THE IGNOBLE PROCESSION 

Considering the title the reader is curious about the reason why the noun “procession”, usually used in a religious context and which reminds the reader of something tidy and well-shaped, is associated with the adjective “ignoble”, that has a very negative connotation. This is the reason that encourages the reader to proceed with the reading.

Even the lay out, which is how the poem looks on the page, strikes the reader on the visual level. There is no regular pattern, indeed the poem consists of three stanzas of different lengths.

To a first introductory stanza, where a crowd of people that is going out of the tube is compared to an ignoble procession, it follows a second stanza with longer lines, which recreates, even on the sound level, the frenetic rhythm of employees who are going to work in the city of London, we can deduce that from the bowler hats that were being worn in the Financial District, because of the pressure of the fear of being late. Also the use of the alliterate sound “for fear” and the repetition of some words are sound devices that recreate the idea of people walking quickly. Still in the same stanza the poet confesses the feeling of humiliation looking at the haste of the people, who, mingling with each other, do not show a specific personal identity. Furthermore, also the use of the expression “wallet-carrying” remarks the economical aspect, which is the reason of the haste.

People are reduced to legs, that run without following a particular direction, all that matters is the fear of being late. 

The second stanza pulls off with the subject personal pronoun “I” with which the poet distances himself from the crowd, indeed “I” doesn’t mean “they”.

The fundamental word to explicate and express the feelings of the poet is the noun “humiliation”, that is in a key position at the end of the line in order to stay stuck in reader’s mind.

The text ends with the third stanza, which hits the readers due to its brevity. So it has the epigrammatic value and flavor with the adjective “humiliating”. Since it is a progressive aspect, it underlines the feeling of “going on”, indeed it doesn’t pulls off with the end of the poem.

The last stanza synthesize the whole poem in three lines.

The message suggested by the text is that human beings are stressed and pressed by economical needs which make them loosing the sense of life and the sense of living.