish caught above water" evoke a sense of suffocation and struggle, as they grapple with the incomprehensible horror of their experiences.

In the poem's latter half, there is a shift towards renewal and the persistence of life: "Mountain flowers / burst from the red clay walls, and they said a new life was here." This image of flowers emerging from the clay suggests resilience and the possibility of rebirth, even in a landscape scarred by devastation. The raw grass sprouting from the cobbles "like hair from a deafened ear" further reinforces this theme of renewal amidst destruction, highlighting nature's indomitable spirit.

The final lines offer a poignant reflection on the nature of memory and trauma. The repeated assertion that "The horse would never return" and "There had been no horse" suggests a communal attempt to deny or move past the traumatic event. The way the survivors "walked testing the ground for some cold" indicates a cautious, tentative approach to rebuilding their lives. The observation that "the rage had gone out of their bones in one mad dance" speaks to a profound exhaustion and the toll that such intense suffering and grief have taken on the survivors.

Levine's "The Horse" is a deeply moving and thought-provoking poem that captures the profound impact of the Hiroshima bombing on both individuals and the community. Through its vivid and surreal imagery, the poem explores the themes of suffering, memory, and the resilience of life in the face of unimaginable destruction. It serves as a powerful reminder of the enduring scars left by such events and the complex process of healing and renewal that follows.

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