I find this reference to the London bridge interesting here. The last time it was mentioned in the poem was the end of the first book. This seems to bring the poem full circle by having the first and last book end with a similar mention while also referencing death

This book is called The Fire Sermon, but is only here at the end that we get fire. This book, like much of the poem, has a motif of water. In this book specifically, we have the Thames, damp ground, the sailor home from sea, fisherman, the river, barges, and more. There is little to do with heat or flames. In a piece with so little to do with fire, it makes us ask the question: why is this section called The Fire Sermon? It is followed by a reference to the Lord. Is the poem referencing Hell?

This piece is repeated from the first book of the poem during the tarot reading. This repetition draws me back to that and makes me think that section has power through the entire poem. Not only that, but it takes on new meaning because this book has great emphasis on wealth and material items.

This directly links to the epigraph included at the beginning of the poem. It's about Cumaean Sibyl, an oracle and prophetess for Apollo, who made her immortal. In that piece, she is saying all she wants is to die, and I find this section of the poem to directly relate to that. She is neither living nor dead since she was immortal, and the heart of the light could be Apollo as he is the god of the sun and light. The last piece translates to "empty and desolate as the sea," which supports the contrast of life and death we see in the poem. This section can be so strongly connected to that opening piece, I don't see how it could be anything other than intentional.

I believe this is our drown Phoenician that was referenced in the tarot reading from the first book. The cards in a tarot reading will usually indicate your current position in life and future paths, and I feel like this whole book is a sort of warning that the recipient of the tarot reading was supposed to get. When we look to the last line of the book, it's ominous and warns caution.

Is there nothing to forgive because it has already been forgiven, or was there no reason for forgiveness in the first place?

Why does pale matter, and why is it deemed powerful enough for each repetition have its own line?

What is /it/ that is being given?

The poem portrays the acts of the spider so beautifully that it is easy to lose sight of what is actually taking place. With the word darkness, it stands out against the white of the poem. It is the reminder of the violence hidden in the rhyme and delicate phrasing. The poem is pretty, but it is not a happy, pleasant poem.

A variation of bought.

I find the friendships being described as boughten to be in great contract to one going down dignified. Dignity is associated with truth, and for one's friends to all be bought is to explicitly state there is a level of detachment and unreliability. The whole poem is toying with contrasts within itself.

I believe the distinction of the woods being yellow is significant to the theme of the poem. The poem is clearly discussing choice and change,and the word choice of yellow would suggest autumn, the season of change. This detail of the speaker being in the time of change creates an atmosphere in the poem that the very balance of this speakers life is in this moment during autumn.

The use of my is distinctly singular. The speaker says the library was for the good of others, but when it is sold, the speaker takes it as an attack against them. It makes me question the nature of this speaker. Where are their interests? Where are their concerns?

This word pops out once I finish the line. The follow up of comedy isn't surprising, yet when we reach valor and truth, I'm drawn back to tragedy. One of these things is not like the other. Despite this unpleasant note the line starts on, it could be seen in an almost optimistic way since the line ends on a positively connotative word like truth. Yet when we reach the end of this list/the next line, we are back to negativity. Tragedy strikes me more powerfully than failure because at the end of both lines, I am drawn back to tragedy. It forced me to do a double take, so I can't ignore the significance the word must hold.

I think making the distinctions that the lives are uncertain is important. The poems states that these lives already are not firmly on the earth like the jug, which could already insinuate uncertainty in itself. The choice to directly reiterate the point draws more attention to the concept of imbalance and insecurity.

As if depression and faltering mental health need a reason. This inability to understand an ailment that isn't physical is something that can be seen in our conversations of mental health today.

While her husband isn't a psychiatrist, you'd think he would have some kind of understanding or comprehension of the problem. The character seems to have a mind of her own, but she entirely obeys John. This is part of her problem.

I find this line quite striking as she is making an open acknowledgement that she isn't going to talk about her issues and will instead focus the domestic matters, as a woman "should." She has just described how she disagrees with her husband and brother despite their standings, yet she is still following their thinking. The submissiveness is sad and very "know your place."

This double consciousness is the value of one's self-worth against the worth others perceive them to have. How do you determine which is "right?" There is no need to, but we have a tendency to be susceptible to outside influence.

He has a fire inside of him. He doesn't want to sit by and let his life be determined or controlled.

I think this could be applied to the racial divide we have today, but I wonder if we would specifically have the same question. Either way, the feelings of hurt, discontent, and forced otherness which are evoked are still relevent.

There has been a lot of mention of faith throughout, and her we see them potentially joining.

It's as if nothing but the concepts of forces matters. Every other field is nonsense or a mess. Only forces are true.

I find it interesting that technological advancements are being considered superior to comprehension of the natural world. And not even something small. The example is that our entire planet spinning through nothingness around a bigger, hotter body is unimpressive. Pffft. Bruh. That's pretty impressive no matter how you look at it.

Anyway, it's creating a natural vs unnatural contrast.

I like how it implies the sins are forgiven because of the speaker's whiteness. It suggests that it would be entirely different if the speaker wasn't white. It attributes value to the whiteness, and it's because of that value the sin is forgivable.

This seems to suggest that the entire world is falling apart. It's not only the people or the culture, it's everything. Earth is calling it quits because everything is a mess.

By the third repetition of "out of," I'm comfortable in the anaphora. I recognize the start of a pattern.

Also, to comment on the full phrase, the acids of rage is evocative. Rage can be associated with warmth, heat, and fire. Similarly, we are also presented with acid, which we also associate with burning and stinging. These alike yet different words build on each other to heighten the intensity of both.