Life

The speaker in Madgett’s poem is a third-person removed narrator; they never formally introduce themselves or share any direct personal information. Rather, in the first line, they attempt to make the concept of “[l]ife” (Line 1) more approachable for the reader via metaphor. The metaphor compares life with “a toy” (Line 1). Comparing life to something as insignificant as a child’s toy trivializes the notion of life, making it less complex and obscure. However, the toy “swings on a bright gold chain” (Line 1). The swinging motion correlates with the oscillating quality of life, sometimes reaching high points with celebrations and successes, and sometimes reaching low points with failures and losses. The specific description of the toy on a gold chain then creates an image of a pocket watch or necklace, both personal items belonging to someone. These items are also expendable; they are not necessities for an individual.

The exact nature of this “toy” (Line 1) becomes clearer for readers when they reach the second line. The speaker describes the object as “[t]icking” (Line 2). Putting the pieces together, that the object described has a long chain, is gold, and ticks, readers can therefore infer that the item is indeed a pocket watch. Pocket watches were objects owned more so by those of the middle or upper class, those with more expendable income. Also, when one considers the concept of “time,” they might consider its endless quality. However, the speaker describes the pocket watch as “[t]icking” (Line 2) for only “a little while” (Line 2). Here, again, the speaker trivializes the concept of life. While readers might consider the perpetuity of time, the span of an individual life pales in comparison. In the great scheme of time, a single human life is little more than a blip in the timeline. Everyone wishes for a long life, though the exact amount of time is never guaranteed, and what seems like a long life to some might be fleeting to another.

The purpose the speaker attributes to the pocket watch trivializes the notion of life even further. The watch dangling on its gold chain is used by its unnamed/unknown owner “[t]o amuse a fascinated infant” (Line 3). To “amuse” (Line 3) someone implies that one entertains another, or occupies their time with some superfluous or enjoyable activity. In this sense, the “life” in question in the poem, though significant to some, becomes a mere diversion for another. The speaker reduces life to an object used for another’s pleasure. The other individual who essentially “plays” with life is “a fascinated infant” (Line 3). The imagery of the infant indicates the beginning of the life cycle, and babies/children typically symbolize innocence and purity. While the baby plays with “life” as it swings before them, the child is genuinely captivated by the newness and wonders of life but has no real notion yet of their actions or the subsequent consequences.

The individual holding the golden chain of the pocket watch, the person swinging it before the infant, is “a very old man” (Line 4). The age of the man contrasts with that of the baby; while the infant represents the beginning of the life cycle, the old man represents the end. The emphasis added by the adverb “very” highlights how advanced the old man is in his life cycle. With age comes experience, so while the baby might not be aware of the dangers with meddling in another’s life or the significance of another’s existence, the old man might be well aware of these factors. However, the man’s life experiences might have taught him about the triviality of some of life’s worries, therefore, he might have learned not to take all of life so seriously.

The speaker also refers to the “old man” as “the keeper” (Line 4). This indicates that the figure of the “old man” is the controller of life; he manages how long life runs and when it stops. The figure of the omnipotent and omniscient old man could make some readers think of the traditional Christian God. In some Christian traditions, God is the father figure in the Trinity and is often depicted as having a white beard and white hair. God, the keeper and ruler of all things, decides and knows the fate of every individual being on earth.

This power and control over life exerts itself when God grows “tired” (Line 5). He is not “tired” as in physically, emotionally, or mentally exhausted. Rather, “tired” here is synonymous with boredom or disinterest. This notion contrasts with the idea of God as loving and caring and rather connects with the Old Testament conceptualization of God as almost tyrannical. If the old man indeed alludes to a God-like figure, then God becomes bored with his own creations. They are there to entertain God (or others) and serve His own whims. The speaker emphasizes this notion with a metaphor to equate life with a “game” (Line 5). Life might have its own complex rules and systems; however, in the end it is only a pastime for God/the old man.

It is significant for readers to note that the infant, in all its innocence and curiosity, is not the one who becomes bored with the object of life. The old man, perhaps because of his experience with life and his ability to predict life’s outcomes, is the one who becomes bored. Once he grows tired of “playing” with life, the old man “lets the watch run down” (Line 6). The verb “lets” indicates agency. The old man is not passively sitting back and watching what happens to life but is acting intentionally. By the end of the poem, life has become synonymous with “the watch” (Line 6) the old man holds. By allowing the watch to “run down” (Line 6), the old man allows life to end. Life ceases to exist as its momentum, its “swing[]” (Line 1), halts. The end of life is purposeful on the part of the old man with little regard to life itself or to the infant before whom it swings. The old man acts only to appease his own interest.