Shel Silverstein's Poem Analyse 1

Bear In There

By Shel Silverstein

The poem describes an unusual situation: a polar bear eating voraciously from a fridge. He is just like a child that enjoys noodles, soda and ice and he doesn’t seem to care about how nicely he eats. What makes it funnier is the fact that such a large animal, expected to be fierce and strong, behaves like an excited kid who is suddenly free to eat all of his favorite foods.

The instant feeling that you get when reading these amusing lines is that of joy, happiness and freedom to do whatever you wish. You somehow envy the carelessness of the bear that worries about nothing but his delicious treats. The poet shows great skills in creating such a vivid description of the scene that, despite the fact we know it is not likely to happen, we allow ourselves to believe it is real and truly savor it. The layout of the poem is also very similar to a drawing and gives the reader the chance to interpret it visually, as well.

The whole image resembles one from a fairy tale, where animals can talk and eat and behave like humans and we feel charmed by its magic. However, towards the end there is a sudden twist as the poet expresses a certain feeling of worry and fear towards the big, hungry bear.

I really enjoyed reading this poem and felt like witnessing a scene from a fantasy. The words are so simple, yet intense and the rhyming artistically adds a final touch which makes anyone reading the poem smile and feel happy. That is why I strongly recommend it to people of all ages as it is important to always keep our humor and childhood innocence.