Staff Writer
In the poem, The Pigeon by Richard Church, the persona illustrates from an observer’s perspective, the corruption of industrialization. The persona in the poem establishes this by creating a stark contrast between the destructive nature of industrial processes and the romantic imagery surrounding the pigeon.
The first stanza serves to symbolize the cacophony caused by the construction workers and the physical toll on the workers caused by the equipment. This is shown in the enjambment: “Throb, throb from the mixer spewing out concrete” (Lines 1~2), which stresses the harsh syllables present in the words, “throb”, “spewing”, and “out”, thus creating a profound staccato rhythm. This mimics the din caused by the mixer to create a disconcerting effect, which illustrates the commotion caused by the construction workers, and thus the damage done to the environment. The persona also utilizes zoomorphism to portray the savage scene. The word, “serpent-warders” (Line 4) effectively compares the mixer to a hostile creation whose vile nature is watched by a construction worker. This zoomorphism can also be seen in the line “Thrusting those cruel mouths to their prey” (Line 6), which conveys the destruction of the mixer to the ground which is likened to a “prey”. The word “thrusting” creates a disruptive effect due to its harsh onomatopoeic sound which presents industrialization as an immoral process, and the word “prey” portrays nature as a victim to industrialization. There is also a sense of exhaustion existing in the alliteration “Sweating and straining” (Line 5), suggesting the physical toll the construction work has on the workers, further illuminating the inharmonious nature of industrialization. Overall, the first stanza serves to set a scene of harm done to nature.
This atmosphere of cacophony is further depicted in the second stanza to establish the industrial equipment as sinister objects. There is an element of swiftness shown by the words “hark” (Line 7) and “stab” (Line 8) to further elucidate nature as a victim to construction work. It also serves to mirror the relentless movement of the equipment, thus adding to the staccato rhythm of the poem. The predatory nature of the construction work is furthered revealed through the zoomorphism existing in the word “hiss” (Line 7), which compares the vibration caused by the equipment to the sounds of a snake. Furthermore, there is also a feeling of helplessness shown by the submission of the construction workers to the invasiveness of the equipment in the second stanza. The construction workers are clearly weary from their work as shown by the words, “…eyes are bloodshot with the din” (Line 10), which suggests the damaging effect of the cacophony on the workers. This exhaustion can also be seen in the line, “The clatter that shatters the brain” (Line 11) through the rhyme in the words, “clatter” and “shatters”, which emphasizes the powerless state of the workers. Finally, the second stanza ends with the repetition of the line, “Throb, throb from the mixer spewing out concrete” (Lines 12~13), which illuminates the construction work as an ongoing process with endless damaging effects. Therefore, the second stanza is crucial to the meaning of the poem, as it highlights the adversity of industrialization by portraying the construction workers as mere victims to the cacophony caused by the equipment.
The contrast between the disruptive industrial scene and the scene with curious observers evident in the change from the second stanza to the third stanza serves to portray the facade created by the process of industrialization. Compared to the first and second stanzas, the lines in the third stanzas are relatively short illustrating the ignorance of the observers to the damaging effects of construction work. The observers are described as static beings who are simply “Watching the smoothers” (Line 15) and are “Fascinated by the flat, wet levels of newlaid cement” (Line 17), which illustrates the observers as bystanders. Thus, the third stanza serves to depict a herd mentality in which there is a unison of preoccupation to the destructive processes taking place.
As the poem progresses, romantic imagery is utilized to create an element of utopia. There is a feeling of purity and innocence stressed in the lines, “See how those curdled lakes glisten under the sky, virginal” (Lines 18~20), which shows that the persona is portraying a feeling of unawareness to the destruction of the construction. Through the use of enjambment and the words, “glisten” and “virginal”, these lines also express an element of daintiness, thus implying that this sentiment of euphoria is fragile and naive due to its incongruent existence in a reality of industrialization.
During the climax of the poem in stanza five, the reader is finally introduced to the theme of disillusionment. This is established through the heavenly entrance, stressed by the word “flutters” (Line 23), that the pigeon makes into the “mirage of water” (Line 23). There is an element of anticipation expressed by the pigeon who is greeted by the “dusty air (which) suddenly divides” (Line 21), which further highlights the theme of innocuousness, thus contrasting the harmless pigeon and the vile nature of the industrial equipment. The accumulation present in the stanza starting from the unknowing pigeon who wanted to “bathe its wings” (Line 23) to his realization that it was not inside water creates a feeling of momentum towards the message of the poem: the deception of industrialization. Therefore, the fifth stanza is significant to the meaning of the poem as it illustrates industrialization for what it is: an obstruction to nature’s ways.
The disillusionment with the process of industrialization is further highlighted in the sixth stanza, which depicts a pigeon struggling in the concrete which it mistook as water. This is shown through the proximity between the line, “Bewildered by the din” (Line 25) which describes the anger of the pigeon, and the repeated line, “The throb, throb from the mixer spewing out concrete” (Lines 26~27), which illustrates an element of mockery due to the industrial process that continues while the pigeon suffers in the concrete. Moreover, the shortness of the lines in the stanza and the word, “threshes” in the line, “It backs upon its wing, threshes air, and is gone” (Lines 28~29) effectively portrays the pigeon’s feeling of betrayal upon being deceived by the optical illusionment through its rapid pace. Consequently, the sixth stanza is crucial as it shows that construction work can intrude nature, regardless of the notion that it is a positive experience depicted in stanza three.
The final stanza serves to portray the beauty that is left behind in an ugly, industrial scene. The persona utilizes the words, “deflowered bed” (Line 30) to compare the hideous sight that the pigeon left behind in the concrete to a bed on which a woman was deprived of her virginity. This virginal imagery effectively illustrates the loss of innocence and purity that the pigeon experienced from being deceived, which adds to the idea that industrialization represents a facade of happiness. The poem is concluded with a description of the pigeon leaving a “coral foot” (Line 31) in the concrete that is “Set till rocks crumble” (Line 32), which suggests that the pigeon left a long lasting print of itself in the concrete similar to how the marine animal, coral, leaves its exoskeleton which remains in place after it dies. Therefore, there is a sense of bitterness in the last stanza to represent the realities of industrialization: an impure process that disrupts nature’s processes.
In conclusion, The Pigeon portrays the feeling of distaste for the process of industrialization. Therefore, this poem is titled The Pigeon due to the fact that pigeons represent sacrifice, which is shown through the portrayal of the loss of innocence and purity in a world that is eager for automation.