Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Paul Muldoon’s poem "Cows" is a complex and layered work that interweaves references to literature, language, history, and the natural world to create a meditation on existence, mortality, and the deep connections between place and identity. The poem is dense with allusions and shifts in tone, blending the mundane with the profound, the physical with the metaphysical, and the historical with the personal.

The poem opens with the sound of a "smoker's cough" coming from behind a "whitethorn hedge," immediately setting a tone of unease and tension. This is juxtaposed with the "distant tingle of water into a trough," a more pastoral and tranquil image. The contrast between these two sounds—the harsh cough and the gentle water—sets the stage for a poem that will explore the intersections of life and death, peace and violence.

Muldoon quickly introduces a moment of near-death experience: "since a cattle truck / all but sent us shuffling off this mortal coil." This phrase, borrowing from Shakespeare’s "Hamlet", reminds us of the fragility of life. The speaker and a companion have just narrowly avoided death, and in response, they have turned to alcohol—specifically, "Redbreast," a brand of Irish whiskey. The mention of "Hawthorne" and the scarlet letter from "The Scarlet Letter" suggests a playful yet serious contemplation of guilt, shame, and perhaps the ways in which alcohol serves as a coping mechanism or a means of escape.

As the poem progresses, Muldoon delves into the origins of the word "boreen," a narrow country road in Ireland, tracing it back to its Gaelic roots. This linguistic exploration underscores the deep ties between language and place, and how words carry the weight of history and culture. The cattle truck, which continues to be a looming presence in the poem, becomes symbolic of the encroachment of modernity, or possibly of death itself, as it moves through the rural landscape.

The recurring image of the "smoker's cough" becomes linked to the cows, whose collective response to the sound is described as an "emphysemantiphon," a play on words suggesting a kind of communal, diseased breathing. This image of the cows "hoist[ing] themselves onto their trampoline" and inclining toward water evokes a sense of ritualistic movement, as if the cows are engaging in an ancient, almost mystical act of divination. The poem contrasts these earthy, real-world cows with the "metaphysicattle of Japan," which represent a more abstract, almost idealized version of cattle, highlighting the contrast between the grounded reality of the Irish landscape and more philosophical or symbolic representations of animals.

Muldoon then traces the lineage of these cows back to the nativity scene, linking them to the "kith and kine / that presided over the birth / of Christ," while simultaneously grounding them in the Irish landscape that has been shaped by figures like Cuchulainn, a legendary warrior from Irish mythology. The poem creates a sense of continuity between these sacred, historical, and mythological elements, suggesting that the cows are both ordinary creatures and bearers of deep cultural significance.

The poem takes a darker turn as it transitions to themes of violence and destruction, with references to "slaughter and the slain," "the helicopter gunship," and "the mighty Kalashnikov." These images of modern warfare and brutality are starkly contrasted with the peaceful image of resting "in a place where a cow has lain." This shift underscores the tension between the rural, pastoral world and the violent, modern world, suggesting that even in a seemingly tranquil landscape, the specter of violence is never far away.

"Cows" is a poem that operates on multiple levels, blending the mundane with the metaphysical, the pastoral with the violent, and the personal with the historical. Muldoon uses the figure of the cow as a central symbol to explore themes of mortality, identity, and the deep connections between place and language. The poem’s rich imagery and allusions create a tapestry of meaning that invites readers to reflect on the intersections of life and death, tradition and modernity, and the ways in which we navigate the complex, often contradictory forces that shape our world.

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