First Death in Nova Scotia

‘in the cold, cold parlour’ – a chilly atmosphere already (suitable for the subject); the assonance also emphasises the solemnity of the occasion

‘stood a stuffed loon, shot and stuffed’ – the loon is much like the dead boy; cold, inanimate, and disturbing

‘since Uncle Arthur fired a bullet into him, he hadn’t said a word’ – an ambiguous continuation from the first stanza; these jumps are characteristic of a young child’s thoughts

‘on his white, frozen lake’ – the first of many incessant references to this colour

‘his eyes were red glass’ – red also features prominently; another one with connotations of death

‘I was lifted up’ – reminds us how young the poet is here

‘Arthur’s coffin was a little frosted cake’ – with limited experience to draw on, the young Bishop uses an unusual metaphor by linking the coffin to something she knows; perhaps she’s attempting to restore some order and normality to a new and frightening situation

‘the red-eyed loon eyed it’ – now the loon seems to linger, almost threateningly so

‘he was all white, like a doll’ – emphasising her innocent mindset

‘that hadn’t been painted yet’ – the young poet doesn’t seem to ‘get’ the finality of death

‘Jack Frost had started to paint him’ – childlike fairytale imagery captures the speaker’s mindset

‘the way he always painted the Maple Leaf (Forever)’ – the way she connects the anthem is typical of a young child’s stream of consciousness, constantly going from this to that

‘warm in red and ermine’ – an attention to detail even at a young age

‘they invited Arthur to be the smallest page at court’ – no mention of heaven here; she is just trying to make sense of the situation, associating the pomp of the royal family with the ceremony around Arthur’s death

‘but how could Arthur go’ – on some level, she knows Arthur is gone, but she still has many unanswered questions left

‘and the roads deep in snow?’ – sense of closure with this rhyme with ‘go’