Ariel
The central figure in "Ariel," other than the speaker, is Ariel the horse. Ariel is strong and fast, and, for some unknown reason, she sets off at a gallop and brings the speaker along for a wild r...
Death
Though "Ariel" is a poem about a life-changing, transformative horseback ride, it's not a sunny poem filled with rainbows and dreams of the future. It's actually incredibly dark, and it's more than...
The Arrow & The Sun
By the end of the poem, the speaker has stopped struggling against Ariel's crazy gallop, and she becomes "at one" with the horse. She embraces this experience, and she casts herself as "the arrow"...