The narrator describes how a community thinks it's well-prepared for a coming storm. As the poem goes on, their confidence starts to disappear as the storm develops. The power and the sounds of the storm are described. End of poem-describes the fear.
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"We are prepared"
A very strong opening statement that creates a feeling of safety. (Compare it to the last line of the poem.)
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"squat", "sink walls in rock", "good slate"
Lots of words about safety and security in the first two lines. The end-stopping reinforces this feeling of security, which disappears with the enjambment in the rest of the poem.
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"wizened earth"
The island seems barren- nothing grows there.
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"company"
The word "company" is used here and on line 12, to emphasise the loneliness of the setting.
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"Blast:"
The plosive sound has a greater impact because it comes at the start of the line.
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"you know what I mean", "you can listen to the thing you fear"
The narrator speaks directly to the reader in a chatty tone making you reflect on your own experience of storms.
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"tragic chorus"
In a Greek tragedy, a "chorus" comments on and explains events. Having no trees to act as a chorus suggests the islanders are left on their own to face and interpret the storm.
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"pummels"
This is a very violent verb to describe the wind.
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"But there are no trees, no natural shelter."
Caesura slows the pace of the line and emphasises the second "no."
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"Exploding comfortably"
Oxymoron juxtaposes the feelings of fear and safety.
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"it begins", "spray hits", "sit", "wind"
The assonant 'i' sounds and sibilant sounds in lines 14-17 combine to imitate the hissing and spitting of the sea.
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"spits like a tame cat Turned savage"
This simile shows how familiar things become frightening during the storm.
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"strafes", "salvo", "bombarded"
Semantic field of war. The wind is compared to a fighter plane attacking the island.
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"it is a huge nothing that we fear"
The storm is invisible- there's nothing solid there. This contrasts with the solid rock mentioned in the second line of the poem.
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Form
The poem is written in blank verse, which mirrors the patterns of everyday speech and makes the poem sound like part of a conversation. The first person plural is used, showing how this is a collective, communal experience.
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Form
Th poem is all in one stanza- it's compact and sturdy, like the houses.
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Structure
The poem shifts from security to fear. "But no:" seems to be a turning point (volta), with the slow pace of the monosyllabic phrase and the caesura reflecting the last moments of calm before the storm.
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Contrasting descriptions of safety and fear
The narrator uses a lot of words to do with safety and security at the beginning of the poem. The tone changes though, and the sense of danger increases as familiar things became frightening during the storm.
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Direct address
The narrator involves the reader in his fear by speaking directly to "you."
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Violent imagery
The storm is described in violent, often warlike terms, with similes, metaphors and personification combining to emphasise the danger and effects of the storm.
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Use of sounds
Forceful sounds (e.g.Blast) are used to demonstrate the strength of nature, and the poem also uses assonant and sibilant sounds to reflect the noise of the wind and waves.
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