Abigail Deutsch's Poem After The Disaster

Abigail Deutsch's poem "After the Disaster" takes the reader into the mind of the narrator, thinking about the aftermath of a disaster and how it traumatically impacts the people involved. Deutsch depicts her short moment of peace and happiness, using birds as symbol of positive thoughts and memories and a ghost-like girl or “specter” to cover the sadness and fear caused by the disaster. Deutsch’s narrative poem takes place on a train in “New York City, 2001,” stopping at places such as “Astor” and “Rector,” train stations in New York City with little significance in relation to the theme. Although the writer never mentions a particular disaster, Deutsch’s allusion implies that “the disaster” refers to the attacks on 9/11. Most, if not all,

From the combination of enjambed and end-stopped lines, the reader almost physically feels the emphasis on certain lines, but also feels confusion where a line does not end. Although the poem lacks a rhyme scheme, lines like “…not long after the disaster / as our train was passing Astor” and “…my eyes and ears…I couldn't think or hear,” display internal rhyme. The tone of the narrator changes multiple times throughout the poem. It begins with a seemingly sad train ride, but quickly escalates when “a girl came flying down the aisle.” During the grand entrance, imagery helps show the importance of the girl and how her visit took place in a short period of time. After the girl’s entrance, the narrator describes the girl as a “spector,” or ghost-like figure in a calm, but confused tone. The turning point of the poem occurs when the girl “stopped for me [the narrator]” and then “we [the girl and the narrator] dove under the river.” The narrator speaks in a fast, hectic tone because the girl “squeez[ed] till the birds began to stir” and causes her to not “think or hear / or breathe or see.” Then, the tone dramatically changes, and becomes calm when the narrator says, “so silently I thanked her,” showing the moment of