what is this poem about

Question

Numberless are the world’s wonders, but none More wonderful than man; the storm-grey sea Yields to his prows; the huge crests bear him high Earth, holy and inexhaustible, is graven With shining furrows where his plows have gone Year after year, the timeless labor of stallions. The light-boned birds and beasts that cling to cover, The lithe fish lighting their reaches of dim water, All are taken, tamed in the net of his mind; The lion on the hill, the wild horse windy-maned, Resign to him; and his blunt yoke has broken The sultry shoulders of the mountain bull. Words also, and thought as rapid as air, He fashions to his good use; statecraft is his, And his the skill that deflects the arrows of snow, The spears of winter rain: from every wind He has made himself secure - from all but one: In the late wind of death he cannot stand. O clear intelligence, force beyond all measure! O fate of man, working both good and evil! When the laws are kept, how proudly his city stands! When the laws are broken, what of his city then? Never may the anarchic man find rest at my hearth, Never be it said that my thoughts are his thoughts.

Answer 1

It ought to be added that these are the words, in translation, of the Greek tragic poet, Sophocles. Specifically they are taken from his play, Antigone. You’ll need this information to search for material that will provide you with analyses of this famous ode.

Answer 2

This poem is discussing how wonderful and powerful mankind (humankind) is. It lists many different natural beings: the seas, fish, lions, etc., and says that Man has overcome or tamed each of them. The only thing Man has not been able to overcome is Death. But for all that, Man chooses good or evil, and that determines his legacy.