Ox Cart Man

In his obituary of Hall, critic David Kirby called “Ox Cart Man” an “ode to persistence and practicality” (Kirby, David. “Donald Hall, a Poet Laureate of the Rural Life, Is Dead at 89.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 24 June 2018). Hall’s poem embodies his sense of craft and hard work, and advocates for devoted determination, suggesting that satisfaction is inherent in the fruits of one’s labors. Hall’s use of repetition in the poem underscores the man’s persistence: “When the cart is empty he sells the cart. / When the cart is sold he sells the ox” (Lines 16-17). The man has a clear vision of what he must do; he sets his mind to it and accomplishes it. Knowing that he does not want to travel home for ten days carrying what he brought with him, he expresses no doubt that he will be able to sell everything, and simply goes ahead with selling it with a minimum of fuss.

Persistence, for Hall and his subject, is never-ending value; even as the man achieves what he set out to do at the market, he must return home and begin the cycle anew.