In “Night in Arizona,” the speaker stands at a darkened window looking out on a desert night. The moon is nearly gone, like a dying ember, and coyotes call from the crouching mountains. Everything feels vast and exposed: the stars are so heavy and bright they seem capable of falling and shattering the earth with gold. There are no human lights on the mesa, and the wind is hard and wild. Against this enormous, indifferent landscape, the speaker feels suddenly small and vulnerable, and cries like a child. The mood is stark and eerie, mixing awe at the night’s beauty with loneliness and a hint of fear. The poem captures how being alone in a huge dark place can overwhelm a person.
Night in Arizona — Summary
The moon is a charring ember Dying into the dark;
Off in the crouching mountains Coyotes bark.
The stars are heavy in heaven, Too great for the sky to hold-- What if they fell and shattered The earth with gold?
No lights are over the mesa, The wind is hard and wild, I stand at the darkened window And cry like a child.