logo

17 pages 34 minutes read

Mary Oliver

Wild Geese

Mary OliverFiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2004

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Symbols & Motifs

The Desert

Oliver opens her poem with a strong symbol of desolation; the desert. She writes, “You do not have to walk on your knees / for a hundred miles through the desert repenting” (Lines 3-4). Oliver doesn’t want her reader to repent, but she strengthens this argument in writing out the image of someone walking through the desert on their knees. You can see the dry, hard, cracked earth and easily imagine the difficulty with which one would move through it. The desert is not always a place where humans thrive; it is a bleak and extreme environment for those not accustomed to living in desert climates. The desert is full of hard and prickly things, like rocks and cacti. If water is a symbol for life, the desert, at least in popular opinion, is absent of it. In beginning with this arid scene, we have a greater understanding of what Oliver wishes to move away from; the poem moves away from this barren land of punishment toward one that’s a bit more accepting of life as we know it.

blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
Unlock IconUnlock all 17 pages of this Study Guide

Plus, gain access to 8,450+ more expert-written Study Guides.

Including features:

+ Mobile App
+ Printable PDF
+ Literary AI Tools