19 pages 38 minutes read

Derek Walcott

The Flock

Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1985

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Further Reading & Resources

Related Poems

Lizard by Derek Walcott (1965)

This poem, also from The Castaway and Other Poems offers an allegory for colonialism. In it, the speaker saves a beetle from being eaten by a lizard, and then reflects that this may have been a mistake: The beetle might have preferred being eaten by the lizard, a familiar predator, rather being rescued by a stranger. Walcott indicts people trying to interfere with others, no matter how well-meaning they believe themselves to be.

Crusoe’s Island by Derek Walcott (1965)

In this poem, also included in The Castaway, Walcott writes from the perspective of Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe. Walcott’s version of Crusoe is interested in cultivating his mind rather than cultivating the island. This poem gives more insight into the internal process that Walcott describes in “The Flock.”

"Crusoe in England" by Elizabeth Bishop (1980)

Elizabeth Bishop was a contemporary of Walcott’s. In this poem, Bishop paints Crusoe as a sympathetic figure, focusing more on his loneliness than his desire to dominate the landscape. It shares certain themes with Walcott's vision of The Castaway and echoes some of Walcott's evolving views on postcolonialism and the relationship between Crusoe and Friday.

Related Titles

By Derek Walcott

Study Guide

logo

A Careful Passion

Derek Walcott

A Careful Passion

Derek Walcott

Study Guide

logo

Adam's Song

Derek Walcott

Adam's Song

Derek Walcott

Study Guide

logo

Dream on Monkey Mountain

Derek Walcott

Dream on Monkey Mountain

Derek Walcott

Study Guide

logo

Love After Love

Derek Walcott

Love After Love

Derek Walcott

Study Guide

logo

Midsummer XXVII

Derek Walcott

Midsummer XXVII

Derek Walcott

Study Guide

logo

Ruins of a Great House

Derek Walcott

Ruins of a Great House

Derek Walcott

Study Guide

logo

Sabbaths, WI

Derek Walcott

Sabbaths, WI

Derek Walcott

Study Guide

logo

The Almond Trees

Derek Walcott

The Almond Trees

Derek Walcott

Study Guide

logo

The Schooner Flight

Derek Walcott

The Schooner Flight

Derek Walcott

Study Guide

logo

To Return To The Trees

Derek Walcott

To Return To The Trees

Derek Walcott