He Had Such Quiet Eyes
He had such quiet eyes
She did not realize
They were two pools of lies
Layered with thinnest ice
To her, those quiet eyes
Were breathing desolate sighs
Imploring her to be nice
And to render him paradise
If only she’d been wise
And had listened to the advice
Never to compromise
With pleasure seeking guys
She’d be free from ‘the hows and whys’
Now here’s a bit of advice
Be sure that nice really mean nice
Be sure that nice really mean nice
Then you’ll never be losing at dice
Though you may lose your heart once or twice.
Synopsis of the poem
The poem is about a persona, a lady who fell for the wrong man. She was fascinated with his ‘quiet eyes’ and believed that his eyes showed his true emotion and feelings for her. The man’s eyes had the power to charm her and made her believe him and be nice to him.
However, the man was actually a ‘pleasure seeking man’, a flirt. As the lady was truly fascinated and charmed by the man, she did not listen or did not want to listen to any advice concerning the man’s true behaviour. In the end, she realized her error and was broken hearted.
Stanza 1
This stanza is about a woman who has been deceived by a man who has ‘quiet eyes’ that has mesmerized her to the extent that she believes he truly loves her. Later she realizes her foolishness when she discovers how superficial and shallow the man is and how easily she would have seen his true colours if she had not been under the spell cast by those ‘quiet eyes’ that ‘were breathing desolate sighs’, making her ready to fulfill his every desire. She has been tricked by his clever dramatization of sadness and loneliness to ‘render him paradise’, thus fulfilling the desires of this ‘pleasure-seeking’ man. If she had not been so weakened susceptible, she would have noticed that his eyes were nothing but ‘two pools of lies’. She would have seen the deceit hidden behind the facade of ‘thinnest ice’ which could easily be broken to expose all his lies if she had not been so blind to his faults.
Stanza 2
The woman regrets she had not listened to well-meaning advice not to ‘compromise’, that is, to allow herself to be seduced by ‘pleasure-seeking guys who would only make use of her and break her heart. She had been naive enough to trust a man who had held her spellbound under the powerful gaze of his ‘quiet eyes’. Now she is wiser after having learnt from her bad experience.
Stanza 3
In this stanza, the poet is imploring all women to be careful in their relationships with their men friends and not to be deceived by their ‘nice’ nature or ‘nice’ friendship which may not be given sincerely. Men sometimes may want something in return in a relationship and a woman must not sacrifice her values or lower her self-dignity in order to keep the man’s interest. She should not place her trust in him blindly but be alert to any ulterior motive he may have. The poet compares a relationship to a game of chance as portrayed by the image of ‘dice’. When we get involved, we take a risk and sometimes we may lose in the game of love but it is fine as long as we are not persuaded to indulge in something.
Theme
Deceitful Relationships
We have to be careful not to be cheated by unscrupulous people with ulterior motives. We should be cautious when we get involved in a relationship. We must ensure that the person we are involved with is sincere and will not take advantage of our youth and innocence. A deceitful relationship in which one party makes use of another for selfish gains is a betrayal of trust and can be very hurtful to the victim.
Wisdom
The theme of wisdom is portrayed. One can learn from one’s mistake and learn to discern right from wrong. It is the beginning of maturity. It is also wise to listen to good advice to prevent us from making too many mistakes in life. lt is also wise to take care of our own interest and not let others manipulate us for their own gains.
Style and Language
The poet’s style is conversational and reflective as she narrates the lady’s predicament at being deceived by the man she loves. Each line flows easily into the next line in a sing-song manner as the poet has made the last word of the poem rhyme with the preceding three lines of advice. It is also written in a regular beat of nine syllables to reinforce or emphasize her friendly advice.
Personification
‘those quiet eyes/ Were breathing desolate sighs’
The eyes are personified as breathing out lonely and sad sighs to implore the lady to be ‘nice’. It touches her heart and she yields to all his wishes to ‘render him paradise’.
Metaphor
* ‘Two pools of lies’ compares the depth of the deceit to the depth of water in a pool. The top of the pool is covered by the thinnest ice’ which shields the actual depth of deceit, making the lady thinks she has a ‘solid’ relationship. She does not know she is walking on ‘thin ice’ which can be easily broken. Only on hindsight does she realize how blind she has been to the true nature of the man’s intentions.
* ‘Layered with thinnest ice’ shows how the man’s true colours or intentions are hidden behind the façade of being ‘nice’. The lady has been too bewitched by the ‘quiet eyes’ to notice the deceit of the ‘thinnest ice’.
* ‘At dice’ gives the idea of gambling where one takes a risk of either winning or losing. This suggests that being involved in a relationship means taking the chances of having one’s heartbroken. The metaphor of a game of dice, which is a game of chance, is used because falling in love is like taking a chance. We can find happiness or be left with a broken heart when we embark on a love relationship.
Symbol
‘Quiet eyes’ is a symbol of trust. The man’s deception is not easily detected as it is done so subtly and cunningly.
‘Paradise’ is a symbol of ultimate joy. The man persuades the lady to be so ‘nice’ that she is willing to be seduced by him and his control of her body and mind gives him happiness.
‘Pleasure-seeking guys’ is a symbol of the ladies’ man whose single purpose is to pursue pleasure at any cost.
Repetition
The phrase ‘quiet eyes’ is repeated in lines 1 and 5 of the first stanza to emphasize that the eyes play a major role in the seduction of the woman.
Tone
The tone is reflective and one of regret for her foolishness of being deceived by one who has ‘quiet eyes’. The tone in the first stanza is one of sadness as she recalls how she has been seduced by the man’s charming eyes.
The tone in the second stanza is one of profound regret for not heeding the advice given to her. She gently chides herself for being so naive and trusting.
In the last stanza the tone is hopeful as she now lets go of her past and focuses on her future. She seems to have accepted her negative experiences. The poet is sincere in giving advice to women to be careful in their love relationships.
Point of View
The poem is narrated using the third person point of view. It gives an insight into the lady’s mind as she reflects on her past relationship with a man who has deceived her. The poet also comments on the failed relationship and gives some advice on how to be careful when one is playing the game of love. In this way, the poet has connected with the reader as the reader not only empathizes with the lady in the poem but also learns a valuable lesson about deceit.
However, the man was actually a ‘pleasure seeking man’, a flirt. As the lady was truly fascinated and charmed by the man, she did not listen or did not want to listen to any advice concerning the man’s true behaviour. In the end, she realized her error and was broken hearted.
Stanza 1
This stanza is about a woman who has been deceived by a man who has ‘quiet eyes’ that has mesmerized her to the extent that she believes he truly loves her. Later she realizes her foolishness when she discovers how superficial and shallow the man is and how easily she would have seen his true colours if she had not been under the spell cast by those ‘quiet eyes’ that ‘were breathing desolate sighs’, making her ready to fulfill his every desire. She has been tricked by his clever dramatization of sadness and loneliness to ‘render him paradise’, thus fulfilling the desires of this ‘pleasure-seeking’ man. If she had not been so weakened susceptible, she would have noticed that his eyes were nothing but ‘two pools of lies’. She would have seen the deceit hidden behind the facade of ‘thinnest ice’ which could easily be broken to expose all his lies if she had not been so blind to his faults.
Stanza 2
The woman regrets she had not listened to well-meaning advice not to ‘compromise’, that is, to allow herself to be seduced by ‘pleasure-seeking guys who would only make use of her and break her heart. She had been naive enough to trust a man who had held her spellbound under the powerful gaze of his ‘quiet eyes’. Now she is wiser after having learnt from her bad experience.
Stanza 3
In this stanza, the poet is imploring all women to be careful in their relationships with their men friends and not to be deceived by their ‘nice’ nature or ‘nice’ friendship which may not be given sincerely. Men sometimes may want something in return in a relationship and a woman must not sacrifice her values or lower her self-dignity in order to keep the man’s interest. She should not place her trust in him blindly but be alert to any ulterior motive he may have. The poet compares a relationship to a game of chance as portrayed by the image of ‘dice’. When we get involved, we take a risk and sometimes we may lose in the game of love but it is fine as long as we are not persuaded to indulge in something.
Theme
Deceitful Relationships
We have to be careful not to be cheated by unscrupulous people with ulterior motives. We should be cautious when we get involved in a relationship. We must ensure that the person we are involved with is sincere and will not take advantage of our youth and innocence. A deceitful relationship in which one party makes use of another for selfish gains is a betrayal of trust and can be very hurtful to the victim.
Wisdom
The theme of wisdom is portrayed. One can learn from one’s mistake and learn to discern right from wrong. It is the beginning of maturity. It is also wise to listen to good advice to prevent us from making too many mistakes in life. lt is also wise to take care of our own interest and not let others manipulate us for their own gains.
Style and Language
The poet’s style is conversational and reflective as she narrates the lady’s predicament at being deceived by the man she loves. Each line flows easily into the next line in a sing-song manner as the poet has made the last word of the poem rhyme with the preceding three lines of advice. It is also written in a regular beat of nine syllables to reinforce or emphasize her friendly advice.
Personification
‘those quiet eyes/ Were breathing desolate sighs’
The eyes are personified as breathing out lonely and sad sighs to implore the lady to be ‘nice’. It touches her heart and she yields to all his wishes to ‘render him paradise’.
Metaphor
* ‘Two pools of lies’ compares the depth of the deceit to the depth of water in a pool. The top of the pool is covered by the thinnest ice’ which shields the actual depth of deceit, making the lady thinks she has a ‘solid’ relationship. She does not know she is walking on ‘thin ice’ which can be easily broken. Only on hindsight does she realize how blind she has been to the true nature of the man’s intentions.
* ‘Layered with thinnest ice’ shows how the man’s true colours or intentions are hidden behind the façade of being ‘nice’. The lady has been too bewitched by the ‘quiet eyes’ to notice the deceit of the ‘thinnest ice’.
* ‘At dice’ gives the idea of gambling where one takes a risk of either winning or losing. This suggests that being involved in a relationship means taking the chances of having one’s heartbroken. The metaphor of a game of dice, which is a game of chance, is used because falling in love is like taking a chance. We can find happiness or be left with a broken heart when we embark on a love relationship.
Symbol
‘Quiet eyes’ is a symbol of trust. The man’s deception is not easily detected as it is done so subtly and cunningly.
‘Paradise’ is a symbol of ultimate joy. The man persuades the lady to be so ‘nice’ that she is willing to be seduced by him and his control of her body and mind gives him happiness.
‘Pleasure-seeking guys’ is a symbol of the ladies’ man whose single purpose is to pursue pleasure at any cost.
Repetition
The phrase ‘quiet eyes’ is repeated in lines 1 and 5 of the first stanza to emphasize that the eyes play a major role in the seduction of the woman.
Tone
The tone is reflective and one of regret for her foolishness of being deceived by one who has ‘quiet eyes’. The tone in the first stanza is one of sadness as she recalls how she has been seduced by the man’s charming eyes.
The tone in the second stanza is one of profound regret for not heeding the advice given to her. She gently chides herself for being so naive and trusting.
In the last stanza the tone is hopeful as she now lets go of her past and focuses on her future. She seems to have accepted her negative experiences. The poet is sincere in giving advice to women to be careful in their love relationships.
Point of View
The poem is narrated using the third person point of view. It gives an insight into the lady’s mind as she reflects on her past relationship with a man who has deceived her. The poet also comments on the failed relationship and gives some advice on how to be careful when one is playing the game of love. In this way, the poet has connected with the reader as the reader not only empathizes with the lady in the poem but also learns a valuable lesson about deceit.
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