Rainer Marie Rilke’s “The Panther”, takes readers on a journey. First this poem makes the reader envision the sight of an amazing creature that so many never get to see in the span of their lifetime. There is an overwhelming joy as your eyes gaze upon it in amazement. Then, the Journey shifts to a saddening perspective of the world through that creature’s bewildered eyes. The imagery, similes, and tone of this poem, are what make emotion pour out of each and every single written word and are the key devices that give this poem its meaning.
Rilke writes this poem from the perspective of a Panther, and in doing so personifies empathy. The length of this poem is not substantial, the poems meaning becomes momentous with the use of imagery. From the very first quatrain, the Panther’s story unfolds. “His vision… has grown so weary that it cannot hold anything else.” With this line it is clear that the Panther cannot see past the bars that imprison him. In the first quatrain, there is special emphasis placed on the passing bars. …show more content…
The use of simile in this quatrain helps unearth meaning and emotion, it reads “the movement of his soft powerful strides is like a ritual dance around a center.” A ritual dance can be thought of as a celebration of spiritual freedom, but if we reference back to pacing in “cramped circles”, it can be seen that there is no freedom for this panther, and his spirit is trapped behind those bars. The imagery in the final line of this quadrant depicts that the Will of the panther is being tortured when it says “A mighty stands paralyzed.” The very nature of this creature has ceased due to his unjust