Basking Shark: Evolution

‘Basking Shark: Evolution’: Theme - Change and Evolution

Understanding of Change and Evolution

• The ‘Basking Shark: Evolution’ poem sees change and evolution as intrinsic to every living creature.
• The poem particularly delineates this through the encounter between the speaker and the basking shark, and MacCaig’s contemplation over their shared ancestry.

Representation of Change and Evolution

• MacCaig uses a basking shark, an ancient creature surviving millions of years of evolution, to personify the theme.
• The speaker’s initial response to the creature indicates a sharp separation between them, which gradually transitions to a realisation of shared ancestry, symbolising evolution.

Change and Evolution in Relation to Time

• ‘Basking Shark: Evolution’ highlights the extent of evolutionary change over vast stretches of time, as exemplified by the seemingly ‘prehistoric’ nature of the shark.
• MacCaig introduces the concept of ‘geological time’, a scale far beyond human comprehension, to underline the magnitude of evolutionary change.

Drama of Change and Evolution

• The unexpected meeting between the shark and the speaker serves as a dramatic embodiment of nature’s evolutionary changes.
• This encounter simultaneously tosses the speaker into a deeper consideration of human evolution, thus enhancing the drama of the evolutionary theme.

Summary

• ‘Basking Shark: Evolution’ by Norman MacCaig is a profound contemplation on change and evolution. Using the encounter with a basking shark as a core symbol, the poem speculates on the vastness of time, the shared ancestry of creatures, and the continual drama of evolution. The poem invites introspection on human identity in relation to other creatures and our shared journey through time.