Everyone’s childhoods holds special memories and experiences that are significant. The poem, “The Centaur” by May Swenson captures one little girl’s experience of a day where she let her imagination run wild, and uses different poetic devices to accentuate the importance of the events that occur. This is seen by diction, imagery, structure, and point of view used in the poem. The use of these poetic devices make the poem simple and complicated simultaneously depending on your view as the reader.
First, the diction in the poem is simple. May Swenson uses many simple words and phrases such as, “fresh horse”, “slick and clean”, and “entered the dusky hall.” The author uses simple diction I think so the reader can comprehend what is going on in the poem in a literal sense. The simple diction also lets the reader try to decipher the hidden meaning throughout the poem. Another interesting use of diction is that the poem uses past tense. The past tense such as, “Can it be there was only one summer that I was ten?” and “I’d straddle and canter him fast” give the sense of nostalgia. This nostalgia reminds the reader of their own memories from childhood and makes the poem relatable.
Next, the imagery used makes the poem freeing and calming. Specifically the use of horse imagery littered throughout the poem, “a fresh horse from my stable”, “my nickering pony’s head”, and “I sat on my steed.” The use of this horse imagery gives the sense of tossing caution to the wind, letting go, and just being free. The horse imagery also fights against what is expected of the girl and this is seen by when she returns home. When she returns home the little girl, “smoothed my skirt,” and asked, “Where have you been?” which makes it seem like that it wasn’t expected of her to want to leave. The little girl is also told, “Go tie back your hair” which makes me believe that her “horse” is an escape from her daily life. The horse imagery could also be seen in a literal sense of the girl’s imagination, and her just enjoying a day out. The use of horse imagery is intentional by the author though.
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Next, the structure of the poem plays a big part in understanding the poem. The poem structure is like the steady trotting horse, but comes to an end when she returns home, which links back to the imagery. The structure of the poem also consistently stays in chronological order, which helps the reader follow what is occuring. The point of view of the speaker also makes the poem childlike and nostalgic. The use of this specific structure connect all the other poetic devices together.
The structure, point of view, imagery, and diction used in the poem reveals what the speaker is thinking and feeling during the day when she was able to be imaginative. This experience became a lasting memory from her childhood, that was nostalgic as she recalled it when she was older. The poem provides a simple look from a child’s perspective that is relatable to all people.
