Comparison Of Death In Shrike Tree And Plums Falling Well

Death is the unavoidable part of our daily lives. In the poems, “Shrike Tree” by Lucia Perillo and “Plums Falling Well” by Linda Gregg, the poets discussed the plot with an accepting attitude towards death because it is part of the natural life cycle.

In our society, we tend to hide and avoid death; However, Shrikes and the plums in the poems face death with an open manner. Their attitudes towards death indicate the shrikes and plums are not afraid to die. Through the speaker’s description of the shrike’s predatory actions, it is also evident that shrikes view death very differently compared to humans. In “Shrike Tree”, Perillo contrasts the difference between shrikes and humans in terms of viewing death. On one hand, the shrikes are “honest”

Both Perillo and Gregg see death as a cruel and gruesome subject. In the end, they gradually start to shift to an accepting attitude toward death. In “Shrike Tree”, the use of simile, paradox, and imagery can be seen used throughout the poem. The poet, Perillo states “the shrikes pinned birds on the trees in blackthorns”, this creates a gruesome image carved in the audience’s mind, it shows that Perillo is quite disgusted by the image of birds being pinned on black thorns. As “the shrike pinned smaller birds on the tree’s blackthorns…while some burned holes in the sky overhead.” The use of imagery invokes a sense of discomfort and disgust in the speaker. In “Plums Failing Well”, the only attention they receive is from “ants and birds”. This indicates that humans have absolutely zero respect towards the plums. In fact, the only attention they receive is from the lower class creatures such as “ants”. By using personification, if “only they can breath”, the poet is comparing plums to humans. By stating that if they can breathe just like humans, they will more likely receive more respect because humans normally respect other human