“The Farewell” by Edward Field combines a reluctantly accepting tone with symbolization to depict the troubles of being a leader. The ice that the speaker is stepping onto symbolizes the risks that a leader has to take because they are the first to action. Even though “they say the ice will hold”, the leader has to trust them and decide to take the risk. A leader also needs to be unflappable because they do not want their followers to panic. The speaker slides erectly into the water which symbolizes that there is nothing wrong because normally someone would be flailing around trying to save themselves. This is the reason that Edward Field chooses this moment to point out that the speaker is “wearing my captain’s hat.” While sliding into the water, the speaker is still being a leader and showing that all is well. Being a leader is a full time job, even while one is falling into the water, one needs to think of one’s followers. Even when the risks that the leader took are backfiring and the ice is closing over their head, they need to be waving to their followers and assuring them that all is ok. Being a leader is a hard and unforgiving job as Edward Field shows in “The Farewell”.
Yosef,
ReplyDeleteOnce again, beautiful poetic analysis. Your skills really shine through on this one and I really like your interpretation of this piece.
However, I question your evaluation of Fields' tone in this poem. Is it really "reluctantly accepting"? To me, it doesn't seem reluctant at all. The leader seems to happily say goodbye, accepting that it his time. However, that is a matter of interpretation and is up to each person to decide how they interpret the poem. That's the beauty of literature, right?
Again, great job with these blogs. You are really showing a skill set that will help you as move forward in your writing career.