The Panther In this poem the theme is that we are trapped by society. Rilke wrote the poem after he went to the zoo and observed the animals there. The panther reminded him of a prisoner, in the sense that they both have lost all their freedom and are waiting for an escape. The poem is about a panther that is trapped in a cage and is also is tired and weak. He tries desperately to escape, so he paces back and forth as a way of saying he won’t be tamed. Rilke uses symbolism and alliteration to get this theme across.
When he is talking about the iron bars, it symbolizes the lack of freedom. He shows how small and contained he is through alliteration. When he says “cramped circles” and “powerful soft strides”. We see it as shift in the panther when it decides to open his eyes in the third stanza, feeling a strong sense of something (hope possibly), then the feeling vanishes quickly. The author’s tone shows desperation. The Panthers wanting to break through the bars and returned to its natural environment. A Walk
This poem’s theme seems to be that Rilke is talking about dreams and the future. “Going far ahead on the road” could be symbolism for following the path that we take in order to achieve what we really want. When we latch onto this dream, this want, this desire, we are energized to get up and walk towards. “Grasped by what we cannot grasp” is the drive that is making us head in this direction. In the second stanza is kind of seems as though he is saying that your main goal is unachievable, but on the way to the goal you thought you anted you end up being exactly where you should and want to be.
Although that dream wasn’t accomplished, the journey of trying wasn’t wasted. Love Song The first half of the poem talks about trying to keep one’s emotions in check. The author knows that this is a difficult task and that it would be easier to just lock those feelings and emotions away. No matter what he can’t help be drawn to the other person. No matter how hard he tries, falling in love was unavoidable. The metaphor of the musician and the violin is symbolism for destiny.
Rilke and his lover are the violin whilst the musician is some higher power. Because of this higher power, they are able to work together so beautifully. The line that states, “takes us together like a violin’s bow, which draws *one* voice out of two separate strings”, is his way of saying that their compatibility and effort to work together is as beautiful and effortless as one note coming from two separate strings creating a harmony that can only be the result a higher powers doing. Time and Again
In this poem, Rilke seems to express his feelings on the sadness of love. Love can beautiful and a wonderful thing but it can also be deep and dark. When Rilke mentions the “little churchyard”, it seems as though he saying that you have to have hope when love is sad and gets to that deep, dark place. People go to church in search of hope with anything, from a sick loved one to winning big on the lottery, it’s a beacon of hope. Sometimes though, hope is lost and slowly turns into nothing.
When rilke states “the frightfully silent ravine where all others end”, he is representing those have no faith and are lost, so therefore left “silent”. Rilke shows through the repetitiveness of “Time and again” that even in deep dark sadness there is always some form of hope. In the last three lines that hope is shown. He brings back the sense of hope when he describes the two lovers lying underneath the tree. They are lying amidst flowers and these flowers could be symbolism for beauty and the revival of love.
Also the couple is looking up towards the sky and this can also be a symbol for the revival of hope they have in each other and life by looking towards the “heavens”. Autumn Day Rilke uses the cycle of nature to symbolize the human life. When nature is approaching winter and tries its hardest to “press them to ripeness, and chase the last sweetness into the heavy wine”, man also, when approaching their inevitable decline, will feel compelled to produce the best of what he knows he is capable of creating before their impending death.
The growth that summer has to offer is coming to an end and so is everything a person has to offer in their lifetime. In the third stanza when Rilke says “Whoever has no house now will not build one anymore. Whoever is alone now will remain so for a long time”, it shows the finality of life and how time no longer belongs to man. If he is alone when his life ends he will forever be alone.
