The Miner
Broad and dirty
Covered in thick black goo
He swings his pick axe
Chipping away at the stone beneath his feet
His life’s days passing by to the sounds of machines
Through a caliginous cold cave
The sparkles light it up that reflect off my face
I do not crumble under the pressure
I feel the pick axe hit me like a train
He breaks the rock that confines me
He picks me up and protects me with his life
As for I am a precious jewel
The poem July 18th 1985 by Richard Davies is about death and reveals that it is a very common occurrence in our time of life. These days death is very common. It happens to thousands of people every single day. The death of a family member, close friend, or someone you know is always very hard to cope with but its life. Everyone will experience a few deaths in their lifetime. It’s very tough but it’s something everybody goes through. This poem was written as an open poem. It has no form it followed. The stanzas follow no type of order and there’s no rhythm or rhymes going on. This poem is about death and how a motorcyclist gets hit by semi truck. The unknown cyclist is in critical condition with authorities on the scene. This poem is told by the poet. Richard Davies point of view was from his car as he was just passing by driving home from somewhere. He was most likely driving home from work because the last few lines say “ and I wonder if I’m late for supper”. In the second stanza the poet uses lots of personification to describe the scene and what he’s seeing. In Stanza 2 Line 2 the poet gives the motorcycle a human quality. “ the mangled motorcycle sputters in defeat”. Being defeated is a human quality that no intimate objects can get unless you personify them. Also in that sentence the poet uses alliteration. “Mangled Motorbike”. They both start with M so it’s an excellent example of alliteration. In the third and fourth stanza Davies uses the figurative device Connotation to describe an effect differently. “Writhes in the dirt” is a good example of connotation because writhe means to wiggle and it would just sound funny if the poet said some young male wiggles in the dirt. The mood of the poem would be ruined. He also uses the word Gape in Stanza four line two instead of using its alternative word look. Connotations keep the poem at the mood the poet wants it too. Richard Davies did a great job with revealing the truth about death and showing that it’s a pretty often occurrence.