I discovered these men driving a new pile into the pier. by Andrew Motion — Analysis & Translation

Original Poem

I discovered these men driving a new pile into the pier. There was all the paraphernalia of chains, pulleys, cranes, ropes and, as I said, a wooden pile, a massive affair, swinging over the water on a long wire hawser. Everything else was in the massive style as well, even the men; very powerful men; very ruminative and silent men ignoring me. Speech was not something to interest them, and if they talked at all it was like this – “Let go”, or “Hold tight”: all monosyllables. Nevertheless, by paying close attention to the obscure movements of one working on a ladder by the water’s edge, I could tell that for all their strength and experience these men were up against a great difficulty. I cannot say what. Every one of the monsters was silent on the subject – baffled I thought at first, but then I realised indifferent and tired of the whole business. The man nearest to me, still saying nothing but crossing his strong arms over his chest, showed me that for all he cared the pile could go on swinging until the crack of Doom. I should say I watched them at least an hour and, to do the men justice, their slow efforts to overcome the secret problem did continue – then gradually slackened and finally ceased. One massive man after another abandoned his position and leaned on the iron rail to gaze down like a mystic into the water. No one spoke; no one said what they saw; 101 though one fellow did spit, and with round eyes followed the trajectory of his brown bolus (he had been chewing tobacco) on its slow descent into the same depths. The foreman, and the most original thinker, smoked a cigarette to relieve the tension. Afterwards, and with a heavy kind of majesty, he turned on his heels and walked away. With this eclipse of interest, the incident was suddenly closed. First in ones and twos, then altogether, the men followed. That left the pile still in mid-air, and me of course. I should say I watched them at least an hour and, to do the men justice, their slow efforts to overcome the secret problem did continue – then gradually slackened and finally ceased. One massive man after another abandoned his position and leaned on the iron rail to gaze down like a mystic into the water. No one spoke; no one said what they saw; 101 though one fellow did spit, and with round eyes followed the trajectory of his brown bolus (he had been chewing tobacco) on its slow descent into the same depths. The foreman, and the most original thinker, smoked a cigarette to relieve the tension. Afterwards, and with a heavy kind of majesty, he turned on his heels and walked away. With this eclipse of interest, the incident was suddenly closed. First in ones and twos, then altogether, the men followed. That left the pile still in mid-air, and me of course.

Translation (English)

I found these men installing a new post at the dock. There was all the gear like chains, pulleys, cranes, ropes, and as I mentioned, a big wooden post, swinging over the water on a long wire. Everything else was big too, even the men; very strong men; very thoughtful and quiet men ignoring me. Talking wasn't something they cared about, and if they spoke at all it was like this – “Let go”, or “Hold tight”: all short words. Still, by watching closely the unclear actions of one working on a ladder by the water’s edge, I could see that despite their strength and experience these men faced a big problem. I can't say what it was. Each of the big men was silent about it – confused I thought at first, but then I realized they were indifferent and tired of the whole thing. The man closest to me, still not speaking but crossing his strong arms over his chest, showed me that he didn't care if the post kept swinging until the end of time. I think I watched them for at least an hour and, to be fair to the men, their slow efforts to solve the hidden problem continued – then gradually slowed and finally stopped. One big man after another left his spot and leaned on the iron rail to look down like a thinker into the water. No one spoke; no one said what they saw; though one guy did spit, and with wide eyes watched the path of his brown spit (he had been chewing tobacco) as it slowly fell into the same depths. The boss, and the most original thinker, smoked a cigarette to ease the tension. Afterwards, and with a heavy kind of dignity, he turned around and walked away. With this loss of interest, the event was suddenly over. First in ones and twos, then all together, the men left. That left the post still hanging in the air, and me of course.

About the Poet

Andrew Motion (Contemporary)

Sir Andrew Motion is an English poet, novelist, and biographer, who served as Poet Laureate from 1999 to 2009. He founded the Poetry Archive during his laureateship and became President of the Campaign to Protect Rural England in 2012.

Historical Context

Literary Form: Free verse
When Written: Modern era
Background: The poem reflects on the futility and indifference of human efforts against insurmountable challenges. It captures a moment of observation and reflection on human labor and its limitations.

Sources: https://genius.com/Andrew-motion-from-the-journal-of-a-disappointed-man-annotated, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Motion

Detailed Explanation

The poem 'From the Journal of a Disappointed Man' by Andrew Motion captures a scene where men are engaged in the laborious task of driving a pile into a pier. The speaker observes the men, noting their strength and the heavy equipment they use. Despite their physical power, the men face an unspecified difficulty, which they tackle with silent determination. The poem explores themes of futility and indifference, as the men eventually abandon their task, leaving the pile suspended in mid-air. The speaker reflects on the scene with a sense of detachment, highlighting the contrast between human effort and the indifference of the natural world. The poem uses imagery and metaphor to convey the weight of human labor and the ultimate insignificance of individual struggles in the face of larger forces.

Themes

Literary Devices

Word Dictionary

Word	Meaning	Translation	Transliteration
paraphernalia	equipment	tools or items needed for a specific activity	par-a-fer-nay-lee-a
hawser	thick rope	a large, strong rope used for ships	haw-ser
ruminative	thoughtful	thinking deeply	roo-mi-na-tiv
monosyllables	short words	one-syllable words	mon-o-sil-a-buls
obscure	unclear	hard to understand or see	ob-skyoor
indifferent	unconcerned	not caring	in-dif-er-ent
crack of Doom	end of time	the end of the world	krak of doom
trajectory	path	the path of something moving	tra-jek-tor-ee
bolus	lump	a small round mass	boh-lus
majestic	grand	impressively grand	ma-jest-ik
eclipse	loss	a loss of importance	ee-klips