Critical Appreciation of “The Fist by Derek Walcott”

Derek speaks of the painful love or experience that has experience that has
happened. As he begins the poem off painting a vivid expression or picture in the
audiences mind “the fist clenched round my heart.” The fist is a symbol showing
power, strength, and when he speaks of clenching his heart he creates a tone. This
power fist gripping the organ that allows you to live shows the pain the character is
experiencing. Then the fist loosens allowing him to take a breath, gasping the
brightness. The feeling of gasping is like drowning till a person reaches their last
breath then their reflexes appear and they come out of the water taking a deep
zbreath gasping every bit of air they can hold. As the fist tightens again the poem
implies that someone is toying with the characters heart or life source. “ Why play
with emotions or attempts to cause pain to someone’s heart,” I ask myself. Derek
answers with a rhetorical question saying "When have I ever not loved the pain of
love?" This shows that he, the character in the poem, believes that pain is included
in the process of love. This allows the audience to see his attitude towards the pain
of loving someone. The intense love he feels results in him comparing it to
gripping a ledge of unreason falling into a deep abyss. If he lets go then his fall
will surely kill him so he ends it in telling his heart to hold on. If his heart holds
then it will live on.