Purpose of the Poem
This poem, “Oil Spill,” is part of a book of environmental poetry designed to support children’s learning by using poetry about environmental issues. The book is supporting many schools’ objectives to raise awareness about various environmental concerns and to become more sustainable organizations.1
Bias
This poem reflects our culture’s past and current concerns about environmental problems. Our widespread dependency on oil has led to dangerous consequences. However, because the poem was used to help schools raise awareness about environmental issues, there may have been bias present to indirectly criticize our use of oil through the heartbreaking tale of the oil spill’s aftermath.
Creative Representation of Pollution
“Oil Spill” is an artistic rather than scientific portrayal of pollution. The poetic verses paint a striking scene for readers, who can visualize the wounded fish on a blackened beach. The metaphors and personification combined create a powerful effect on the audience. For example, the metaphor “The crests of waves are black ink” and the personification in the line “The slick…uncoils its black tongue and licks the beach” eloquently display the water’s terrible transformation into a sea of oil. 2
The resulting devastation of oil spills is described in the second stanza which reads “The night has fallen into the sea, Blinding the fish and clogging gills…” 3 The fish are losing their eyesight and their ability to breathe due to the thick oil that is clogging their gills. The oil is lethal to fish when it is spilled into the water, the only habitat they possess. Meanwhile, the human bystanders witnessing the effects of their careless actions are counting the spill as just another mistake to add to all the others that have already occurred. Sadly, the poem implies that the oil spill was not the first to happen and it will not be the last. The piece displays the costs of this form of pollution for marine life.