Night on the Mountain by George Sterling: In-Depth Analysis & Meaning

Night on the Mountain cover image featuring George sterling

Have you ever sometimes looked out of your window and all you saw was darkness? I have, and it makes the most beautiful things seem so terrifying that I stopped looking at them even in light. A similar poem has been written by the poet George Sterling where he encounters scenery in darkness and chaotic winds. He describes the scene in the poem Night on the Mountain.

Sterling looks at the terrifying scene and says that it feels out of this world, almost as if it is a heaven but without a lord. What’s so terrifying about this scene? Night on the Mountain is about the duality of nature.

The impact that the scene has on the poet is long-lasting. Let’s read the poem and see what affected the poet most, was it the “voice”, the “mountain” or the “darkness” that is yet to be understood by the readers?

George Sterling was convinced that there exists some other world that we do not know of. We can only wonder whether this landscape was imaginary in the poet’s head or if had he seen such a terrifying place. Let’s take a look at the poem:

Night on the Mountain

The fog has risen from the sea and crowned 
The dark, untrodden summits of the coast, 
Where roams a voice, in canyons uttermost, 
From midnight waters vibrant and profound. 
High on each granite altar dies the sound, 
Deep as the trampling of an armored host, 
Lone as the lamentation of a ghost, 
Sad as the diapason of the drowned. 

The mountain seems no more a soulless thing, 
But rather as a shape of ancient fear, 
In darkness and the winds of Chaos born 
Amid the lordless heavens' thundering- 
A Presence crouched, enormous and austere, 
Before whose feet the mighty waters mourn.
- George Sterling

Meaning and Summary

The poet speaks about the scenery that he sees and does not fail to describe it as intimidating. If one thinks and imagines the scene Sterling is describing, it is bound to terrify them. The darkness, the large looming mountains, the water hitting the granite and the sound that makes amidst the silence.

In the first stanza, the poet comprehends that the fog of the sea has crowned the summits of the coast. He hears a voice in the canyons which is “vibrant” and “profound”. The sound stops when it reaches the “granite altar”, denoting the peak of the mountain. The poet tries to describe the sound as deep as the trampling of any army, lonely as the laments of a ghost, and sad as the sound of the people that drown and die. 

In the second stanza, the poet represents the mountains as something not “soulless”, but rather as something fearful from ancient times. The darkness and the winds of chaos make the poet feel as if there is no presence of God. But rather, the poet describes the “Presence” of something else which is enormous and austere, and around its feet are mourning waters.

After reading the poem, we can understand that there is a sound and the poet has also mentioned the sea. So, the poet might be referring to the sound of the sea waves, and also we can hear the sound of the waves from quite a distance. It is interesting how Night on the Mountain puts two seemingly beautiful things together and makes it terrifying.

Thus, the sound is the sound of waves. Moreover, the poet has described the place as full of darkness and chaos, as if there is no presence of God. All he can see is a symbol of fear that is the mountain and the sound of the sea waves is considered “mourning waters” at its feet. The waters are mourning because maybe they are scared of the mountain or resemble that many people have drowned in that sea, therefore, the mention of ghosts lamenting.

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Analysis of the poem

The fog has risen from the sea and crowned

The dark, untrodden summits of the coast,

Where roams a voice, in canyons uttermost,

From midnight waters vibrant and profound.

High on each granite altar dies the sound,

Deep as the trampling of an armored host,

Lone as the lamentation of a ghost,

Sad as the diapason of the drowned.

In the first line of the poem, the poet describes the fog that has risen from the sea and is now at the top of the coast crowning it. The poet knows that no one has ever walked this summit, it is dark and “untrodden”. He tells us that “a voice” roams here, the voice of the sea waves and it is the “uttermost” in the canyons.

The sound is coming from the waters which are full of energy and very intense. The voice can be heard from a distance but the voice dies at the peak of the mountain. The voice of the waves is described as deep and trampling of an army, and it is lonely like the laments of a ghost. He also describes the sound of sea waves as the song of people who have drowned there.

In these lines, we understand that the landscape is a place not usually visited by people because of the sadness and darkness it has. Thus the poet calls it untrodden. A different interpretation of the place can also be that whoever has visited this place has died, therefore their laments and their drowning song can be heard in the voice. The poet is intimidated by the scenery and has described it to the readers with the same fear that he feels.

The mountain seems no more a soulless thing,

But rather as a shape of ancient fear,

In darkness and the winds of Chaos born

Amid the lordless heavens’ thundering-

A Presence crouched, enormous and austere,

Before whose feet the mighty waters mourn.

The poet goes on to describe that the mountain is not a soulless thing, but is the shape of the ancient fear. It was born in darkness and in the chaotic winds which signify that there is no presence of God. But rather he calls the mountain “a presence” that is crouched, and enormous. Even the mighty waters mourn at the feet of the mountain. This is indicative of the fact that the mountain is like the King of the landscape and everyone fears it because of its enormous size.

Themes

The dichotomy of nature is a prevalent theme in the poem. Although many poets have tried to romanticize nature, describing it as beautiful, joyous, and a form of life, Sterling has tried to describe a landscape that he feels is feared by everyone. However, there are other reasons why this particular landscape is fearful, the sound of the waves which echo in the canyon, sounds like the laments of ghosts, and the song of drowning people.

After reading the poem we understand that nature is not something only beautiful, it is something that can become fearful in darkness and the mountains are not simply rocks, they are not soulless, they are something which everyone is scared of in the described scenery and therefore the water is mourning at its feet.

Another theme is the fear that the poet describes when he sees the landscape. The darkness, the chaotic winds, the enormous mountains, and the lamenting sound provide such imagery to the readers that we are filled with terror.

However, we do not know how the same landscape would look in the daytime. It might be that the poet would romanticize it if he had visited the place in the morning, but the darkness makes it dreadful. The poet fears every element of nature that he encounters there and feels that there is nothing soulless there and every element is aware of his presence.

Literary Devices

The poet has used enjambment in the poem which forces the readers to read the next lines which are full of fear and terror. For example:

In darkness and the winds of Chaos born

Amid the lordless heavens’ thundering-

Alliteration is another poetic device used in the poem where the poet repeats the same consonant sounds at the beginning of several words. For example:

The fog has risen from the sea and crowned

Sad as the diapason of the drowned.

Imagery is also used by the poet to describe the landscape that he witnessed. For example:

From midnight waters vibrant and profound.

Lone as the lamentation of a ghost,

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Conclusion

The poem Night on the mountain by George Sterling signifies the time spent by Sterling on a mountain top, and darkness denotes that it was at night. I believe that the poet has used every element of nature to signify that nature has both sides.

At one time, nature can be the most beautiful thing that you witness, however sometimes it can be terrifying, especially in the dark when you are alone. The poet has tried to present to us a landscape that has no presence of God, but rather the presence of an enormous and austere mountain.

The voice that he hears reminds him of several things. But we as readers can only question why the poet was present in that particular place or even if he was, why didn’t he choose to leave and stay? And the question of the utmost importance is what inspired the poet to write about the landscape. Was it the darkness or “the voice”?

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