Author: William Ernest Henley

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    The morning mists still haunt the stony street;
    The northern summer air is shrill and cold;
    And lo, the Hospital, grey, quiet, old,
    Where Life and Death like friendly chafferers meet.
    Thro' the loud spaciousness and draughty gloom
    A small, strange child - so aged yet so young! -
    Her little arm besplinted and beslung,
    Precedes me gravely to the waiting-room.
    I limp behind, my confidence all gone.
    The grey-haired soldier-porter waves me on,
    And on I crawl, and still my spirits fail:
    A tragic meanness seems so to environ
    These corridors and stairs of stone and iron,
    Cold, naked, clean - half-workhouse and half-jail.

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Type of Poem: Sonnet

Date Written:

Date Published:

Language: English

Keywords: Public Domain

Source: Public Domain Collection

Publisher:

Rights/Permissions: Public Domain

Comments/Notes: This poem carries somber tones of melancholy and desolation, effectively capturing the bleak atmosphere of a hospital. The hospital is portrayed as a place where life and death intersect, a place of both hope and despair. The imagery used — morning mists, the shrill and cold northern air, the grey, quiet, and old hospital — all contribute to setting a morose and chilly scene.

In terms of structure, the poem uses rhymed quatrains that give the poem a steady rhythm, which in turn echoes the relentless, unchanging nature of the hospital environment. The protagonist's journey through the hospital is captured with a sense of slow, dragging movement, effectively mirroring their emotional state. The poet also uses personification, representing life and death as "friendly chafferers," which serves to underline the casual, everyday grimness of the hospital setting.

The poem's central character, a small, strange child, adds a poignant note to the narrative. Despite her youth, she is presented as old beyond her years, a testament to the transformative and often destructive power of illness. The speaker's own fear and dwindling confidence as they navigate the hospital corridors further amplify this feeling of despair.

Overall, the poem offers a stark, unflinching look at the realities of illness and mortality, using vivid imagery and emotionally-charged language to evoke a sense of unease and sorrow, while the structure and use of personification intensify the bleak atmosphere. It is a powerful exploration of the human condition in the face of suffering.