Visting Hour: Stanza 5

Visting Hour: Stanza 5

‘Visiting Hour’: Stanza 5

Main Ideas

• Loss, separation and helplessness are the driving themes within this stanza.
• Here, MacCaig brings forward the physical barrier between him and his loved one that deepens the feeling of isolation.

Symbolism

• The plateglass partition symbolises the barrier, not just between the poet and his loved one, but also between life and death.
• The phrase ‘vanishes heavenward’ suggests death as a form of escape from physical suffering.

Imagery

• The ‘corpse, carried / foot first’ creates a gloomy, foreboding image of death.
• The ‘swimming waves of a bell’ use auditory imagery to evoke feelings of uncertainty and anxiety.

Language

• The poet’s usage of the term ‘fruitless fruits’ is an oxymoron, establishing a sense of futility, desperation and an impending end.
• MacCaig’s use of assonance in ‘swimming waves of a bell’ creates an echoing sound mirroring the constant reminder of impending loss.

Context

• The hospital setting, the ‘corpse’ and a grieving visitor sets up a morbid atmosphere, reflecting the inevitability of death.
• MacCaig grapples with his powerlessness in the face of his loved one’s sickness, which creates a sense of hopelessness and bleakness.

Summary

• In the fifth stanza of ‘Visiting Hour’, MacCaig delivers a poignant portrayal of the pain of impending loss and the cruelty of separation. Through skilful use of imagery, symbolism, and language techniques, MacCaig paints a heart-wrenching picture of the separation between life and death, and the helplessness felt in the face of inevitable loss.