Nighttime Fire Poem Analysis

“Hello darkness, my old friend / I’ve come to talk with you again” (1-2). This line from the song lyrics “Sounds of Silence” by Paul Simon depicts a dark and familiar silence that many know all too well. At some point, plenty of people experience a dark, and occasionally, scary loss that is typically emotionally somber and tough. For instance, the poem by Robert Hayden, “Those Winter Sundays," looks back at his childhood of an unappreciated relationship. The following poem, “Nighttime Fires” by Regina Barreca, tells the loss of a little girl’s innocence due to her father’s loss of his job. Finally, the third poem, “Dog’s Death” by John Updike, shares the life battle a dog faces, but unfortunately meets an untimely death. The relationship between the three poems and the song lyrics, conveys the different forms of loss that can be experienced. Furthermore, the voices in the silence that tell the deeper story of that loss. Every individual faces different instances of loss, which are often silenced by the world. Each author illustrates different forms, including life, innocence, and the untold love between a child and a father. As time passes and the older we become, few people …show more content…
The poem presents, and relates, to tons of readers about the pain of losing a dog that so quickly becomes considered a family member. In the poem, Updike states, “In the car to the vet’s, on my lap, she tried / To bite my hand and died. I stroked her warm fur / And my wife called in a voice imperious with tears.” (12-14). Throughout the journey of rescuing this abused dog, training her, and adopting her into a loving family brought instant emotional attachment between the dog and the owners. Upon losing the dog, Updike presents how painful the process of having that someone, whether animal or human, in your arms slowly passing on and nothing can be