Birth

Birth is a symbol for new beginnings. The poem starts with love being symbolically "born," after having been "begotten" (conceived) by the meeting of Despair and Impossibility, who are figured as parents to this doomed love (3).

Birds

Birds symbolize hope. The image of a wing flapping is used to characterize what hope feels like: fragile, easily destroyed, yet still capable of the apparently impossible feat of flight.

Metal

Metal symbolizes constraint. The poem refers to both iron and steel as tools that Fate uses to drive the lovers apart. The metal thus represents her power to restrain and control humanity.

Parallel Lines

Parallel lines symbolize separation. Parallel lines are connected to each other in an abstract sense, because they are mathematically similar, but they can never meet. By using this metaphor to discuss his love, the speaker constructs an image of a love that is meant...