I studied this song as a literary assignment for an English class in college. It is most definitely referring to the Three Gorges Dam in China. Below is what I wrote.
In his narrative poem The River Dragon Has Come, Warrel Dane writes about the collapse on the Banqiao and Shimantan Dams in China in 1975. By using many poetic devices and alluding to the seven headed dragon from the Book of Revelation in the Bible, he paints a powerful picture of the disaster, and he allows the reader to visualize the wrath of nature against foolish men who attempt to dominate it. The poem, which shares its title with a book on the same subject by Dai Qing, serves as a warning against the completion of the new Three Gorges Dam along the Yangtze River.
The first line uses personification to bring the flood to life by giving it the human trait of communication, specifically a warning. The second and third lines are a specific reference to the people who built both the dams that failed in 1975 and the Three Gorges dam. Warrel asserts that they have little concern for the thousands who died in the original flood and do not have any more concern the ones who are in danger from the new dam. It is interesting how architects are purposefully paired with fools in the same line. The line could possibly be considered oxymoronic, since architects are often considered some of the most intelligent people in society. In the fourth and fifth lines, Warrel introduces the river dragon, but at this point it is hard to tell exactly what the river dragon is. All that is known is the mythical creature is somehow related to the disaster. Here, maybe there is a hint at the warning to the future, which brings the poem to the second stanza. Here again, is another specific reference to those who built the dam. He now accuses them of not learning from past mistakes.
The third stanza tells the story of what happened when the dams failed in 1975. It serves to remind us (and maybe the architects and fools) of the horrors of what happened. The river dragon finally emerges to bring about its retribution against man. Notice how he uses personification of the Earth to bring about the feeling that the people are being judged for their actions. The Earth has spoken and taken them to their graves. The Earth has spoken and in a crush they are gone. When he says, "The Earth has spoken," it conjures up images of the Earth as a deity, casting her judgment. When he says, "Taken them to their graves," it is a pretty obvious and simple metaphor illustrating that they were killed. The Earth speaks again at the first light of dawn and in a crush they are gone. This puts the setting in the morning, probably when most are asleep in their beds. Many probably never even woke up as a 20 foot high wall of water and debris crashed into their homes.
The fourth and final stanza is the warning or even a prophecy in its certainty against what is to come with the new dam. The first line probably has a dual meaning, referring to the three as the holy trinity along with the story of the flood and certainly referring to the Three Gorges dam, warning they both will fall. Also, the river dragon's true nature is revealed as the seven headed dragon of the Book of Revelation. This dragon is believed to be a manifestation of Satan in his return to Earth in the Christian Apocalypse prophecy. But it also has a dual meaning. We find that technology, the hallmark of modern humans, is the beast. This is where he points the finger at ourselves, brazenly accusing humanity as the source of evil.
As a side note, Warrel seems to play with both the Eastern and Western concepts of the dragon. Where in the third stanza the dragon may have been sent by the deity of Earth, the final stanza makes a very direct reference to the Biblical dragon that symbolizes Satan.
nice work, well-researched and written. it's a shame you had to "pass it off as a poem," because the writing really does stand on its' own merit. thanks for your in-depth analysis.
nice work, well-researched and written. it's a shame you had to "pass it off as a poem," because the writing really does stand on its' own merit. thanks for your in-depth analysis.
I studied this song as a literary assignment for an English class in college. It is most definitely referring to the Three Gorges Dam in China. Below is what I wrote.
In his narrative poem The River Dragon Has Come, Warrel Dane writes about the collapse on the Banqiao and Shimantan Dams in China in 1975. By using many poetic devices and alluding to the seven headed dragon from the Book of Revelation in the Bible, he paints a powerful picture of the disaster, and he allows the reader to visualize the wrath of nature against foolish men who attempt to dominate it. The poem, which shares its title with a book on the same subject by Dai Qing, serves as a warning against the completion of the new Three Gorges Dam along the Yangtze River. The first line uses personification to bring the flood to life by giving it the human trait of communication, specifically a warning. The second and third lines are a specific reference to the people who built both the dams that failed in 1975 and the Three Gorges dam. Warrel asserts that they have little concern for the thousands who died in the original flood and do not have any more concern the ones who are in danger from the new dam. It is interesting how architects are purposefully paired with fools in the same line. The line could possibly be considered oxymoronic, since architects are often considered some of the most intelligent people in society. In the fourth and fifth lines, Warrel introduces the river dragon, but at this point it is hard to tell exactly what the river dragon is. All that is known is the mythical creature is somehow related to the disaster. Here, maybe there is a hint at the warning to the future, which brings the poem to the second stanza. Here again, is another specific reference to those who built the dam. He now accuses them of not learning from past mistakes. The third stanza tells the story of what happened when the dams failed in 1975. It serves to remind us (and maybe the architects and fools) of the horrors of what happened. The river dragon finally emerges to bring about its retribution against man. Notice how he uses personification of the Earth to bring about the feeling that the people are being judged for their actions. The Earth has spoken and taken them to their graves. The Earth has spoken and in a crush they are gone. When he says, "The Earth has spoken," it conjures up images of the Earth as a deity, casting her judgment. When he says, "Taken them to their graves," it is a pretty obvious and simple metaphor illustrating that they were killed. The Earth speaks again at the first light of dawn and in a crush they are gone. This puts the setting in the morning, probably when most are asleep in their beds. Many probably never even woke up as a 20 foot high wall of water and debris crashed into their homes. The fourth and final stanza is the warning or even a prophecy in its certainty against what is to come with the new dam. The first line probably has a dual meaning, referring to the three as the holy trinity along with the story of the flood and certainly referring to the Three Gorges dam, warning they both will fall. Also, the river dragon's true nature is revealed as the seven headed dragon of the Book of Revelation. This dragon is believed to be a manifestation of Satan in his return to Earth in the Christian Apocalypse prophecy. But it also has a dual meaning. We find that technology, the hallmark of modern humans, is the beast. This is where he points the finger at ourselves, brazenly accusing humanity as the source of evil.
As a side note, Warrel seems to play with both the Eastern and Western concepts of the dragon. Where in the third stanza the dragon may have been sent by the deity of Earth, the final stanza makes a very direct reference to the Biblical dragon that symbolizes Satan.
Oh yeah, I passed it off for a poem.... quite successfully haha
Oh yeah, I passed it off for a poem.... quite successfully haha
nice work, well-researched and written. it's a shame you had to "pass it off as a poem," because the writing really does stand on its' own merit. thanks for your in-depth analysis.
nice work, well-researched and written. it's a shame you had to "pass it off as a poem," because the writing really does stand on its' own merit. thanks for your in-depth analysis.
The "first light of dawn" may be a somewhat obscure reference to the "woman clothed with the sun" in Revelations...very interesting interpretation!
The "first light of dawn" may be a somewhat obscure reference to the "woman clothed with the sun" in Revelations...very interesting interpretation!