On the day of the explosion
Shadows pointed towards the pithead.
In the sun the slagheap slept.

Down the lane came men in pitboots
Coughing oath-edged talk and pipe-smoke,
Shouldering off the freshened silence.

One chased after rabbits; lost them;
Came back with a nest of lark's eggs;
Showed them; lodged them in the grasses.

So they passed in beards and moleskins
Fathers brothers nicknames laughter
Through the tall gates standing open.

At noon there came a tremor; cows
Stopped chewing for a second; sun
Scarfed as in a heat-haze dimmed.

The dead go on before us, they
Are sitting in God's house in comfort,
We shall see them face to face--

plain as lettering in the chapels
It was said and for a second
Wives saw men of the explosion

Larger than in life they managed--
Gold as on a coin or walking
Somehow from the sun towards them

One showing the eggs unbroken.

Added: on May 20th, 2008 at 4:57 PM | Viewed: 11935 times | Comments (7)

Poet: Philip Larkin
Poem: The Explosion
Volume: High Windows
Year: Published/Written in 1970

Are you looking for more information on this poem? Perhaps you are trying to analyze it? The poem, The Explosion, has received 7 comments. Click here to read them, and perhaps post a comment of your own. Of course you can also always discuss poems by Philip Larkin with others on the Poetry Connection poetry forum!