Margaret Atwood’s Dream 2: Brian the Still-Hunter is a poem about isolation and the effects that this has upon people. The poet uses metaphors and symbolism to convey this theme and message. The poet conveys the message in an interesting fashion by having the story be a dream. The poet draws upon her childhood experiences living in rural Quebec as well as Susanna Moodie’s Roughing it in the Bush. Moodie’s book was an semi-fictionalized account of being a Canadian settler and was intended as guide for other immigrants. Chapter 10 of Moodie’s book also tells the story of Brian the Still-Hunter, however in this account he is not portrayed as a troubled isolated figure.
The title of the poem is important…show more content… The speaker says “there was no wind; around us the leaves rustled” (9-10). This line further emphasis how silent and disconnected from the world Brian is. The wind is a metaphor for Brian’s actions, he is not heard or seen but is still having impact on the world. For the most part his impact is unnoticed but upon further examination one can find traces of his impact. This also links back to line 3 where it is said that he never says anything. This demonstrates to the reader that regardless of what you believe or feel your actions have repercussions on the people around you even if you do not see them. Many of Atwood’s poems have hints of serious depression and raises the question of whether the poet suffered from depression despite it not being documented publically. Brian’s copping mechanism is revealed when the speaker says “I kill because I have to” (12). Hunting is how Brian copes with the isolation and disconnection from the rest of the world. The fifth stanza (13-18) is a metaphor that details Brian turning into a deer with a “head heavy with antlers” (15). This shows how different Brian is from the rest of the people around him, so different that he describes himself as transforming into a deer. Brian is more connected to nature than society. In the final line of the stanza Brains says his “soul runs innocent as hooves” (18). This shows how he…show more content… The poet masterfully uses metaphors and imagery to create an eerie mood and communicate the theme of isolation to the readers. The poem draws upon the poet’s past experiences as well as material by Susanna Moodie to create the surreal world of Brian. The poem being a dream is an extremely interesting technique and allows the poet to create uncertainty in the reader and ultimately further communicate the theme of
