... two-worded lines, attempt to conserve space just as the voice meticulously conserves the 'dry air'. The use of enjambment and the regular rhyme scheme ushers the reader to read the poem quickly. The anxiety that the reader feels to finish the poem corresponds to the way in which the voice fretfully wants his experience to be over. However, the repetition of the first four line at the beginning and end of the poem create a cycle. In addition to these four lines emphasizing the integral discomfort-the 'sorry, scant' air, phrases such as 'dragging feet' and 'faltering limbs' create a heavy and relentless mood. Although the poem seems downcast and pessimistic, with the painstaking drudgery of 'one step, one heart-beat' , there are moments of self-support. The voice encourages himself by saying 'must look up' and 'go on' which opposes the previous instructions to not 'look up'. However, the hint of optimism ...

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