An Analysis of The Building

【Abstract】This paper consists of two sections. The first section is about the description and interpretation of this poem. In the second section I attempt to analyze and evaluate the subject of this poem. In my opinion， death is the main theme of this poem.

【Key words】Philip Larkin； hospital； death

【作者簡介】汪萍萍，福建省厦门市第十中学。

1. Description and interpretation of the poem

The Building is a famous poem written by Philip Larkin. It has nine seven-line stanzas plus a single final line. It is written in typical Larkins style， with plain language and rough iambic pentameter. Again it starts with something common in daily life， and then moves on to something very serious. Although Larkin doesnt definitively mention the purpose of this building， through his description we can find this is a hospital.

In the first stanza， Larkin compares the building with what is around it and says the building is higher than the handsomest hotel. This modern building rises out of the suburban environment in sharp contrast. Around the building is the “close-ribbed streets”. The poet uses simile here and says that the “rise and fall” of streets are “like a great sigh”， which is very vivid.

From the second to the fifth stanza the poet turns his eyes upon the people inside the building. Larkin is still unwilling to mention that this place he describes is the waiting room in the hospital. Instead， he says it is “like an airport lounge”， and “more like a local bus”. From what he describes we see some people who are doing different things. Obviously these people are patients， so they wait for “a kind of nurse to fetch someone away”.

In stanza 6， the poet returns to the exterior of the building. He looks out from the inside and sees the yard， red brick， lagged pipes and other things. Form his description we find a world which is quite different from the one inside the building. It seems that the outside world is very far off.

Further， in stanza 7， the world is even said to be “beyond the stretch/ Of any hand from here”. The poet includes himself in the condition of the people in the building： the “loves” and “chances” of the world are beyond the reach and only a “touching dream to which we are all lulled. ” Then everyone will “wake from” that dream “separately”. After awakening from that dream， now what they confront is terrible death in this building.

Stanza 8 shifts back from the outside world to the people in the building. Some patients are beckoned by the nurse so they “gets up and goes/ At last”. Some are still waiting for the beckon and “will be out by lunch， or four”. Of course there will be more patients joining in the queue， as the poet says， “Others， not knowing it， have come to join/ The unseen congregations”. The sense of uncertainty remains because what they will face is still unknown to them.

So， in stanza 9， the poet continues to describe the people in the building. This time the sense of uncertainty gradually disappears because “All know they are going to die”. Perhaps they will not die immediately at this place， however， in the end they will die in “somewhere like this”. This is the fate all human kinds have to face one day.

Now it is clear that this poem is a detailed description of a hospital， focusing on the patients in the waiting room. The poet starts with external features of this building， then describe the rows of patients sitting in waiting rooms， and finally reveals the real issue： “All know they are going to die. ” We visualize each patient as he or she disappears into an examination room， but what lies behind the door remains a mystery. All we know is that “nothing contravenes / The coming dark”.

2. Evaluation of the poem

The subject of death has always been a concern of the worlds literature. Some writers hold a positive view towards death. However， to some writers， death is mysterious and terrible. It is obvious that Philip Larkin shares the latter. In this poem a description of a hospital becomes a meditation on death， which is mysterious， terrifying and inevitable. Instead of a sign of hope and a positive intervention sustaining life， the hospital heralds death.

Larkin is able to take a particular experience or circumstance and find a general truth in it. His tone is cool and his emotions are in check—there is no rage here against the death. Behind this individual poem lies his awareness that life is ultimately empty. In my opinion， his feeling results from fear， anxiety and disappointment to the modern society. His acceptance of impending death causes him to see the everyday pursuits of people， including himself， with irony and sadness. Just as he puts it， “All know they are going to die”. There is no difference between great and common people. No matter what someone did while alive， or what their status happened to be， everyone will eventually end up in the same place—the grave. Death is our common fate that has the power to render life meaningless. It seems that all our busy concerns is just a way of filling time until death takes us away to empty nothingness. This poem becomes a lament for the nature of the human struggle. After reading this poem， we may reflect on the nature of human mortality， the loss that death will bring and how it will destroy every unique person.