Perspectives
It’s very important for you to be able to put the poem into perspective. Here, we will focus on the literary context and compare “Hawk Roosting” by Ted Hughes to several other relevant texts:
Literary context: comparison with “The Eagle” by Alfred Lord Tennyson
The poem “The Eagle” by Alfred Lord Tennyson is comprised of two stanzas, each containing three verses. The poem presents the eagle alone, on top of the world, on a mountain, with the sea beneath it. The first stanza presents the eagle alone, close to the sun, while the second stanza presents it diving towards the sea.
When comparing “The Eagle” with “Hawk Roosting”, it is important to focus on the following aspects:
Tenses – Both poems are written in the present tense, showing the eternal status of two powerful creatures, the eagle and the hawk. The last stanza in “Hawk Roosting” employs different tenses (past, present perfect and future), suggesting the cycle of life:
“The sun is behind me.
Nothing has changed since I began.
My eye has permitted no change.
I am going to keep things like this.” (p. 152, ll. 11-14)
Pronouns – The use of pronouns is closely connected to the points of view in the poems. In “Hawk Roosting”, the point of view is that of the hawk, which becomes narrator. The poet employs personal pronouns and possessive adjectives that indicate the point of view:
“I kill where I please because it is all mine.
There is no sophistry in my body:
My manners are tearing off heads –“ (p. 152, ll. 2-4)
In “The Eagle”, the point of view is that of an anonymous narrator. The eagle is described through third person pronouns and possessive adjectives. They help the narrator distance himself from the bird that is seen as majestic and almighty:
“The wrinkled sea beneath him crawls;
He watches from his mountain walls,
And like a thunderbolt he falls.” (p. 2, ll. 4-6)
Rhyme – While “Hawk Roosting” is free of rhyme except one couplet, the poem “The Eagle” is written in triplets that rhyme: “hands – lands – stands” (p. 2, ll. 1-3) and “crawls – walls – falls” (p. 2, ll. 4-6)
The attitudes to the birds – In both poems, the birds are seen as majestic creatures. In “Hawk Roosting”, the bird is associated with God. It is powerful and it hunts as it pleases because it simply can. The line “I kill where I please because it is all mine.” (p. 152, l.2) suggests that his killing instincts are innate. In “The Eagle”, the bird cannot be approached. The expression “lonely lands” (p. 2, l. 2) suggests the isolation of the eagle from other creatures that are inferior. The expression “wrinkled sea” (p. 2, l. 4) implies that even the sea pales in comparison with such a powerful creature.
The use of words not normally associated with birds – In “The Eagle”, what strikes is the use of the pronoun “he” instead of “it”. This suggests the fact that power is entirely masculine and that it does not accept any contradictory arguments. Both poems suggest something humane about the birds. In “The Eagle”, the poet us...
