Stanza by stanza summary of the poem "On killing a Tree" by Gieve Patel and the rhyme scheme.

I will get you
started

This poem paints a vivid and brutal picture of what is involved in
killing a tree, but I think there can be a deeper meaning as well. The poet uses strong images
to show that it takes quite a bit of doing to kill a tree. It is not enough to merely hack it
with an ax. One must pull it up by the roots too eliminate it. Only then will it die in the
scorching and choking sun and air. A full-grown tree has taken a long time to get to its
present state. It has been fed by the earth for years, absorbing sunlight, air, water and if
one merely hacks and chops off the branches, it will grow back. No. What needs to be done is
to pull it out by the roots, separate it from its source of nourishment, the earth. How to do
that? Tie a rope around it, pull it out completely, expose its strength (the roots), and let the
strength dry up and die.

There are all sorts of things that this could be
compared to, I think. For one thing, in Christian theology, there are many references to the
vine and the branches. Christians believe that Jesus is the vine, and his people are the
branches. When the branches are disconnected from the vine, they die. They do not have enough
strength on their own to survive. In Native American beliefs, when the people are removed from
their land, they cannot live. The land nourishes them and is their root.

Or, what if we are talking about a human being? Lets say the root is love. What would
happen to us if love were removed from our lives? What if it were a love that had been growing
for a long time? A few little stabs or hacks would not destroy that love, something drastic
would have to be done, perhaps betrayal, and then the love would die because the trust, which is
the root of the love, would be exposed, pulled out from its source.

Get my
drift? Now, what do YOU think?

As for meter and rhyme scheme, this poem is
written in .