Basking Shark: Stanza 3

‘Basking Shark: Stanza 3’

Main Ideas

• In this stanza, the speaker uses the encounter with the shark to explore the concept of human insignificance in the larger natural world.
• MacCaig further develops the theme of duality, portraying the shark as both terrifying and liberating.

Symbolism

• The shark’s ‘swish’ symbolises the indifference of nature towards human concerns, emphasising our insignificance.
• The ‘slate-clean sea’ represents a kind of existential tabula rasa, reminding us of our primitive roots and our connection to the natural world.

Imagery

• MacCaig employs the image of the shark disappearing into the sea as a metaphor for self-effacement, the self becoming less in the face of the natural world.
• The speaker’s ‘triumphant thought’ of being insignificant and nonessential in the natural world is paradoxically both humbling and liberating.

Language

• ‘Slounge’ is a neologism that combines ‘slouch’ and ‘lunge’ to create a powerful visual of the shark’s movement.
• ‘But who’s the monster?’ is a rhetorical question that suggests the ambiguity of the concept of monstrosity – the human or the shark?

Context

• In ‘Basking Shark’, MacCaig uses his own experience with the titular shark as a springboard to explore themes of insignificance, evolution and the human relationship with nature.
• This specific stanza adds a layer of introspection and existentialism, eliciting contemplation from the reader about the place of humanity in the world.

Summary

• The third stanza of ‘Basking Shark’ by Norman MacCaig reinforces the themes of the poem. Through his encounter with the shark, the poet presents an exploration of humanity’s place in the natural world. While being a sobering reminder of human mortal insignificance, the shark also prompts a liberating realisation of human’s peripheral role in the grand scheme of nature.