Tuesday, August 02, 2005

along with the 'dulce' pic i also found this poem which i must have found at some point. its WH Auden’s Shield of Achilles. It's quite the interesting read, esspecially if your like me and like fusion-fiction, which is to say, old myths redone by more modern writers. Let me illustrate. also, for some strange reason, ill include some random refferences to metals, because, this is afterall, a chemistry assignment.

W.H. Auden’s poem The Shield of Achilles is inspired by an episode from Homer’s The Iliad. It as a number of references to metals as it is set in a iron foundry. The poem describes the events just after Patroclus is killed in battle wearing Achilles’ armor. Achilles’ protective mother, Thetis, goes to Hephaestos and asks for a new shield for her son. She expects a shield made of shining metal depicting the glory of war as she feels that such a shield will make Achilles invincible in battle. As a mother, Thetis is sadly oblivious to the tragic fate awaiting her son as all her notions of war are romanticized or, [perhaps, it is emotionally easier on her to live in denial.

Hephaestos, on the other hand, is completely aware of the true destructive nature of war. He creates the shield with a sky like lead which is a dull-colored grey metal. In the forge-light, she sees scenes of barbed wire to depict the death and destruction of battle. Perhaps, he wishes to dash Thetis’ false hopes and awaken her to the posssiblilty that her son will soon die in battle.

Hephaestos’ views about war are a reflection of W H Auden’s anti-war sentiments. The senselessness and waste of armed conflict is evident throughout the poem. The poem’s tensions lie in Thetis’ desires to see her son in a pure and victorious setting when contrasted with the brutalities on the shield; the conflict is resolved at the end with Thetis’ eventual understanding.


The first metal-related word poem is ‘shining’. It is repeated again in two other stanzas. It is used to describe the shield that Hephaestos is forging for Achilles. ‘Shining’ is a word usually associated with metals. It depicts one of the most easily recognized qualities of metal, its ability to reflect light.

The second reference to metals is ‘a sky like lead’. This has a number of meanings, depending on how it is interpreted. Lead is a metal that loses its luster very quickly. Most of the time it is a dull, dark colored metal. This means that a ‘sky like lead’ is a dark and cloudy sky, like the one seen just before a storm.

The words ‘barbed wire’ and ‘knife’ are also mentioned in the text. These are both thingies that are made of metal. They are also associated with imprisonment and betrayal respectively.

The final mention of metal in the poem is the word ’iron-hearted’. This is used as a compliment as it implies bravery. However, iron is also a metal that can rust. Perhaps it is an insult, perhaps Achilles is about to be corrupted and ruined by something. In any case, there is only one thing we can know for sure.

Metals are an integral part of society. They represent the backbone of modern day life. Without metals, humans would be nothing more that a rapidly shrinking group of hairless handicapped apes. With metals however, we have become veritable gods compared to our primate cousins. However, what would happen if all the metals in the world suddenly disappeared. Our civilization would collapse. Skyscrapers would tumble and fall. Computers would be rendered useless. Iron and steel mills would stop milling around. But would it be all bad, surely since all weapons would be rendered useless, would we perhaps become a peaceful and docile people. Of course not. We would still have fists and clubs and other objects which can be used to cause death by blunt force trauma. We would undoubtedly fall into a state of panic and rioting.

So does this mean that metals act as chains to keep our inherent violent nature in place? The answer to this question is a mystery.