Monday, November 19, 2012

What places does Roethke refer to?

In this poem, the speaker refers to a bunch of places
where the ennui of modern life occurs.  Basically, he is saying that the sorts of places
in which people work and study and spend time in the modern world kind of sap their
vitality and humanity.


The speaker lists a bunch of places
where things like this occur.  He talks about this happening in offices and in schools
and in reception rooms specifically.  He talks about switchboards and institutions.  He
even talks about lavatories, although those do not seem to fit the theme so
much.


So, in general, the speaker is refering to places
where we spend time and lose our humanity -- places that are generally like
offices.

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