The Dalliance of The Eagles
By Walt Whitman
SKIRTING the river road, (my forenoon walk, my rest,)
Skyward in air a sudden muffled sound, the dalliance of the eagles,
The rushing amorous contact high in space together,
The clinching interlocking claws, a living, fierce, gyrating wheel,Four beating wings, two beaks, a swirling mass tight grappling,
In tumbling turning clustering loops, straight downward falling,
Till o’er the river pois’d, the twain yet one, a moment’s lull,
A motionless still balance in the air, then parting, talons loosing,
Upward again on slow-firm pinions slanting, their separate diverse
flight,
She hers, he his, pursuing.
Summary of The Dalliance of The Eagles
- Popularity of “The Dalliance of The Eagles”: This beautiful narrative poem first appeared back in 1880 and again appeared with some corrections later. It presents Walt Whitman’s views about love, relationships, and the absence of emotions. He presents two eagles, showing the allegorical representation of human relations. The beauty of the poem lies in this presentation of two eagles engaged in love-making in the air, becoming almost one.
- “The Dalliance of The Eagles” As a Representative of Love and Relationships: The poet presents two eagles engaged in a loving-making act in the air. He is on his forenoon walk after taking some rest when he hears a muffled sound from the sky. He sees that two eagles are involved in an amorous act in the space above him. Their claws are interlocked, and they are in a gyrating mode, falling fast toward the ground. They are whirling at a breakneck speed and yet grappling with each other in a loop as fast as they could, but the poet is enjoying the lull of the moment. After spending some moments in this love-making act, the eagles part ways and slowly move away on their different paths without showing any act of familiarity. They are again pursuing their different paths.
- Major Themes in “The Dalliance of The Eagles”: Love, relationships, individuality, and unity in love are four major themes of the poem “The Dalliance of The Eagles.” The most interesting point of this poem also appears in the title, which is the dalliance, having love-making or sexual connotations. Surprisingly, some birds do this act even when they are in the air in flying mode. Both eagles are also locked in an amorous act in the space when the poet happens to see them, and yet he observes their individuality after they have interlocked with each other for some time. This unity in the love-making act and the difference in parting ways show that the poet has rather idealized this relationship.
Analysis of Literary Devices Used in The Dalliance of The Eagles
Walt Whitman uses various literary devices to enhance the intended impact of this poem. Some of the major literary devices he uses are as follows.
- Allegory: It is a figure of speech that presents a story having various interpretations. This poem presents the story of the loving making of two eagles performing this act in the air.
- Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line, such as the sound of / i/ in “Skyward in air a sudden muffled sound, the dalliance of the eagles” and the sound of /o/ in “The rushing amorous contact high in space together.”
- Alliteration: Alliteration is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line in quick succession, such as the sound of /t/ in “tumbling turning,”
- Consonance: Consonance is the repetition of consonant sounds in the same line, such as the sound of /l/ and /n/ in “The clinching interlocking claws, a living, fierce, gyrating wheel” and the sound of /s/ in “A motionless still balance in the air, then parting, talons loosing.”
- Imagery: Imagery is used to make readers perceive things involving their five senses. Walt Whitman uses imagery in this poem, such as “A motionless still balance in the air, then parting, talons loosing”, “Upward again on slow-firm pinions slanting, their separate diverse flight” and “In tumbling turning clustering loops, straight downward falling.”
- Metaphor: It is a figure of speech in which an implied comparison is made between objects that are different in nature. The poet used the metaphor of eagles to show the importance of human love and emotions.
- Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings that are different from the literal meanings. The poem shows symbols, such as a river, walk, dalliance, space, and romance to show the love affair of the eagles in the air.
Analysis of Poetic Devices Used in The Dalliance of The Eagles
Poetic and literary devices are the same, but a few are used only in poetry. Here is an analysis of some of the poetic devices used in this poem.
- Diction: It means the type of language. The poem shows formal, figurative, and imagic diction.
- Free Verse: It means using verses without rhyme scheme or metrical pattern. The poem shows the use of free verse.
- Stanza: A stanza is a poetic form of some lines. This poem is a single stanza having ten verses.
- Tone: It means the voice of the text. The poem shows an observational, intellectual, and analytical tone.
Quotes to be Used
The following lines are useful to quote when talking about individuality in love.
A motionless still balance in the air, then parting, talons loosing,
Upward again on slow-firm pinions slanting, their separate diverse
flight,
She hers, he his, pursuing.