Metho Drinker by Judith Wright

Metho Drinker

Judith Wright, the poet of this poem.

Under the death of winter's leaves he lies
who cried to Nothing and the terrible night
to be his home and bread. "O take from me
the weight and waterfall ceaseless Time
that batters down my weakness; the knives of light
whose thrust I cannot turn; the cruelty

of human eyes that dare not touch nor pity."

Under the worn leaves of the winter city

safe in the house of Nothing now he lies.

His white and burning girl, his woman of fire,
creeps to his heart and sets a candle there

to melt away the flesh that hides from bone,

to eat the nerve that tethers him in time.

He will lie warm until the bone is bare

and on a dead dark moon he wakes alone.
It was for Death he took her; death is but this;
and yet he is uneasy under her kiss

and winces from that acid of her desire

Analysis:

This poem is talking about a story with this person who is very addicted to a certain spirit, that will eventually take away his life. This special spirit or belief can be seen from him praying for Time, light and the cruelty of human eyes. When he said about the cruelty of human eyes that dare not touch nor pity, he means that people has seen him suffer but they are not willing to give him a helping hand, and ignore him instead, this shows why he wrote this line. In the house of nothing means that he does not regard his house properly, as his own property. His white and burning girl, his woman of fire,creeps to his heart and sets a candle there might mean about his wife, that calms him and encourages him. Then later he depicts the scene as a dead dark moon he wakes alone means the death of the certain someone that gave him comfort from the first 3 lines of the second stanza, he later felt sad about her leaving him and winces from that acid of her desire might mean that he regret about being addicted to the spirit that it which took away someone so important to him.
In conclusion, the author Judith Wright wrote this poem to portray the effect that a certain spirit is able to take away someone close to him, and the next victim may be himself. She also refrains from telling the person's identity to further the point that it could be anyone, not revealing its true identity.

                                              

(Yi Neng)