After great pain, a formal feeling comes – The Nerves sit ceremonious, like Tombs –
-- Speaker (Lines 1 – 2)

Importance: These lines introduce the poem, and they establish the speaker's ambivalence toward their subject. The speaker invites readers to think about death with the mention of "tombs," but describes these tombs as formalities. Thus, the speaker's assertion that the nerves of the body are like "tombs" suggests a vague, near-death experience that one may perceive as death itself.

The stiff Heart questions ‘was it He, that bore,’ And ‘Yesterday, or Centuries before
-- Speaker (Lines 3 – 4)

Importance: Here, the speaker maintains their pattern of referring to body parts in a general manner without attaching them to a specific person. This quotation also introduces, vaguely, the figure of Jesus Christ, as the speaker wonders whether the aftermath of trauma is related to Christ's experience during the crucifixion. The ambiguous and fragmented nature of the questions suggests a sense of disorientation that the speaker...