Kegel 1

Greg Kegel
November 10, 2011
Eagle
Snow-capped observer
rising tall above the pines.
Radiant sunlight pierces the veil of the world.
In the traditional style of the microgram, the title of this poem is simple and direct the subject
of the poem will be an eagle. The first word in the poem, snow-capped, conjures up the image of a
mountain peak covered in snow, and acts as a metaphor comparing the head of a bald eagle to such a
mountain. Furthermore, mountains literally spring up from the ground to the skies, serving as a
connection between the mortal world and heavens just as many of the Native American tribes believed
eagles to be. The choice of the word observer to follow this opening to the poem builds on this
metaphor. Instead of using a word like lord, the author suggests that this eagle does not abuse his
power and is instead detached from what it is watching, maintaining only a peaceful, background
presence. The eagle is thus portrayed in the first line of the poem both visually as a white headed
animal, but also as a powerful and noble creature of the heavens.
The author follows this opening description with the line rising tall above the pines. Again, the
more literal part of this line describes how eagles perch in the tops of trees to survey their surroundings.
This line also continues the metaphor with the mountain, however, since they too rise tall above the
tree line of the landscape. The poem continues to emphasize the metaphor because of its physical form
the lines in the poem make it actually look like a mountain. In addition, the opening line describing the
eagle is physically above the line talking about the eagle living above the pines. All this attention to the
position of eagles in the world serves to emphasize how the eagle travels between the mortal earth and
Kegel 2

the immortal heavens. The sky, which acts as a barrier to most life on earth, is the realm of the eagle,
and it becomes an even more supernatural bird because of this.
On its own, the final line of the poem would seemingly have nothing to do with an eagle. Given
the context, however, radiant sunlight could refer to the golden eyes of an eagle. Since the eyes are
traditionally the window to the soul, eagles are portrayed to be transcendent beings that bring sunlight
to the earth. The beaks of eagles are also golden, however, so the sunlight may also refer to the call of
the eagle as the instrument that brings the heavens to the earth. The poem uses these ideas to suggest
that eagles act as messengers between the mortal and immortal realms, just as many Native American
tribes also believed. This idea is further strengthened with the word pierces that follows this initial
phrase of the line being associated with both the beaks and eyes of birds throughout literature.
The poem then ends describing the veil of the world. This particular phrasing also serves to
reinforce the idea that eagles are messengers. However, the poem refers not to the earth or the sky, but
a collective world which encompasses both. The preceding lines take great care to emphasize not only
the position of the eagle in the world, but also that the eagle has keen eyes. These ideas together
suggest that even one eagle sees a lot, which would make it very knowledgeable. Eagles are now not
just supernatural, but also wise birds that have seen through the veil of the world and know of the
mysteries that lie behind.
On the whole, the reader is left in awe of every aspect of the bird: its eyes, its call, its habitat, its
purpose. Spiritually, the eagle is associated with the will of the heavens, and a respect for the bird is
nurtured as a result. The physical disunity of the final line of the poem serves as a reminder to the
reader that not everything in the world is perfectly straightforward. The fact that this line serves as the
foundation of the mountain adds to this idea that man may never have the same wisdom as an eagle.
This is not a bad thing, however, for if there was no veil about the world, the radiant sunlight of the
Kegel 3

outside universe would surely render everyone blind. Mysteries, after all, keep the world an interesting
place. Even the eagles simply know of the mysteries behind the veil, they have not discerned the
meaning behind them. This is why they merely observe the world in the first place because they do not
have the infinite knowledge required to predict or control events. Nor do they wish for this knowledge,
for they are content with the view from their high station in life which is surely, at the least, infinitely
entertaining.
As a result, this poem both physically describes an eagle and informs the reader where to find
one while simultaneously presenting a more spiritual view of the animal to convey to the reader its
majesty and magnificence. The purpose of the poem is to make the reader feel like they are actually
watching an eagle even though there might not be any around by conveying the emotions felt and the
thoughts that run through ones mind at the sight of one. It is an attempt to help the reader understand
the bird and why it has been used as a symbol for various ideas throughout history.