The floors are slippery with blood:
The world gyrates too. God is good
That while His wind blows out the light
For those who hourly die for is –
We still can dance each night.
The music has grown numb with death –
But we will suck their dying breath,
The whispered name they breathed to chance,
To swell our music, make it loud
That we may dance, - may dance.
We are the dull blind carrion-fly
That dance and batten. Though God die
Mad from the horror of the light –
The light is mad, too, flecked with blood, -
We dance, we dance, each night.
Edith Sitwell
The strong image of death is portrayed with the use of personification such as 'the music has grown numb with death' giving the suggestion that in fact the women have grown numb with the constant death as they continue to dance 'each night' and use the dance as an act of freedom away from the loss of their loved ones.
ReplyDeleteEdith Sitwell uses metaphors to express her disgust towards the arrogant attitude of those at the home front, for example 'we are the dull blind carrion-blind'. This presents how ignorant and oblivious they are that innocent lives are being sacrificed for them while they 'dance each night'.
ReplyDeleteOne could assert that Edith Sitwell portrays a bitter tome towards the arrogant women on the home front with the strong contrast of dancing and death. The macabre image is presented with shocking imagery such as "the floors are slippery with blood" as the metaphor shocks the reader, by giving the overall poem a sinister tone as Sitwell anger is portrayed with the arrogant women continuing to dance almost as if they were dancing on the passed soldiers graves as the men "who dance hourly for us". Overall portraying a disrespectful manner to the men.
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