Williams: The Great Figure

The Great Figure
William Carlos Williams

Among the rain
and lights
I saw the figure 5
in gold
on a red
firetruck
moving
tense
unheeded
to gong clangs
siren howls
and wheels rumbling
through the dark city.

See: http://eddy1994.weebly.com/uploads/5/2/9/8/5298857/the_great_figure.doc

Line 1
Among the rain

In a poem this short, every word counts, so let's take 'em one by one.
The first word, "Among," has a strange sound when you repeat it to yourself. It means "surrounded by" or "in the midst of" multiple things.
If you isolate the phrase "Among the rain," as Williams does, the words do not quite make sense. They have a jarring effect, because "Among" refers to being in the presence of multiple things, and "the rain" is only one thing.
"Among the raindrops," for example, would make grammatical sense.
"Among" carries the suggestion of being in a group of people. There is the faint impression, then, that "the rain" is like a person or a crowd.
Line 2
and lights

The first line of the poem could have been set anywhere outdoors, but the second line puts us near human society – likely in a city.
Now the word "among" suddenly makes sense, because we have multiple objects. We've got a crowd on our hands: the rain, the lights, and maybe some other object that we'll learn about shortly.
Williams is setting the stage, as if he were about to present a drama. The setting is atmospheric, like a 1940s film noir movie or the game Heavy Rain. To complete the association, we'd only need to be shown someone lighting a cigarette in a trench coat under an umbrella.
The combination of the rain and lights makes for an interesting sight: the lights illuminate the individual droplets of rain as they fall down.
Line 3
I saw the figure 5

The observer of the poem's drama makes his entrance here: "I."
Next comes the appearance of the first verb: "saw." Not a terribly exciting verb, it places the speaker in a passive position relative to the scene.
But what comes after "saw" gets our attention: "the figure 5." This expression would be intriguing even if the poem were not called "The Great Figure."
A "figure" is like a symbol: a word or image that represents something else. A number is one of the most common types of figures. The number five is expressed as the figure "5." At the most basic level, "5" is just a drawing that can represent five of anything: candy bars, guinea pigs, cars, etc.
Aren't we just blowing you away with these complicated ideas?
Line 4
in gold

The figure 5 is in gold lettering. Either the number is painted in gold, or this is real gold. Maybe he's looking in a jewelry store window?
The gold number contrasts with the somewhat chaotic, even depressing surroundings. Also, a gold number seems like some kind of good-luck charm. Maybe the speaker should rush out to the casino and put all his money on "5" at the roulette table!
Lines 5-6
on a red
firetruck

Like puzzle pieces falling into place, the gold number suddenly makes sense. The speaker is looking at the number painted gold on the side or back of a fire truck.
Williams contrasts the colors red and gold here, much like he contrasted the "red wheel barrow" with "white chickens" in "The Red Wheelbarrow."
By now the reader is trying to reconcile the almost mythic importance the poem has given the gold number with the conventional, everyday setting in which it appears. What is so "great" about a number on a fire truck?

Line 7
moving

Again, every word in this poem adds new information, as the scene builds piece by piece. The line breaks create time to digest the language.
The poem slows down in the middle, as if to watch the fire truck pass.
We did not know that the truck was moving until now. Is it whooshing past the speaker, or has it already overtaken him?
Here's an interesting question: what is the subject of the verb "moving"? Is it the fire truck or the figure 5?
Lines 8-9
tense
unheeded

These are the most "figurative" lines in the poem; that is, the language here cannot be taken literally.
Williams continues the slow-motion effect of one-word lines.
The question we asked about line 7 – whether it was the figure or the fire truck moving – becomes even more important here. Is it the figure 5 or the truck that is "tense" and "unheeded"?
Try flexing all your muscles at once and walking around the room. That's one example of "tense" movement.
Of course, "tense" does not describe a kind of movement so much as the general atmosphere, or perhaps even the speaker. Think of how your body tenses up when a loud fire truck go by. Everyone is trying to stay out of its way, and because fire trucks do not have to obey normal traffic laws, they always seem slightly out of control.
"Unheeded" means "neglected" or "ignored." No one is paying attention to whatever it is that is moving (either the number or the fire truck). At this point, we think it makes more sense for the number to be "unheeded," because it is such a small part of the truck. Few people would notice such a number, but everyone would notice the truck. But you can make up your own mind about that.
Lines 10-11
to gong clangs
siren howls

These lines give an idea of why a part of the fire truck would be "unheeded." There is so much noise and commotion coming from the truck that it's hard to pay attention to anything else.
The sounds completely overwhelm the visual aspects of the scene.
The "gong" refers to the large bell fixed to the fire truck. (Nowadays, fire trucks have electronic sirens and horns, but in Williams's time there would have been a physical bell.)
But a "gong" is also an Asian musical instrument that you hit with a mallet to make a percussive sound. (You might associate them with bad kung fu movies.) Williams was very interested in Asian art and religion, and this poem resembles forms of Asian poetry like the haiku.
In addition to the gong, the truck has a siren that "howls." It's as if the poem has been silent this whole time, and suddenly Williams has turned off the "mute" button to unleash a cacophony of sound.
The word "to" suggests that all these sounds are like a musical accompaniment to the movement of the truck.
Lines 12-13
and wheels rumbling
through the dark city.

Line 12 continues to emphasize how much noise the fire truck is making and why this noise might distract normal people – people who are not as perceptive as the speaker – from the "great figure."
The ominous word "rumbling" conveys a sense of the large size of the truck and also suggests thunder. It's as if the lights and sound of the man-made truck have taken over the role of thunder and lightning in the rainstorm.
In the final line, the scene returns to darkness. You might be surprised by the description of the "dark city" after the mention of "lights" in line 2.
Williams finally confirms that we are in a city.
Notice that the lines get longer again toward the end of the poem.
The scene seems surprisingly empty and lonely now that the fire truck has passed by