Journal #22
1/22/03
Topic: What is Fire and Ice about?
Fire and Ice
Some say the world will end in fire.
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great.
And would suffice.
This poem is saying that desire is the most destructive emotion in the world. It burns so hot within people that it could consume the world. However, hate is an emotion that is a close runner-up to end the world. The icy way in which so many people act toward one another threatens to overcome the world. The fire and desire may also be in relation to the greed shown by countries around the world that participate in war to gain.