The contemporary American poet Tracy K. Smith published "The Universe as Primal Scream" in 2011. The poem's speaker describes the experience of hearing two young children scream as loudly as they can in an upstairs apartment—apparently just for the sake of screaming. The sound of these “primal” shrieks leads the speaker to meditate on the fundamental nature of everyday life, as well as on the fact that so much of the world, the universe, and human existence remains mysterious and unknown. The poem was included in Smith’s collection Life on Mars, which won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry.

• Read the full text of “The Universe as Primal Scream”

• “The Universe as Primal Scream” Summary

• “The Universe as Primal Scream” Themes

  • 

    The Mystery and Vastness of the Universe

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-34

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “The Universe as Primal Scream”

  • Lines 1-2

    5pm on the ...
    ... shrill and metallic.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 3-5

    First the boy, ...
    ... up and see

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 6-9

    Whether it is ...
    ... on the floor.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 10-12

    Maybe the mother ...
    ... To such might.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 12-15

    Perhaps, if they ...
    ... Like Elijah.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 15-18

    If this is ...
    ... we inherit approach.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 19-22

     Whether it is ...
    ... like a furnace.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 22-25

    I'm ready ...
    ... us with grief.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 25-27

    Wizard, thief, the ...
    ... short lives clean.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 27-31

    How mean ...
    ... Come for us.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 31-34

    And the kids ...
    ... Upon being born.

    

    

    

    

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• “The Universe as Primal Scream” Symbols

  • 

    Mirrors

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Lines 26-27: “Wind rushing to knock our mirrors to the floor, / To sweep our short lives clean.”

• “The Universe as Primal Scream” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

  • Allusion

    

    

    

    

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    Where allusion appears in the poem:

    • Lines 14-15: “we'll ride to glory / Like Elijah.”
    • Lines 16-18: “let the sky / Pass from blue, to red, to molten gold, / To black.”
    • Line 18: “the heaven we inherit”
    • Line 19: “our dead in Old Testament robes,”
    • Line 21: “it will bend down to greet us like a father,”
    • Line 22: “swallow us like a furnace.”
    • Lines 32-34: “something / They have no name for has begun to insist / Upon being born.”

  • Imagery

    

    

    

    

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    Where imagery appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “They open their mouths / And it rolls out: high, shrill and metallic.”
    • Lines 4-9: “I think / Of putting on my shoes to go up and see / Whether it is merely an experiment / Their parents have been conducting / Upon the good crystal, which must surely / Lie shattered to dust on the floor.”
    • Line 11: “the four pink lungs”
    • Lines 13-15: “the whole building / Will lift-off, and we'll ride to glory / Like Elijah.”
    • Lines 16-18: “let the sky / Pass from blue, to red, to molten gold, / To black.”
    • Line 20: “a door opening onto the roiling infinity of space.”
    • Line 21: “it will bend down to greet us like a father,”
    • Line 22: “swallow us like a furnace.”
    • Line 25: “Bends us with grief.”
    • Lines 25-27: “the great / Wind rushing to knock our mirrors to the floor, / To sweep our short lives clean.”
    • Line 28: “My stereo on shuffle.”
    • Line 29: “The neighbor chopping onions through a wall.”

  • Colloquialism

    

    

    

    

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    Where colloquialism appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “5pm on the nose.”
    • Line 4: “They both let loose at once,”
    • Line 14: “lift-off”
    • Line 28: “Our racket”
    • Line 30: “just a hiccough”
    • Line 31: “still at it,”

  • Metaphor

    

    

    

    

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    Where metaphor appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-2: “5pm on the nose. They open their mouths / And it rolls out”
    • Line 25: “Wizard,” “thief,”
    • Lines 25-27: “the great / Wind rushing to knock our mirrors to the floor, / To sweep our short lives clean.”
    • Lines 30-31: “All of it just a hiccough against what may never / Come for us.”

  • Simile

    

    

    

    

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    Where simile appears in the poem:

    • Lines 14-15: “we'll ride to glory / Like Elijah.”
    • Line 21: “like a father,”
    • Line 22: “like a furnace.”
    • Line 32: “ like the Dawn of Man,”
    • Lines 32-34: “as if something / They have no name for has begun to insist / Upon being born.”

  • Anaphora

    

    

    

    

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    Where anaphora appears in the poem:

    • Line 15: “If this is,” “if this is”
    • Line 19: “ Whether it”
    • Line 20: “Or”
    • Line 21: “Whether it”
    • Line 22: “Or ”

  • Alliteration

    

    

    

    

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    Where alliteration appears in the poem:

    • Line 4: “let loose”
    • Line 7: “conducting”
    • Line 8: “crystal,” “surely”
    • Line 9: “shattered”
    • Line 10: “Maybe,” “mother,” “proud”
    • Line 11: “pink”
    • Line 12: “might,” “Perhaps”
    • Line 13: “magic”
    • Line 14: “Will,” “we'll”
    • Line 16: “cries ,” “cocked”
    • Line 19: “dead”
    • Line 20: “door,” “opening onto”
    • Line 21: “Whether,” “will,” “father”
    • Line 22: “furnace,” “ready”
    • Line 23: “refuses”
    • Line 24: “What,” “with,” “blessings”
    • Line 25: “Bends,” “Wizard”
    • Line 26: “Wind ”
    • Line 28: “seems,” “stereo”
    • Line 31: “Come,” “kids,” “still”
    • Line 32: “Screaming,” “something”
    • Line 33: “no name,” “begun”
    • Line 34: “being born”

  • Consonance

    

    

    

    

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    Where consonance appears in the poem:

    • Line 1: “nose,” “open”
    • Line 2: “rolls,” “shrill,” “metallic”
    • Line 4: “let loose,” “once”
    • Line 5: “shoes,” “see”
    • Line 6: “Whether,” “merely,” “experiment”
    • Line 7: “parents,” “conducting”
    • Line 8: “crystal,” “surely”
    • Line 9: “shattered,” “dust”
    • Line 10: “Maybe,” “mother,” “proud”
    • Line 11: “pink,” “nursed”
    • Line 12: “such,” “might”
    • Line 13: “magic,” “decibel”
    • Lines 13-14: “whole building / Will lift”
    • Line 14: “we'll,” “glory”
    • Line 15: “Like,” “Elijah,” “this is”
    • Line 16: “cries,” “cocked,” “ sky”
    • Line 17: “molten gold”
    • Line 18: “black. Let,” “heaven,” “inherit”
    • Line 19: “dead,” “Testament”
    • Line 20: “door,” “opening onto”
    • Line 21: “bend down,” “father”
    • Line 22: “swallow,” “like,” “furnace”
    • Lines 24-25: “blessings, / Bends”
    • Line 25: “Wizard”
    • Line 26: “Wind,” “rushing,” “mirrors,” “floor”
    • Line 27: “sweep,” “short,” “lives”
    • Line 28: “Our racket,” “seems beside,” “stereo,” “shuffle”
    • Line 29: “neighbor,” “onions”
    • Lines 29-30: “wall. / All”
    • Line 31: “Come,” “kids,” “upstairs still”
    • Line 32: “Screaming,” “like,” “Dawn,” “Man,” “something”
    • Line 33: “no name”
    • Line 34: “being born.”

  • Assonance

    

    

    

    

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    Where assonance appears in the poem:

    • Line 14: “ride”
    • Line 15: “Elijah,” “If this is it,” “if this is”
    • Line 16: “cries,” “sky”
    • Line 17: “molten gold”
    • Line 18: “Let,” “heaven,” “inherit,” “approach”
    • Line 19: “Old,” “robes”
    • Line 20: “opening”
    • Line 23: “meet,” “refuses,” “keep,” “anything”
    • Line 24: “teases,” “blessings”
    • Line 25: “Bends,” “grief,” “thief”
    • Line 27: “sweep,” “clean,” “mean”
    • Line 28: “seems”
    • Line 33: “They,” “name”

  • Enjambment

    

    

    

    

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    Where enjambment appears in the poem:

    • Lines 4-5: “think / Of”
    • Lines 5-6: “see / Whether”
    • Lines 6-7: “experiment / Their”
    • Lines 7-8: “conducting / Upon”
    • Lines 8-9: “surely / Lie”
    • Lines 10-11: “proud / Of”
    • Lines 11-12: “nursed / To”
    • Lines 12-13: “hit / The”
    • Lines 13-14: “building / Will”
    • Lines 14-15: “glory / Like”
    • Lines 15-16: “what / Their”
    • Lines 16-17: “sky / Pass”
    • Lines 22-23: “ready / To”
    • Lines 23-24: “anything / For”
    • Lines 25-26: “great / Wind”
    • Lines 27-28: “mean / Our”
    • Lines 30-31: “never / Come”
    • Lines 32-33: “something / They”
    • Lines 33-34: “insist / Upon”

  • Juxtaposition

    

    

    

    

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    Where juxtaposition appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-34

• “The Universe as Primal Scream” 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.

  • Primal
  • Decibel
  • Elijah
  • Molten
  • Old Testament robes
  • Roiling infinity of space
  • Racket
  • Dawn of Man
  • (Location in poem: )

• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “The Universe as Primal Scream”

  • Form

  • Meter

  • Rhyme Scheme

• “The Universe as Primal Scream” Speaker

• “The Universe as Primal Scream” Setting

• Literary and Historical Context of “The Universe as Primal Scream”

• More “The Universe as Primal Scream” Resources

  • External Resources

    • Tracy K. Smith Reads the Poem — Listen to Tracy K. Smith read "The Universe as Primal Scream" in this audio and video recording from the Academy of American poets. 

    • Biography of Tracy K. Smith — Learn more about Tracy K. Smith's life and work in this brief biographical article from the Poetry Foundation. 

    • Pulitzer Prize Citation for Life on Mars — Life on Mars, the collection in which "The Universe as Primal Scream" was published, won the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. Read the citation for the award on the Pulitzer Prize website.

    • Interview with Tracy K. Smith — In this interview with The Iowa Review, Tracy K. Smith discusses the collection Life on Mars and what poems most inspired her as a young poet.

    • Article about the Hubble Space Telescope from NASA — Smith's book Life on Mars was written, in part, about her father, who worked on the Hubble Space Telescope. Read this article from NASA to learn more about the telescope and some of its discoveries.

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