What are the themes of James K. Baxter's poem "Farmhand"?

James Baxter's poem "Farmhand" deals primarily with themes of longing and loneliness. The eponymous farmhand enviously looks on as girls dance on the dance floor, and while watching the girls, he reflects upon his own loneliness.

The farmhand seems to be something of a loner, which is symbolized by the fact that, in the poem, he stands only at "the hall door," unable or unwilling to enter. However, he longs for the company of a girl. Indeed, his eyes "always ... turn / To the dance floor and the girls." The word "always" here suggests an inevitability and a helplessness. He seems helplessly drawn to that which he can't have. The farmhand's loneliness also seems to be source of pain for him. It is described in the poem, metaphorically, as "an old wound open." The fact that the "wound" is "open" emphasizes that the farmhand's loneliness is a source of enduring, constant pain.

However, the farmhand does seem to take some solace in his work. Although he has "no girl to run her fingers through / His sandy hair," he is "effortless and strong" when he works, and he does seem also to have an affection for his work. This affection is indicated in the last stanza of the poem when he is described as "listening like a lover to the song ... of a new tractor engine." The simile here, "like a lover," suggests that there is an affinity between the farmhand and his work.

Although the farmhand seems, in the second half of the poem, to take solace in his work, this solace is nonetheless undermined by the loneliness established in the first half of the poem. The work described at the end of the poem seems somewhat hollow when balanced against the loneliness described at the beginning.

What is your analysis of James K. Baxter's poem "Farmhand"?

The poem "Farmhand" by James K. Baxter tells of a farm worker at a local dance. Although he chats to a friend or looks out into the night, he is acutely aware of the girls on the dance floor. He does not have a girlfriend, and he feels awkward around women. His talents lie in his work harvesting, plowing, growing crops, and maintaining farm machinery. It is on the farm, doing these things, that he can relax, be himself, and truly express his emotions.

The poet creates a sympathetic portrait of the farmhand. Although he feels uncomfortable in social situations, he is a person of worth who finds solace and even fulfillment in his job, which he performs well and with no effort. In the poem, Baxter makes a statement about the relative positions of people with regard to their situations and occupations. Despite the traumas he faces when confronted with formal society, the farmhand attains significance through what he does well.

"Farmhand" has five stanzas comprised of quatrains with four lines each. Apart from the fourth stanza, each of the quatrains is a single complete sentence. This allows Baxter to break up his poem into distinct thoughts or scenes. Each of the stanzas approaches the farmhand from a different perspective so that readers obtain an overall picture of who he is and what is important to him.

In the first stanza, the unnamed narrator introduces the farmhand, who is casually leaning against a wall smoking a cigarette. In the second stanza, we learn that he is at a dance, and that the objects of his thoughts are "the girls drifting like flowers before the music." However, he has been wounded in the past, perhaps by a relationship that didn't work out.

In the third stanza, the poet lets us glimpse more of the farmhand's character. He feels awkward at the dance and is more at peace and fulfilled in the fields as he plows and contemplates the crops that will be growing as a result of his efforts. This stanza evokes sympathy for the socially misplaced but sincere farmhand. The fourth stanza increases our sympathy for him as we learn that he does not have a girlfriend, although he has hopes and dreams of a more fulfilling life.

Finally, in the fifth stanza, we discover the farmhand's strengths. He brings in the harvest and maintains farm machinery well, and this gives his life a sense of purpose and even joy as he listens "like a lover" to the sound of a tractor.