David

“DAVID” by Earle Birney

Three differences that I observed in the personalities and temperaments of David and Bob are …

I. Their experience levels, in life and education. David is very informed and experienced in the wildness and about climbing, as well as book smart.

II. Their views on life, what it means to them. David is carefree and seems fearless, he has a very playful fun nature to him where Bob is much more serious, aware of the dangers surrounding them and more fearful; conscious and cautious of his surroundings. Life quality to each is very different. Bob is the more optimistic one, while David is more proud and headstrong and believes life isn’t worth living if you can’t live it the way you would best like, or want to.

III. Their contentment with their roles, David is a natural born teacher sharing his experiences and knowledge with Bob, who is perfectly content in the follower role, as the student gladly absorbing in all the knowledge laid out before him.

Considering the differences between Bob and David I believe that they were such good friends because of their acceptance of their roles, with David’s being that of the strong experienced teacher type leading, Bob who is the less experienced, follower student type. They built up a friendship that had an almost brotherly type quality to it, they were both very comfortable with each other and they did share similarities like their joy for the beauty that surrounded them, the adventure and exhilaration of beating the challenges laid out before them, and they also shared the disdain for the unruly mannerisms and behaviors of the others they worked with.

Earle Birney used foreshadowing in Bob’s observations about the skeleton of the mountain goat by ending that segment with the line “And that was the first I knew that a goat could slip.” It leaves the thought lingering in the back of ones mind, if a mountain goat, an expert of the rocks and climbing, born and bread to do so, can slip and meet its demise then it could just as easily happen to anyone no matter their expertise or experience. The poet uses this foreshadowing to hint at things to come, if a mountain goat can meet its end with a simple slip then the possibility of anyone, even the self assured and fearless David with all his experience, knowledge and expertise, strong in body and mind, seemingly perfect and made for climbing, can ... and will slip.

When David kills the injured robin he says “could you teach it to fly?” That reveals his regard of life, the quality