In “Once by the Pacific,” a speaker watches huge waves crash against the shore, filling the air with mist and noise. The waves seem to gather and look beyond the beach, as though planning an attack on land that has never happened before. Low, ragged clouds hang like hair blown forward over eyes, giving the sky a wild, almost animal expression. The speaker feels that the shore is only safe because cliffs and continents stand behind it, but that safety seems fragile. The mood is ominous and apocalyptic: a “night of dark intent” is coming, not just for one night but for an age. The ocean’s violence becomes a sign of larger destruction, and the closing reference to God’s last “Put out the Light” hints at the end of the world. The poem leaves a feeling of dread mixed with awe at nature’s power.
Once by the Pacific — Summary
The shattered water made a misty din. Great waves looked over others coming in, And thought of doing something to the shore That water never did to land before. The clouds were low and hairy in the skies, Like locks blown forward in the gleam of eyes. You could not tell, and yet it looked as if The shore was lucky in being backed by cliff, The cliff in being backed by continent; It looked as if a night of dark intent Was coming, and not only a night, an age. Someone had better be prepared for rage. There would be more than ocean-water broken Before God’s last Put out the Light was spoken.