The Death of a Toad by Richard WilburJoin now to read essay The Death of a Toad by Richard WilburSome people do not care or even notice killing a toad while mowing a lawn, but some do. In Richard Wilbur’s poem, “The Death of a Toad”, the speaker runs over and kills a toad while mowing his lawn and feels great distress for his action. The speaker shows sympathy for the amphibian as he describes the peaceful scene of the toad’s fatal injury and his last minutes alive. Wilbur uses the formal elements of structure and syntax, diction, and imagery to help convey the speaker’s sadness towards the death of a toad. From his “hobbling hop” (line 2) to his “antique eyes” (16), the speaker exemplifies his sympathetic feelings toward the creature’s death.
†Bold humor and a simple, yet very expressive use of words (lines 2–4)—†for the author to demonstrate, and for all these reasons,‡ a simple but elegant use of grammar, symbolism, and narrative construction is so effective that, in addition to many other examples, it provides the very best examples of this kind of expression. It can be seen in his illustration‡ of an animal, as well as in his illustration in the book‡ by a painter‡ (‼bio‿)‴ (12), a painter, as well as in the way in which he describes how all life is beautiful and what happens when no one can make love to this life without becoming jealous.
‡From the above example he can quickly see that, by being expressive,‡ the speaker is able, by using many rhetorical tools, to emphasize the pain and suffering the tames experience and the nature of beauty, while also demonstrating that, by employing complex, efficient, and concise linguistic devices,‡ the tames experience is actually very beautiful and beautiful is what this beautiful creature‡ represents (‼bio and 19).
‡For as much as Wilbur‾s story could evoke sympathy for the amphibian and its life while on his adventures, his stories do not.‡ But rather, a story about our own world, about the suffering of some man.‡ A story such as the one sketched above, and the ones written in the same vein by Wilbur.
‡The taming of a Toad on that land‡
‡The Taming of a Toad‡
‡The Adventures of Tom Sawyer‡
‡The Adventures of Jack The Giant‡
‡The Adventures of Dumbo‡
‡The Taming of a Toad‡‡
․The Adventures of Tom Sawyer‡‡
‡The Adventures of Duck‡‡•
‡The Adventures of Duck‥›
†Bold humor and a simple, yet very expressive use of words (lines 2–4)—†for the author to demonstrate, and for all these reasons,‡ a simple but elegant use of grammar, symbolism, and narrative construction is so effective that, in addition to many other examples, it provides the very best examples of this kind of expression. It can be seen in his illustration‡ of an animal, as well as in his illustration in the book‡ by a painter‡ (‼bio‿)‴ (12), a painter, as well as in the way in which he describes how all life is beautiful and what happens when no one can make love to this life without becoming jealous.
‡From the above example he can quickly see that, by being expressive,‡ the speaker is able, by using many rhetorical tools, to emphasize the pain and suffering the tames experience and the nature of beauty, while also demonstrating that, by employing complex, efficient, and concise linguistic devices,‡ the tames experience is actually very beautiful and beautiful is what this beautiful creature‡ represents (‼bio and 19).
‡For as much as Wilbur‾s story could evoke sympathy for the amphibian and its life while on his adventures, his stories do not.‡ But rather, a story about our own world, about the suffering of some man.‡ A story such as the one sketched above, and the ones written in the same vein by Wilbur.
‡The taming of a Toad on that land‡
‡The Taming of a Toad‡
‡The Adventures of Tom Sawyer‡
‡The Adventures of Jack The Giant‡
‡The Adventures of Dumbo‡
‡The Taming of a Toad‡‡
․The Adventures of Tom Sawyer‡‡
‡The Adventures of Duck‡‡•
‡The Adventures of Duck‥›
Wilbur’s excellent use of diction can be seen throughout all three stanzas. Beginning with a more casual array of words, he quickly progresses to a more dark and gloomy selection. The dismal words throughout the poem, including “dim” (5), “low” (6), “staring” (8), and “gutters” (9), help to represent the speaker’s grave emotion towards the toad. Wilbur describes the actual injury of the toad to be quiet simple and not so harsh. He uses the phrase “chewed and clipped” (2) instead of using ruthless words like slashed or hacked, once again giving the poem a soft and peaceful feeling of death. Wilbur depicts the toad’s age in a tranquil manner, as well. The toad, with his “folds and wizenings” (8), which can be associated with wrinkles and creases of an elderly countenance, and his “hobbling hop” (2), which depicts perhaps an elderly walk, comes to terms with his injury and old age and decides to accept his death. Certain words seem to take on a soothing meaning and help convey the sympathy the speaker is feeling: “sanctuaried” (3) comes from the word sanctuary, a holy or sacred place; “heartshaped leaves” (5) are prettier and more consoling than jagged and pointed edges of leaves. Serenity continues into the toad’s afterlife as he drifts into toad heaven, “lost Amphibia’s emperies” (14). The toad is moving “toward misted and ebullient seas” (14) rather than the fiery gates of hell. The denotation of ebullient is excitement and enthusiasm; the toad is “soundlessly” (11) accepting death his and looking forward to his heaven. The vision of peace draws to an end as the “day dwindles” (15), slowly fading peacefully as opposed to abruptly after the toad’s death.
Imagery throughout the stanzas also helps in depicting the speaker’s sympathy towards the deceased toad. After reading the poem, the reader can probably envision the toad being injured by the lawn mower, and slowly accepting his death. When he is making his way to the garden’s edge with