The Snake
The snake in "Snake" symbolizes several things at once:
Firstly, it is a symbol of untamed nature intruding on the
"educate” speaker's civilized, tame, "human" world.
Second, it's a symbol of death and danger, since its venom
could potentially kill a human being. (The speaker even
compares the snake to a "king" of the "underworld," like the
mythical Hades, king of the dead.)
The poet feels threatened by the snake and probably has
something to assign masculine qualities to it which fascinates
and repels him. The snake cuts in front of him at the water-
trough, as if undermining his claim to dominance. "If you were a
man," his inner voice taunts, "You would take a stick and break
him now, and finish him off.".) Eventually, the speaker pits
himself against the snake in a macho way, attempting to kill it
(symbolically castrate it, perhaps) by throwing a log in its
direction. Yet his attempt fails and becomes a gesture of futility
and impotence.
Finally, thanks in large part to the famous serpent in the Garden
of Eden story, snakes often symbolize evil. This poem actually
seems to challenge that symbolism. The snake is frightening to
the speaker, but "peaceful" and unassuming as it goes about its
business. And in the end, the speaker feels foolish and
ashamed, not heroic, for trying to vanquish it.
The log is a weapon which symbolises dominance
However,, the log is ineffectual. Even if it hits the snake (and the speaker
thinks "it did not"), it does no damage, and the snake escapes. If the log
represents the speaker's manhood, then, it makes the speaker look
awkward and impotent—and as if he might be overreacting for his
insecurities.
The crack in the wall represents the mysterious forces of nature which are
largely unknown. If the man and the snake appears masculine, the earth wall
can be said to stand for mysterious feminine principles.
THE CONFLICT IN THE NARRATOR’S MIND is between his admiration for
and his horror of the snake,an unknown adversary, between his accursed
human education’, which has taught humans to dominate nature and the
instinctive feelings of respect that arise in his mind upon seeing the snake.
“Snake” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
Anthropomorphism
At various moments in the poem, the speaker anthropomorphizes the snake. That
is, the speaker attributes human qualities, motives, and behaviours to the
snake, even though it's a non-human animal. This pattern starts to develop around
line 27, as the speaker admits to being fascinated by the snake and starts to portray
"him" in sympathetic, relatable terms.
The speaker compares the snake to a "guest" (line 28) seeking out his "hospitality"
(line 39)—something only a human being could literally do. He also describes
the snake's attitude, after drinking from the "water-trough," as "peaceful, pacified,
and thankless." Again, there's a touch of human characterization here. Only a
person could have literally "thanked" the speaker for his hospitality, yet the speaker
imagines the snake as a quiet, unobtrusive, but somewhat aloof or ungrateful guest.
Continuing this fantasy in line 32, the speaker even finds himself "longing to talk to"
the snake—an obviously impossible wish.
Later, the speaker projects not only human but royal qualities onto the snake. He
notes that the snake briefly looks "undignified" as it escapes—but this brief lapse
only highlights how dignified it looks the rest of the time. (Of course, dignity is a
fundamentally human concept.) The snake even reminds the speaker of "a king in
exile," one who is returning home "to be crowned again."
In all these cases, the anthropomorphism highlights the strange mix of sympathy and
antipathy the speaker feels toward the snake. Their encounter seems to bridge the
human and natural worlds in an uncanny way.
At the same time, the device suggests that the speaker is projecting his own fears
and insecurities onto the snake. For example, the snake seems so regal and
powerful in part because the speaker—to whom the snake's venom could be lethal—
feels so vulnerable. Likewise, that adjective "thankless" hints at some insecurity on
the speaker's part. There's no way the snake could actually thank him, so the
speaker's feeling of being snubbed might reflect the inversion of the usual power
dynamic between people and animals. The animal has the upper hand here, so to
speak, so the speaker feels both impressed and slightly miffed.
ALLUSION
Allusion to the ancient mariner- he compares the snake with the albatross, saying
that had he killed the snake, he would have committed the same sin the ancient
mariner committed when he killed the albatross.
Graphic description-
Simile- The snake is described as docile and compared with cattle
Metaphor- The snake is referred to as the ‘’uncrowned king’’
Please post your doubts and questions.
