Behind the Poem: The Nightwatchman

Behind the Poem: The Nightwatchman

In my first-ever book, The Macabre Masterpiece: Poems of Horror and Gore, I write many, and I mean many, poems that are downright horrific and creepy. However, the 44th poem, The Nightwatchman, not only deviates from these things but also tells an interesting story. One of the things that makes The Nightwatchman unique is its structure and rhyme scheme. Most poems in the book are between 12 and 16 lines on average and are all one continuous block. However, The Nightwatchman is 24 lines and has 6 lines per block. Also, its rhyme scheme is ABABCC, meaning the first word rhymes with the third, the second rhymes with the fourth, and then the fifth and sixth lines rhyme. This was done so that while the rhymes still got across, they weren't the main focus of the poem, as the story itself within the poem was the bigger takeaway.

The Nightwatchman talks about a lighthouse keeper who battles a vicious storm during the night. The storm gives the man everything it has, from rippling waves, thunder and lightning, and torrential downpour with no signs of stopping. While anyone up against such a storm would be worried, the lighthouse keeper is unaffected and unamused. He defies the storm's orders to be sucked up into it and uses the light from the lighthouse to take down its presence. This apparently seems to work as the storm calms and slowly drifts away, with the lighthouse keeper referring to the sea as Poseidon telling him he gave it a nice try but not tonight, not while he's on watch, and to take his vicious storm elsewhere. This has always been one of my favorite poems, not just in the book but that I've ever written. From the unique rhyme scheme to the telling of a story in poetic form, and the way that a man seemingly takes on a storm by himself and uses the only power bestowed upon him to take it out, really makes this poem a great read.

The Nightwatchman

A vicious storm rushes in on a cold gloomy night

Joining forces with the darkness all around

Off in the distance a lighthouse, the only trace of light

Rapidly the rain falls into the waters and the ground

No one dares adventure out into the terrorizing tempest

Except a man along the watchtower looking upon the rest

He seems without concern looking out into the sea

As the waves and gales pick up momentum

Unmoved and unimpressed seemingly is he

This courageous mysterious phantom

The storm is getting worse upon every abrupt strike

Lurking over it is this man showing a taste of dislike

The sky sparks as thunder booms and lightning crashes

With ripples ripping against the port-side and shore

The monstrous wind slashes and dashes

Trying to make all that dare defy it no more

Suddenly all at once, all that’s happened does at the same time

The lightning, winds, thunder and waves come together in rhyme

The man goes inside and turns the light on at full blast

Casting a bright burst into the black abyss sky 

The storm soon becomes calm and no longer vast

And the man says Poseidon you gave it a good try

At pace and peaceful the storm is now all but gone

As the man watches over as the night carries on

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