DOLPHIN

Monologue
Theme: - cry of freedom - representative of all caged, tortured animals -
protest against cruelty - conservation of animals

Message:-
The poem does not give any direct message to the readers. It only
records the experience of the dolphins in an artificial atmosphere where
they are forced to do several tricks for human entertainment under the
threatening presence of their keeper. If there is any message, it is for us to
derive. We are exhorted implicitly to do something against the needless
confinement of innocent creatures by allowing them to enjoy freedom in
their natural environments.

Notes:-
The helpless creatures are happy in their natural habitat. This poem
is written from the perspective of a dolphin who becomes a spokesperson
for its kind, invoicing its anguish, over the loss of its freedom. On a larger
scale, the dolphins’ voice is the voice of all such animals and birds trapped
for entertainment by man. The focus is on the plight and hopelessness of
the dolphins.
New word - speciesism: - The assumption of human superiority leading to
the exploitation of animals.

Analysis:-
 "The Dolphins" is a dramatic monologue from the perspective of a
dolphin that has lost that he enjoyed in the ocean and is now trapped in an
artificial pool. This poem brings into light to the emotions and suffering of
a dolphin subjected to confinement. A sense of enslavement pervades the
entire poem.

Even though dolphins are known as the befriender of human beings

in trouble at sea, it is ironic how human beings are responsible for their
misery. Even though the poem begins with positive words like "swim" and
"dance", it is immediately contrasted to their present state of enslavement
in the line, "We are not free." The poem begins with the dolphin speaking
in 2nd person, which immediately establishes a sense of affinity between the
dolphin and the readers. The rest of the poem is in the 1st person plural,
"we”, which transports the readers into the world of dolphins. The dolphin
remembers its carefree days in the ocean and contrasts it with its present
life of monotony and despair.

The dolphin's companion is aware of their state of misery and tries to

reduce their pain by sticking together through thick and thin. The only
source of joy in their lives is when they think about their happy past in the
sea. The poem also highlights the cruelty of human beings towards animals.
It shows how man, being superior in nature, denies the minimal level of
freedom and happiness. Human beings have commercialized dolphins by
snatching away their natural habitat for their own use. The sense of loss
and regret is intensified in the line, “We see our silver skin flash by light
memory/ of somewhere else." Their previous world of passion, joy seems to
belong somewhere else now. The poem ends on a note of hopelessness and
darkness. The dolphins seem to live in a world where the moon has been
replaced by a coloured ball and freedom by man's commands. The natural
regulator of tides seems to have been replaced by man-made objects. Their
life has become tedious and unexciting and they keep circling the grooves of
water on a single note.

The poet has used repetition, contrast and imagery of loss to create
Pathos for the imprisoned dolphins. There is a definite rhyme scheme in
the poem. The broken pattern may be taken as the representation of the
brokenness in the dolphin's mind and soul. The poet uses a number of
poetic devices to create the feeling of monotony and sorrow in the poem,
some of which are metaphor, simile, alliteration and so on.

The themes of loss, nostalgia, oppression, human cruelty and

dislocation are beautifully expressed in the poem.