Hope is an exquisite and concise lyric poem. First of all, in terms of conception, the poem is novel and peculiar, which is different from the general poems praising sailors. The poem omits the familiar scenes of the seagoing ship whistling to raise the flag, the propeller stirring the seawater and the bow breaking the waves to set sail, and only chooses two moments when the seagoing ship is ready to set sail and anchor when returning to express the crew's feelings and wishes-"departure" and "arrival". The two diametrically opposite concepts of "arrival" and "departure" are the same in the minds of seafarers. The purpose of departure is to sail to another port. After arriving at the destination, unloading and loading are also the purpose of sailing to another port. The poet chose two sailors who seemed to have opposite wishes, but expressed the same mood, that is, their love for sailing.
Secondly, in the artistic structure of poetry, the poet made careful tailoring and ingenious layout. The first sailor "likes" to break down, and the second sailor "likes" to break down. Their focus is on the iron anchor on the ship. But the first one is visual image, which is "white spray aroused by anchoring ..."; The second is the auditory image, "the noise made when a chain breaks ...". Because when the ship anchors and sets sail, the sailors on the front deck should observe the water regime of the iron anchor and wash the sediment on the anchor chain with the faucet; When anchoring, sailors only need to loosen the winch of the windlass, and the anchor chain will bump on the anchor hole of the ship's side, and the iron anchor will sink into the water. It can be seen that the poet observes the nuances of life and carefully cuts out the layout. The two groups of images are juxtaposed, the language combinations are equal in length and rhythm, but they are different in the use of verbs and adjectives. They are vivid, giving readers visual and auditory feelings, and achieving the artistic appeal and aesthetic function that the poet deliberately pursues.
Of course, the poem Hope can also be regarded as a symbolic poem with profound meaning and rich philosophy. The ambiguity of a good poem lies in saying this thing, not this thing. In "symbolic forest" (the language of French symbolist poet Baudelaire), readers use their own life experiences to understand and feel, and turn them into life experiences consistent with their own feelings. Everyone may have their own life voyage, one goal has been achieved, and another goal has to be pursued. In this sense, isn't hope an artistic portrayal of life's unremitting pursuit? Everyone is a sailor, and everyone wants to "set out" and "arrive". Therefore, the poem "Hope" gives readers rich and varied enlightenment, and the artistic aesthetic effect is lofty and strong.