The Thought Fox by Ted Hughes

 

                The Thought Fox by Ted Hughes

Short Summary & Critical Analysis:

This is a modern poem so we see modern concepts in it. Romantics would have one rhyme scheme in one stanza and carry out this in the whole poem but modern poets did experimentation. The stanzas are rhymed but every stanza has a different rhyming pattern. Ted Hughes  didn’t care about the musical quality of the poem. For example, star and near in the second stanza are not homophones, but are still used together.

If we talk generally about the poem, it is a creative process. There are two terms production and  procedure which are  different from the term creative process. Procedure is the active experience step by step, of reaching somewhere or creating something. This poem is not a procedure or a production rather it is about creative process. Poem is a creative step by step journey.

·       Stanza 1:

I imagine. . . fingers move.

It is midnight so very dark everywhere. Forest also looks dark, mysterious and unpredictable. Something else is alive i.e. besides the clock and blank page. Clock is ticking and fingers are moving. Clock tells you about time and fingers tell about the movement.

This midnight moment's forest is a metaphor for poets mind. First movement is conceived but nobody knows what has been conceived. Page is still blank and it is aIso unpredictable as the forest is.

·       Stanza 2:

Through the. . . . loneliness.

Here no star is a metaphor for inspiration. The poet says that he cannot see any star or inspiration in the outside world. Loneliness means the loneliness of mind, actual poet’s mind, or the blank page, or the mid nights forest moment. Something was alive before in the first stanza and now that something has come near deeper within darkness (of mind).

This metaphorically means idea is taking its shape and he is about to reach it.

·       Stanza 3:

Cold, I delicately. . . . and now.

The poet carries the forest metaphor in the third stanza. He finds sensuous images like cold, delicately, dark snow. He notices there is some feature of that something i.e. nose of fox.

Two eyes serve a movement and he sees the coming of the idea. This repetition of now, and now, and now, tells you how idea is appearing and disappearing, but he is keen to capture the idea when the idea is actually taking place, though it is not in grasp but coming.

·       Stanza 4:

Sets neat. . . . to come.

The fox is moving and setting neat prints on the snow. This obviously tells that snow must be white in color otherwise there wouldn’t have been any neat prints. With neat prints the darkness is gone. Previously he was seeing the eyes and now he is experiencing the hollow body. The idea is boldly coming, very much like the child labor, stage by stage. In this stanza we see how features of something have been described. Now the whole body of this creation or product is coming energetically and well defined structure has come up.

·       Stanza 5:

 Across clearings. . . . own business.

In this stanza poet tells that there is no more blackness. The blackness has now changed into greenness.

Brilliantly and concentratedly tells you how idea is coming about its own business as idea has its own way of telling.

·       Stanza 6:

Till, with. . . . is printed.

Previously there was coldness and now the poet has used the word hot stink foul smell of fox.

Here hot and stink are showing the closeness, very near, idea has fully taken place. The idea has entered  the hole of head. Clock is a modern picture and window is starless still but the blank page has been printed. We gradually see that something has turned into fox, dark forest has turned into green, cold has changed into hot etc.

This shows the beauty of this poem and how creative process takes place through the imagery of fox. Idea is printed on the page, the idea is something, then it is neat, then hot and stinky and then finally printed on the page.

When the baby is born, he is actually stinky and hot, not pleasant to smell. This whole idea in this poem is very much similar to the birth of child. Every creative process takes place through these stages and then there is a  beautiful product.