"Roe-Deer" is British poet Ted Hughes's exploration of the mysteries of nature. Out for a walk on a dim, snowy winter morning, the speaker is transfixed by the sight of a pair of deer—and they seem just as fascinated by him. As deer and speaker stare at each other, the speaker begins to imagine crossing over into the deer's parallel "dimension," realizing that a human perspective is far from the only way to see the world. This poem first appeared in Hughes's 1978 collection Moon-Bells and Other Poems.
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The Full Text of “Roe-Deer”
The Full Text of “Roe-Deer”
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“Roe-Deer” Summary
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“Roe-Deer” Themes
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The Mystery of Nature
Where this theme appears in the poem:- Lines 1-21
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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “Roe-Deer”
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Lines 1-4
In the dawn-dirty ...
... arriving just there. -
Lines 5-8
They planted their ...
... stared at me. -
Lines 8-13
And for some ...
... come for me. -
Lines 14-18
Then they ducked ...
... of big flakes. -
Lines 19-21
The snow took ...
... to the ordinary
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“Roe-Deer” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
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Imagery
Where imagery appears in the poem:- Lines 1-2: “In the dawn-dirty light, in the biggest snow of the year / Two blue-dark deer stood in the road, alerted.”
- Lines 14-18: “Then they ducked through the hedge, and upright they rode their legs / Away downhill over a snow-lonely field / Towards tree dark—finally / Seeming to eddy and glide and fly away up / Into the boil of big flakes.”
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Metaphor
Where metaphor appears in the poem:- Line 6: “my snow-screen vision of the abnormal”
- Line 7: “the all-way disintegration”
- Line 11: “the curtain had blown aside for a moment”
- Line 18: “the boil of big flakes.”
- Lines 19-21: “The snow took them and soon their nearby hoofprints as well / Revising its dawn inspiration / Back to the ordinary”
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Repetition
Where repetition appears in the poem:- Line 1: “In the,” “in the”
- Line 3: “They”
- Line 5: “They”
- Line 7: “And hesitated”
- Line 8: “And stared,” “And”
- Line 9: “the deer were waiting for me”
- Line 12: “the trees were no longer trees, nor the road a road”
- Line 13: “The deer had come for me.”
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Enjambment
Where enjambment appears in the poem:- Lines 3-4: “dimension / The”
- Lines 5-6: “deerhood / Clear”
- Lines 8-9: “seconds / I”
- Lines 9-10: “me / To”
- Lines 14-15: “legs / Away”
- Lines 15-16: “field / Towards”
- Lines 16-17: “finally / Seeming”
- Lines 17-18: “up / Into”
- Lines 20-21: “inspiration / Back”
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Caesura
Where caesura appears in the poem:- Line 1: “light, in”
- Line 2: “road, alerted”
- Line 8: “me. And”
- Line 12: “trees, nor”
- Line 14: “hedge, and”
- Line 16: “dark—finally”
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Assonance
Where assonance appears in the poem:- Line 1: “snow,” “year”
- Line 2: “Two blue,” “deer,” “road,” “alerted”
- Line 4: “I,” “arriving”
- Line 5: “three,” “years,” “secret deerhood”
- Line 6: “Clear,” “screen”
- Line 7: “hesitated,” “way,” “disintegration”
- Line 9: “deer,” “me”
- Line 12: “there where”
- Line 13: “deer,” “me”
- Line 14: “ducked,” “upright”
- Line 15: “over,” “snow-lonely”
- Line 16: “tree”
- Line 17: “Seeming,” “glide,” “fly”
- Line 19: “soon,” “hoofprints”
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Sibilance
Where sibilance appears in the poem:- Line 1: “biggest snow”
- Line 2: “stood”
- Line 5: “secret”
- Line 6: “snow-screen”
- Line 7: “hesitated,” “disintegration”
- Line 8: “stared,” “some lasting seconds”
- Line 10: “password,” “sign”
- Line 19: “snow,” “soon”
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Alliteration
Where alliteration appears in the poem:- Line 1: “dawn-dirty,” “biggest”
- Line 2: “blue,” “dark deer”
- Line 3: “had happened”
- Line 5: “secret”
- Line 6: “snow-screen”
- Line 8: “stared,” “seconds”
- Line 9: “were waiting”
- Line 13: “deer”
- Line 14: “ducked”
- Line 16: “finally”
- Line 17: “fly”
- Line 18: “boil,” “big”
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“Roe-Deer” Vocabulary
Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.
- Roe-Deer
- Dawn-dirty light
- My snow-screen vision
- The all-way disintegration
- Eddy
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(Location in poem: )
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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Roe-Deer”
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Form
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Meter
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Rhyme Scheme
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“Roe-Deer” Speaker
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“Roe-Deer” Setting
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Literary and Historical Context of “Roe-Deer”
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More “Roe-Deer” Resources
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External Resources
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The Ted Hughes Society — Visit the Ted Hughes Society's website to learn more about Hughes's continuing influence.
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Hughes's Legacy — Read an article by poet Alice Oswald in which she discusses what Hughes means to her.
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A Brief Biography — Learn more about Hughes's life and work via the Poetry Foundation.
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An Interview with Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath — Listen to a 1961 interview with Hughes and his wife, fellow poet Sylvia Plath.
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An Appreciation of Hughes — Watch a talk celebrating Hughes's poetry, including clips of Hughes himself reading his poetry aloud.
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What Are Roe Deer? — Learn more about the small species of deer featured in this poem.
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LitCharts on Other Poems by Ted Hughes
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