Light

Light is a recurring motif throughout the poem, in contrast to its darker, grittier themes. Even though it isn’t one of the repeating end words taken from Brooks’ poem, the word “light” is used three times, in addition to the words “twilight” and “moonlit”; “afterglow” is used twice, in addition to the word “fire”. In total, there are eight direct references to light sources across the poem. These words are scattered throughout the narrative, suggesting pinpricks of light within darkness like a cityscape at night. This dichotomy of darkness and light is summarized in the phrase “Light can be straight- / ened by its shadow” (Lines 36-37). It shows that light and its accompanying darkness must always be in balance.

Music

As one of the borrowed words from Brooks’ poem is “jazz”, it’s inevitable that music would play at least a small role in Hayes...