On a deeper level, the poem alludes to the aftermath of an atomic bomb. Within the second line, the image of a single cloud that covers the sun and changes the air connects to the mushroom cloud after the dropping of a nuclear bomb. Yet through this haze, "everything is clear." Man's inhumanity to man is shown clearly through this action. The mass destruction and pain we are willing to bring one another is apparent and unmistakable. Another indication that this is the fault of an A-bomb is the complete lack of life. With any othe

The slumbering dragon at the entrance of the town symbolizes that powerful, destructive force waiting to be awakened. The church still provides some comfort to a passerby as a rest from the heat and a place to contemplate and reflect, but it has fallen into disarray and is no longer a place of real protection from the monster outside. "Dirty light" still pours in from the outside. Even the sacred ground of the church cannot fully be sheltered from the attack.

The speaker who depicts this landscape does so in a very detached and distant way. The descriptions give very precise and cutting details but without an emotional attachment. The scene is slowly and masterfully unraveled as this observer takes us through the town. Each line showing more signs of the destruction, decay, and death. The poem starts by telling us of dead plants and abandoned streets. The tombstones "merge with houses at the edge of town." Then, along the

Some common words found in the essay are:
Mark Strand's, Mark Strand, ,
Approximate Word count = 631
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)