19 pages • 38 minutes read
The Flock
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Further Reading & Resources
Related Poems
“Lizard” by Derek Walcott (1965)
This poem, also from The Castaway and Other Poems offers an allegory for colonialism. In it, the speaker saves a beetle from being eaten by a lizard, and then reflects that this may have been a mistake: The beetle might have preferred being eaten by the lizard, a familiar predator, rather being rescued by a stranger. Walcott indicts people trying to interfere with others, no matter how well-meaning they believe themselves to be.
“Crusoe’s Island” by Derek Walcott (1965)
In this poem, also included in The Castaway, Walcott writes from the perspective of Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe. Walcott’s version of Crusoe is interested in cultivating his mind rather than cultivating the island. This poem gives more insight into the internal process that Walcott describes in “The Flock.”
"Crusoe in England" by Elizabeth Bishop (1980)
Elizabeth Bishop was a contemporary of Walcott’s. In this poem, Bishop paints Crusoe as a sympathetic figure, focusing more on his loneliness than his desire to dominate the landscape. It shares certain themes with Walcott's vision of The Castaway and echoes some of Walcott's evolving views on postcolonialism and the relationship between Crusoe and Friday.
Further Literary Resources
“Hope and disillusionment. Or, reading Derek Walcott’s poetry at 18” by Ahona Panda (2017)
Journalist Ahona Panda discusses the way Walcott’s poetry influenced her as an Indian student. Through the lens of postcolonialism, Panda sees Walcott’s plays as evidence of someone trying to invent myth because they do not have a history. She also offers insight into Walcott’s ongoing allusions to Crusoe: in his Nobel acceptance speech, Walcott said that as a poet, he is like Crusoe in that he must invent new metaphors and new poems in isolation, using nothing but the elements of his own mind. Panda also offers critique of Walcott’s work in light of allegations of his sexual misconduct and discusses the ways in which his work has both helped and challenged women in the postcolonial era.
Walcott Interview on His Poem Omeros by Unitedpac Saint Lucia
In this interview, Walcott discusses his early life, influences, and feelings about Saint Lucia and its former British colonizers. He speaks about his love of the English language and describes how English poets influenced his poetry. He also reads some of his epic poem Omeros and discusses his intention to cast his home as the setting of a piece of literature historically associated only with European culture.
“The World of a Cosmic Castaway” by James Dickey (1986)
In his New York Times review of The Castaway, Walcott’s friend and fellow poet James Dickey discusses how Walcott brings the beauty of the Caribbean to life for non-Caribbean audiences. Dickey also critiques Walcott’s style of writing as using too many metaphors and being overly elaborate.
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By Derek Walcott
