Midsummer by Derek Walcott Poem Analysis

Midsummer by Derek Walcott, a Caribbean writer, is a poem in which the narrator recollects a vividly, adventurous youth experience between him and his brother. The author, unafraid in his usage of poetic devices, elaborates on the evocative details of his journey to a village storyteller, whose tales whisper to the hearts of any listener willing to lend a delicate ear. Walcott elegantly manipulates his interpretation of metaphors, personification, and imagery to expressively immerse his audience in a poem of enchantingly sentimental memories.

Among the first lines of this piece, Walcott takes advantage of metaphorically communicating a vibrant image that reflects on his trip down memory lane. As the poem begins and the author speaks of “the frenzy of an old snake shedding its skin”, the reader can infer that he is not speaking of an actual snake but rather comparing his older self to the “snake”. In this line Walcott is expressing how he feels refreshed, like a snake who has just shed, to be able to take a trip down the “speckled road, scorned with ruts smelling of mold” that are his memories. The speckled road, ruts, and mold in question is the worn and beaten path of his old memories as he has traveled down this road many times before to find the path that leads him to some of the most treasured memories. Next, the author recalls when he “reenter[s] the forest where the dasheen leaves thicken and folk stories begin” to then metaphorically allude to himself once more. It is in this line the poet is expressing, that he has found the destination in his mind where the memory he sought after is the clearest and present. With a firm grasp on one of his most cherished recollections of childhood, Walcott proceeds to snare the audience’s attention by utilizing personification as part of the description of the main theme of this piece. 

Throughout the next few lines in the poem, the reader can observe Walcott’s unique use of personified objects, adding a sense of life and familiarity of scenic detail to the poem’s plot. The narrator begins by setting the stage in which the “sunset would threaten [him and his brother]” as they begin their trek onward to the storyteller's abode. It is in this line that there is an urgency the boys feel to get to the folklore teller as quickly as possible to listen to her tales,  by beating the sun’s will to submit to the dark that renders the moon triumphant i.e. the sun setting. Following this, the boys observe the familiar “shutters” of her house “closing like the eyelids of [a] mimosa” as they are greeted with an acquainted image of her village and the home she resides in. Within this line, the reader gathers that the storytellers that the boys rush to go see had to have left some form of an everlasting impression on them for the narrator being able to recall such finite details about her home and its surroundings from a time many a year ago. Walcott’s utilization of this figurative language allows him to keep the audience immersed as he continues in his lively recalling of nostalgic memories. Though personification is a significant element of his poem it is through vivid imagery that the entirety of the piece is tied together.

Scattered among the lines of the poem, Walcott’s manipulation of imagery is the driving force behind his attempt to communicate how important visiting the storyteller was for him. The poem describes the “lamplight[s] [that] glowed through the ribs, house after house” and that “there was her own lamp at the black twist of the path” that stood out upon the many rows of homes. The narrator refers to the storyteller lighting a lamp during the darkness of the evening to represent her giving light to a time in his life where his memory starts to dim and fade. These few lines of the poem are also vital as they establish a contrast of the “light” of childhood as related to the darkness and absence of youth in “childhood’s aftermath” idly known as adulthood. In addition, the narrator reveals that the storyteller “ to the sound of pipe water banging in kerosene tins'  would tell magical stories so strong that '' shadows stood up and walked '' as the boys sat mesmerized by her voice. The auditory imagery Walcott uses allows the reader to understand that this memory branded in his mind from youth was able to leave an everlasting sound that conveyed the significance of his experience. The same awe and joy the narrator encountered with this storyteller can be heard through the mechanical sounds of the tins just as she began a story. It is also through the poet’s same use of imagery that a tone of somber nostalgia is felt as he recalls a time in his life that had stuck to him like an adhesive. Lastly, Walcott’s exquisite selection of naturalistic imagery furthers the expression that childhood memories leave an everlasting impression on a youth’s mind. 

The metaphor, personification, and imagery devices the poet utilizes to disclose the experience that he shared with his brother, of the storyteller, has branded his mind in a way that by no means could ever be erased. It is in a way that Walcott becomes the storyteller that tells of adventurous experiences that have forever influenced his life as an adult.