Not Waving but Drowning Communication Quotes

The very first thing we learn in the poem is that the dead guy has no audience. So why's he talking? Furthermore, how is he talking if he's, you know, dead? Depending on how you see things, he could be in some kind of afterlife or a ghost, desperately trying to tell his story to the living. "Still" suggests a continued effort at communicating, even if it's in vain. Spooky, but sad. It might be time to call in that lady from Poltergeist.

The dead man addresses a "you" here, confirming that he has a target audience in mind. And it's more than a little accusatory. He would tell them what really happened, if only he could get through. Alas, it's probably too late. He's dead, remember?

The biggest miscommunication in the poem is the impression that the dead man was waving, when really he was probably, you know, flailing. Why would onlookers see a playful greeting instead of a sign of distress? Especially if we take the drowning as a metaphor, how could they miss that he was struggling for his entire life?

That doesn't sound much like the moaning dead guy we know and love. Somehow these folks got the impression that he was as much of a party hound as they are. So what happened? Did they misinterpret his cries for help all along, or did he pretend to be happy fun guy for so long that when he really needed help no one could tell?

Wow, are these folks clueless. They continue to misunderstand the dead dude's situation, thinking that he died because of cold water acting on a weak heart. What they don't know is that he was metaphorically too cold and broken-hearted all along. Chilling, isn't it?

The dead man, even whinier now, tries to set the record straight, letting them know it wasn't a single event that killed him, but a lifetime of loneliness. He's still trying to communicate, but they still can't hear (or won't). As readers who do hear, what message do we take away from his attempts to connect? And how do we feel about those jerks who don't hear?