hotel room, 12th floor Flashcards
“darkness is shot at by a million lit windows”
in this metaphor we can see a battle between light (emerging from new york’s great buildings, associated with advancement, hope, and progress) shooting at darkness (representing the crime, violence, and bloodshed, brought about by the night.) this represents new york superficiality- though it appears great, beautiful, a symbol of human intellect, as suggested by previous inventions mentioned, it is really a breeding ground for evil.
“warwhoops continually ululating”
the comparison of new york’s noisy streets to a wild west battle presents the city as uncivilised and lawless place, just as the wild west would’ve been. ridden by violence and bloodshed, the poet is trying to highlight that, other than the sugar coating buildings, they are no different.
“canyons and gulches”
again, this metaphor compares the height and looming nature of the skyscrapers to empty, vast canyons. this re enforces the metaphor of new york as a place of battle and lack of law- the wild west.
police and ambulances “racing to the broken bones.”
this synecdoche paints human beings as only their broken bones, viewed through the eyes of paramedics and police officers. by highlighting their injuries, rather than the person as a whole, maccaig not only puts emphasis on the effect of crime on individuals, but also, how desensitised paramedics are to it, focusing on only what to fix about the person, rather than how horrifying the situation is, as a whole. this suggests that crime is rampant, and suffering is commonplace, in new york.
“no stockades can keep the midnight out”
the final line is a grim conclusion to the poem. it implies a loss of battle by light to darkness. thiss shows that superficiality (however grand or however impressive new york may appear) will always lose to the reality, and what is below this shell- suffering.
