The moon comes up.
The moon goes down.
This is to inform you
that I didn’t die young.
Age swept past me
but I caught up.
Spring has begun here and each day
brings new birds up from Mexico.
Yesterday I got a call from the outside
world but I said no in thunder.
I was a dog on a short chain
and now there’s no chain.
This is very interesting. He says that he wants to tell the reader that he didn't die young, so that means that the narrator has died and is reflecting on his life. Keeping that in mind, I love the metaphor he uses at the end of the poem. For him in life, he felt like he was chained up; but now that he is dead, he feels free.
ReplyDeleteI like the lines "Age swept past me, but I caught up." I also like the metaphor of the chain, and finally being freed. My favorite part of this, however, is the picture that goes along with it. Reading the poem, I can just picture Jim Harrison writing it.
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I really enjoy the photo of the poet. It shows how abstract he really is, not only in his poetry, but in his writing. As the poem begins he's talking about how life goes on, but as the end of the poem nears, the reader starts to get the feeling that the narrator is actually dead, or feels dead inside.
ReplyDeleteI think that this poem is about death, but I feel as though the speaker is emphasizing his individuality as well. He states that his "Age swept past me" which could mean that he didn't follow the traditional assumptions and living standards of people at certain ages, but instead lived the life he wanted to live with no restriction of freedoms. The speaker also states that he "got a message from the outside world/ but I said no in thunder." My take on this is that he said no to the conformity of the social world around him and instead lived an individual life.
ReplyDeleteI feel like this poem is talking about how he never really got to live life to the fullest or enjoy life. He was kind of always invisible and when it was his time to shine, he ignored it. I think it is also talking about how life goes on no matter what.
ReplyDeleteWhat I got from this poem was that Jim Harrison just doesn't really care about time. He knows that the moon will rise and set everyday and that he has been there to see it. Or that life has almost become routine because of the repetitiveness of everything. The moon does the same thing every day no matter what. And every spring birds will begin to arrive from Mexico. I feel like he has become complacent with life because of how dull his descriptions are.
ReplyDeleteJim Harrison's poem "Barking," is very interesting. In his first two lines "The moon comes up. The moon goes down," it seems as if he is saying life begins and ends. I also agree with Alaska where he/she said the line "I didn't die young," means that he is reflecting his life and is giving meaning to it. My favorite lines were the last two where Harrison said "I was a dog on a short chain and now there’s no chain." I believe that means his life was once in a way enslaved and now he is free. The picture for this poem is also interesting because it mentions a dog, but a horse is in the poem.
ReplyDeleteThis poem is very interesting. When he says "Age swept past me but I caught up" it defies everything about life. Obviously you can't catch up to age, but I took it as he had to grow up fast to catch up with his age. I also like the line that says "and each day brings new birds up from Mexico" because it makes me think that the birds are trying to get a better life by moving to the United States. The last part of the poem stumps me. He could mean that he used to be under a really close watch and now he's free.
ReplyDeleteThis poem has stuck with me for a while. I think it's almost kind of inspiring. I love the line "Age swept past me/ but I caught up." I think that's a good way to live life. I like how he writes he said "no in thunder" instead of simply saying no. Thunder is a powerful word. The end is also a cool concept: he broke away from the chains holding him back.
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