She looked over his shoulder
For vines and olive trees,
Marble well-governed cities
And ships upon untamed seas,
But there on the shining metal
His hands had put instead
An artificial wilderness
And a sky like lead.
A plain without a feature, bare and brown,
No blade of grass, no sign of neighborhood,
Nothing to eat and nowhere to sit down,
Yet, congregated on its blankness, stood
An unintelligible multitude,
A million eyes, a million boots in line,
Without expression, waiting for a sign.
You can read the full poem here: https://poets.org/poem/shield-achilles
Fascinating poem, and rather dark. Exceedingly dark, but well done. Thanks, Gert
It’s interesting how relevant Auden’s wartime poetry has become again!
Yes — gives the sense that war is deeply rooted in human thinking and feeling, and hard to eradicate. Remarkable that the mythical shield has all of the present day realities embedded in its narratives —
Great poem; I love Auden (my favorite, however, is Musée des Beaux Arts). I also like your illustration . . .
I’m with you there. Also love “Lay your sleeping head, my love..”
“a million boots in line,
Without expression, waiting for a sign.” don’t you think they are waiting in dread?
Leslie
Seems as if the young Russian soldiers might be.
I feel sorry for them all….
Yes indeed The damage one man can do!