Song Meaning
"Heaven"—is what I cannot reach! The lyrics immediately establish a profound sense of unattainable desire. The narrator defines heaven not as a spiritual afterlife, but as tangible, earthly things perpetually out of grasp. This framing grounds the abstract concept in concrete, almost frustratingly simple imagery, like an apple just beyond reach on a tree. The core tension lies in this paradox: heaven is presented as intensely desirable yet inherently inaccessible, a constant state of longing.
This unattainability is further emphasized by the recurring idea of distance and obstruction. The "interdicted Land— / Behind the Hill—the House behind—" all point to a paradise that is always just over the horizon, obscured by physical barriers. The narrator seems to be describing a yearning for something that is perpetually just out of sight, a place or state that is tantalizingly close but fundamentally forbidden. The repetition of "behind" underscores this sense of being blocked from what is desired.
The poem's craft shines in its personification of these unattainable desires. The "Her teasing Purples—Afternoons—" and the "credulous—decoy—" suggest a playful yet ultimately spurning force behind these moments of beauty. The narrator feels "Enamored—of the Conjuror— / That spurned us—Yesterday!" This creates a complex emotional landscape where beauty is also a trickster, drawing the narrator in only to deny fulfillment, leaving a lingering sense of being rejected by the very things that offer the most allure.
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