The Death of a Toad
Humans Vs Mother Nature
"The Death of the Toad" spoke volumes to me the first time I read it. The general feeling
and motivation behind this poem seemed well put together and almost simple for one to
comprehend. Richard Wilbur writes this poem about a supposed toad being caught in a mower,
"A toad the power mower caught"(1). However, I believe that the writer uses the toad as a sort of
synecdoche for wild life in general and uses the "power mower" to represent humans and also
machinery. The writer uses these two metaphors in his poem to represent the struggle between
wildlife and the devastation being brought upon them by the human race. The writer is using the
toad and the power mower as tools to describe a bigger picture; the destruction of many wild life
habitats and Eco-systems by humans.
Right from the very first sentence, Richard Wilbur gets across his point. He tells one of
the tragedy that has occurred, "A toad the power mower has caught."(1) He uses the word
"power" to describe the machine to show you how it is mightier than the toad. He tells you of a
struggle between animal and machine. In the very next line he tells you who the victor was
"Chewed and clipped off a leg."(2) The "toad" (meaning wild life) has been dealt a great blow by
the machine. He then tells you about the "toad" hobbling to the "garden verge," to me this
describes the "toad hobbling towards its habitat (nature). The writer describes how the "toad"
uses nature as its sanctuary "and sanctuaried him/ Under the cineraria leaves, in the shade."(4)
He tells you of "heartshaped leaves,"(5) which describe the love of Mother Nature and its caring
abilities for wildlife. The writer uses the toad 's retreat into the leaves as a metaphor for nature
taking care of its own. The toad, now in its weakened state, uses the leaves (nature) as its
sanctuary. This also describes how the human machinery is driving wildlife
"The Death of the Toad" spoke volumes to me the first time I read it. The general feeling
and motivation behind this poem seemed well put together and almost simple for one to
comprehend. Richard Wilbur writes this poem about a supposed toad being caught in a mower,
"A toad the power mower caught"(1). However, I believe that the writer uses the toad as a sort of
synecdoche for wild life in general and uses the "power mower" to represent humans and also
machinery. The writer uses these two metaphors in his poem to represent the struggle between
wildlife and the devastation being brought upon them by the human race. The writer is using the
toad and the power mower as tools to describe a bigger picture; the destruction of many wild life
habitats and Eco-systems by humans.
Right from the very first sentence, Richard Wilbur gets across his point. He tells one of
the tragedy that has occurred, "A toad the power mower has caught."(1) He uses the word
"power" to describe the machine to show you how it is mightier than the toad. He tells you of a
struggle between animal and machine. In the very next line he tells you who the victor was
"Chewed and clipped off a leg."(2) The "toad" (meaning wild life) has been dealt a great blow by
the machine. He then tells you about the "toad" hobbling to the "garden verge," to me this
describes the "toad hobbling towards its habitat (nature). The writer describes how the "toad"
uses nature as its sanctuary "and sanctuaried him/ Under the cineraria leaves, in the shade."(4)
He tells you of "heartshaped leaves,"(5) which describe the love of Mother Nature and its caring
abilities for wildlife. The writer uses the toad 's retreat into the leaves as a metaphor for nature
taking care of its own. The toad, now in its weakened state, uses the leaves (nature) as its
sanctuary. This also describes how the human machinery is driving wildlife
Cited: Wilbur, Richard. "The Death of a Toad." Literature: Approaches to Fictioin, Poetry, and Drama. Robert DiYanni. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004. 827 – 828.