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NIGHT WALKING, by             Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography

"Night Walking" by Robert Penn Warren is a profound exploration of fatherly concern, existential contemplation, and the search for meaning in the stillness of the night. The poem depicts a father observing his son in a moonlit scene, reflecting on their individual quests for understanding and the weight of experiences that shape their lives. Warren delves into themes of isolation, the passage of time, and the quiet moments that define one's relationship with the world.

The poem opens with the speaker awakening to the thought of a bear, a primal and instinctive association. This initial sense of wildness is quickly shifted as he realizes the noise he hears is not a bear but the sound of the door to the shop where his son stays. The imagery of the bear coming "down off the mountain to rip / Apples from trees" suggests a raw, natural force, a metaphor for the primal urges and instincts that the son might embody or encounter. The bear, which remains a figment of the speaker’s imagination, represents a deeper, untamed aspect of life and existence.

Warren describes the son as standing "booted and breeched but bare / From waist," a depiction that blends vulnerability and strength. His gaze fixed on the moon, the son is caught in a moment of profound stillness and contemplation. The moon, "tonight full, now late and zenithward high," casts a pale light on the scene, illuminating the son’s "tal-white" face. This moonlit setting creates an otherworldly atmosphere, suggesting a journey not just into the physical landscape but into a deeper state of mind.

The father's response to his son’s nocturnal walk is a mix of curiosity, guilt, and protective instinct. He crouches behind a parked car, watching his son as he "slowly walks up the track" towards the forest. This act of observation is both an invasion of privacy and an expression of concern, revealing the father's internal conflict. He wants to understand his son's thoughts, to "steal / What knowledge I, in love, can," yet he feels ashamed for intruding on this private moment.

The son’s silent journey up the track is described with reverence, as he moves through a landscape where "great birches / Stand monitory, stand white." The trees, symbols of endurance and the passage of time, seem to watch over the scene, adding to the sense of a ritualistic or sacred journey. The son is portrayed as navigating by an inner compass, "as though / By stars in an old sea he steered." This metaphor suggests an ancient, almost mythical sense of direction, hinting at a deeper, perhaps unconscious, search for meaning or understanding.

When the son reaches the ridge-crest, he surveys the landscape, his gaze sweeping across "the light-laved land," taking in the "river and mowings, / Ruined orchards, ledges and rock-slides." This act of looking is a moment of connection with the world, a silent communion with the natural surroundings. The imagery of "ruined orchards" and "the clambering forest that would claim all" suggests a world in decay, where nature reclaims what was once cultivated. It is a vision of impermanence and the inevitability of change, themes that resonate with the poem’s exploration of life's fleeting moments.

The son's upward gaze towards the "moon rides" implies a reaching out, a desire to connect with something larger than himself. When he lifts his "light-bleached arms" to the sky, it is an almost religious gesture, an act of openness or supplication to the "icy / Blaze and redeeming white light of the world." This moment contrasts sharply with the father's recollection of his own experiences with moonlit contemplation. He remembers "moon-walking on sea-cliffs" and feeling close to a "wisdom I almost could name," yet ultimately finding himself unable to grasp it. The hum of the wires he hears symbolizes the intrusion of modernity and the loss of a purer, more direct connection with nature and truth.

The father's reflection on his own past and his son's present evokes a poignant awareness of generational differences in seeking meaning. The father acknowledges his limitations, his inability to capture the wisdom he once glimpsed, but he holds hope for his son’s potential. The poem closes with a wish for the son, a warning and a blessing: "you must swear never, / Not even in secret, the utmost, to be ashamed / To have lifted bare arms to that icy / Blaze and redeeming white light of the world." This plea captures the father's desire for his son to embrace the world with courage and without regret, to reach for the light even if it means facing the vast, indifferent universe.

"Night Walking" is a meditation on the relationship between father and son, the personal search for meaning, and the moments of silent revelation that shape our understanding of the world. Warren's use of natural imagery and the interplay of light and darkness create a contemplative atmosphere, highlighting the tension between the known and the unknown, the spoken and the unspoken. The poem speaks to the universal experience of watching loved ones grow and change, and the bittersweet realization that each individual must ultimately walk their own path in the moonlit world.


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