XIV

What stories remind you of your childhood? Of course, there are classic childhood tales like Goldilocks and the Three Bears (1837) and Little Red Riding Hood (1697), but there are also personal stories we’ve been told by family members and friends, as well as stories we remember from our own childhoods. The Nobel Prize-winning poet Derek Walcott explores these themes of memory and childhood in his poem “XIV” (1984). The poet uses vivid imagery and several other literary devices to present his mother’s powerful storytelling abilities.

"XIV": Poem Overview

"XIV": Poem Introduction

"XIV" is a poem written by the Nobel Prize-winning poet Derek Walcott. Walcott grew up in Saint Lucia in the Caribbean. The lush, powerful nature of the island greatly influenced his writing. The poet was raised by his mother, who was an arts-loving teacher and a talented storyteller. In the poem "XIV," the poet remembers how his mother told captivating stories to him and his twin brother growing up.

Fig. 1 ‐ Derek Walcott and his twin brother were inspired by their mother's stories of the Caribbean. The island of Saint Lucia where they grew up is known for the twin Pitons, which are twin peaks formed from lava.

The poem "XIV" is featured in Derek Walcott's poetry collection, Midsummer (1984). The poetry book features several poems primarily titled with only roman numerals. "XIV" is the number 14 in roman numerals. The title signifies the age nearing the end of childhood, which is a theme in Walcott’s poem.

Walcott's poem is written in free verse, meaning it does not adhere to any specific rhyme scheme or meter. While reading the poem, notice how the rhythm and flow of the poem are guided by the long lines featuring repetitive sounds.

"XIV": Full Poem

Here is the full poem "XIV" by Derek Walcott:

"XIV": Poem Summary

There is a winding road that the speaker compares to a "snake shedding its skin" (1). The road is surrounded by dense forest and large leaves. This apparently foreboding place is where "folk stories begin" (4).

Fig. 2 ‐ The poet creates a foreboding, intimidating, and frightening atmosphere at the beginning of the poem by depicting a darkening, shrouded path.

Sunset approaches and darkness nears as the speaker and his brother approach the house at the top of a hill. The house is shrouded in vines that entangle the gutters and it smells strongly of moss. People begin closing their house shutters, which the poet compares to a mimosa plant defending itself by turning inwards when touched. The lines of light coming through the shutters resemble human ribs.

At the end of the dark path stands the speaker's mother carrying a lamp. The speaker states that life is distinguished between childhood and the days after childhood.

In the example below, examples of alliteration and sibilance are underlined:

The beginning of the poem weaves the imagery of the Caribbean forest with the poet's feelings about revisiting his childhood home. The path to his home is dark, shrouded with trees and big "dasheen" leaves, and smells strongly of mold. All of these descriptions evoke a sense of discomfort and fear, but they also intrigue the reader as they can vividly imagine themself walking into the scene.

Fig. 3 ‐ Dasheen leaves are the large leaves of a taro plant native to the Caribbean.

The speaker characterizes both the old, twisted road and his own feelings as "an old snake shedding its skin" (1). The poet emphasizes that the forest is a place of constant regrowth and overgrowth. Similarly, he is returning to the place no longer a child—like the snake, he has shed his skin to grow into adulthood.

The imagery of the snake itself evokes a sense of discomfort and fear. Walcott emphasizes the sinister sound of a snake through the use of alliteration and sibilance, as the repeated "s" sounds create a hissing effect. The repetition of sounds weaves the lines together and carries the lines along in a slinking, slithering manner.

Personification and Simile

Derek Walcott's poem is built on the use of personification and similes that make the forest feel humanly alive.

In the example below, a simile that uses personification is underlined:

The poet personifies the closing house shutters through a simile comparing them to ”the eyelids of that mimosa” (8). Mimosa (also known as Ti-Marie) is a plant that closes its leaves when touched as a defense mechanism. The plant appears to blink as it shuts. The poet draws a parallel between the shutters closing and people closing their eyes to go to sleep.

Derek Walcott personifies the houses to intensify the feeling that everything surrounding the boys is alive, aware, and watchful. If the shutters are the eyelids, then the windows are like eyes.

The lines of lamplight through the closed shutters glow like “ribs.” The poet describes the lights as “lucent as paper lanterns” (9). This indicates that it is a glowing, filtered light that appears to float in the darkness. Walcott creates a haunting atmosphere, which emphasizes children’s irrational fears.

The poet depicts the houses like human bodies. It's as if the nature that grows around and surrounds the houses makes them come to life.

Fig. 4 ‐ Notice how the leaves of Mimosa plants, also known as Ti Marie, resemble the look of window shutters.

Metaphor and Symbolism

The poet uses several metaphors in the poem to help the reader understand how his mother was a symbol of light and life, which characterized his childhood.

Walcott uses a metaphor in saying that his mother’s “leaves were the libraries of the Caribbean” (16). The poet uses this metaphor to suggest how his mother is integrated with the nature of the Caribbean, and she is deeply aware of its history. Walcott’s mother is like a tree, full of leaves that represent different stories about the Caribbean. Her knowledge about the place is so vast that it's as if her mind contains a library of books about it.

The poem ends with the metaphor: “She was the lamplight in the stare of two mesmerized boys / still joined in one shadow, indivisible twins” (20-21). The poet compares his mother to lamplight because of her vibrancy in storytelling and her ability to shed light on the stories and history of the Caribbean. She is also a light in the sense that she is a symbol of life, hope, and wonder to her sons.

The poet indicates that he and his brother are reflections of their mother’s influence by writing that their shadows are formed from the light she cast. Light is a significant symbol in the story, as it represents safety, home, direction, and destination amidst the forest darkness.

"XIV": Poem Themes

The poem “XIV” explores the themes of childhood and memory. This is clearly seen in line 12 of the poem, “There’s childhood, and there’s childhood’s aftermath.” The poem is a reconciliation of the poet’s memory of his home as a child and his understanding of its impact on him as an adult.

The poet recalls the dark, dense nature that surrounded his mother’s house. He creates an air of uncertainty and unease as the overgrown nature appears to encompass the path and darkness descends as the sun sets. However, in childhood, the poet’s mother stands at the end of the dark path with a light. She guides him and is a source of inspiration for understanding the land where they live.

The poet’s clear distinction between childhood and everything that comes after it points to the fact that childhood is a highly significant time. Everything Walcott has come to do as an adult has been influenced by his childhood—the tropical island forests in which he was raised, and the captivating, strong woman he was raised by. The poet writes that “her voice travels my shelves” (19), indicating that her words, stories, and existence have touched everything he has ever read and written.

Derek Walcott writes this poem to emphasize how the experiences and memories of childhood carry into the way we live, see, and experience the world as adults.