To One Coming North

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1922

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Summary

Background

Poem Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Literary Devices

Form and Meter

“To One Coming North” is structured as four quatrains, or, four-line stanzas. Each stanza follows an ABAB rhyme scheme, while the meter of most lines is iambic pentameter. The form McKay uses has elements of the ballad, a poetic form that often contains regularly rhymed quatrains. The iambic implies that each foot of the poem is made up of iambs, which are pairs of syllabic sounds made up of an unstressed sound followed by a stressed sound, such as in the opening phrase of the poem: “At first” (Line 1). Pentameter refers to the occurrence of five such iambs per line. The regular structure, the steady end rhymes, and the sing-song iambic meter lulls the reader into experiencing the poem as a simple song. However, as the poem progresses, it becomes obvious that it has deeper, allegorical meanings and themes.

Alliteration and Assonance

The poem’s most powerful example of alliteration occurs in Line 6 with the repeated “w” and “v” sounds of the phrase “wind-worried void.” Repeated together, the sounds mimic the effect of a cold wind whistling through empty space, thus creating a stark contrast to the magical snow imagery of the first quatrain. The alliteration underscores the change in mood of both the poem and the migrant experience.

More examples of alliteration occur in the third stanza, when the speaker describes the “lanes and leas” (Line 10) of the south, and the repeated “l” sound creates an easy, languorous effect. Again, the alliteration highlights the emotional state and the memories of the migrants now based up north. It is in this space that “tender thoughts and feelings fine” (Line 11) blossom, and the stressed “t” and “f” sounds build on the emotive space created by the previous instance of alliteration. The repeated alliterations here create a hypnotic, musical effect, showing that leaving home is never easy; despite the necessity of migration, it remains a bittersweet passage.

The poem also uses assonance, or closely repeated vowel sounds, to enhance the musicality of the poem. In the opening stanza, musical “o” sounds are repeated, enhancing the imagery of wondrous surprise, the “o” sound being associated with music and surprise. The individuals up find themselves up north will “joy to see the playful snow” (Line 1), which is like “moths” (Line 2) or waters that “softly flow” (Line 3). The assonance in these words thread the entire image together and draw attention to the emotion of the image as well as the visuals.

Personification, Metaphor, and Simile

Because the landscape of the poem mirrors the emotional state of the speaker, the speaker personifies different elements of nature in order to draw attention to the human experience. The snow is described as “playful” (Line 1), and water as falling “gracefully” (Line 4). Spring sheds “upon the earth her charm” in Line 14, as the speaker personifies the season as a benevolent female. The very northern land too is personified, “wreathed” or enveloped in “golden smiles” (Line 13) and made “glad” (Line 14) by the “miraculous sun” (Line 14). The strong uses of personification also bring out the allegorical aspects of the poem. Personified, the lands of the north are an allegorical representation of change and freedom, while the home left behind is static beauty itself.

McKay also uses rich figurative language through metaphors and similes. The phrase “playful snow” (Line 1) itself is a metaphor, implicitly comparing the snow to a care-free child. It is also likened to “white moths trembling on the tropic air” (Line 2), and the comparison strings together two disparate natural elements, enhancing the visual experience for the reader.