Trakl paints the images of a field and natural beauty, then contracts them to the reality of the activities on said field. Trakl addresses the reader as though confessing the stresses, difficulties and observances made of a battle ground. The poem opens in such a way as to imply it is a romantic poem about nature, then draws parallels and creates extended metaphors to incorporate the bloody carnage that is the war and battle. This interaction between Trakl and nature show a connection to mankind and how mankind’s destructive behaviors are affecting everything around him. The continued drawing from nature by Trakl represents his connectedness to the battle field as well as his innocence in portraying natures as naive.
Trakl uses enjambment to draw the reader to the next line, just ending a sentence mid-way. Line 5 and 6 are a perfect example in that “dying warriors” refers to the line above, there is a comma to pause, then “the wild lament”- line break pulling the reader down to finish “of their broken mouths.” In the 16 line poem there are only 4 sentences. Trakl has arranged it so that he is never directly speaking to or about the fallen men, save for “the dying warriors” mentioned in line 4. The ease of relating nature to a reader also provided Trakl with a solid foundation from which to draw allusions and metaphors. There is no definite rhyme theme in the poem though this may be a result of Daniel Simko's translation of it.
The metaphor between the red cloud of line 7 and its representation of pools of blood as dead men lay in the meadow paints this imagery of beautiful sunset red clouds. This contrasts with the location of the men's bodies as they lay in the meadow and are followed by a cold moon. The idea that the scenery holds emotion to the war imagery gives the tone of Trakl. The capitalization of God in line 8 tells the reader it is the Christian God then Trakl says “which is spilled blood itself” in reference to the for mentioned God; thus bringing to question the religious overtones of Trakl.
It's interesting that Trakl uses the moon in this poem, because he also used it in another of his poems, along with star imagery. It's a little unsettling how he mixes the gore of war with the peace of nature.
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