The poem “The Art of Drowning” by Billy Collins discusses the notion of a life flashing before one’s eyes. In the poem he writes almost with different speeds to slow down and speed up the reader as they go through the poem. Words like flash, rush, explosion, bolt, and blur are used throughout the novel to entice the reader into a fast pace. He then contrasts this rapid pace throughout by his usage of slower words like leisurely, essay, dawning, and decades. Therefore giving the effect of calm within the chaos through the alternating paces of the poem. This reflects the image as the person drowning represents the rapid struggle to breath but he is surrounded by the calm water. The image also shows the darkness around the person. This is most commonly used by artists as a symbol of the unknown, how many feel of the ocean and the deep sea. This symbolism of the unknown connects back to the poem as he discusses the concept of your life flashing before your eyes, he ponders how it all started. Almost questioning whether it truly occurs, before starting to somewhat mock its notion. The poem and the image have a sadistic relationship here. Collins states,”Survivors would have us believe in a brilliance here,” as he mocks the concept of coming back from the edge of death while the image shows a man struggling with no chance of survival. This contrast creates a sadistic relationship as he is making fun of the very thing the image represents. Collins also discusses the different forms of the flash before your eyes and states it’s a frustratingly quick glimpse into one’s life. To add on to the sadistic nature of the poem, he uses colorful language, “eye-brown singeing” to mirror death by explosion and the potential effect of one witnessing the entirety of their life in a flash. Thus relating to the dark nature of the image but contrasting on the humor and furthering the darkly humorous relationship. After stating this he says,”light before all the lights go out.” This connects to the image as it shows a man drowning but almost reaching toward the light. This can be interpreted as the man giving up on his life after seeing his flash back to life. Collins however would most likely relate it to the last light the man will see before perishing as he does not believe in the concept of a life flash before death. He even goes further to say that the last thing you will see before you go under is a fish. Thus contrasting with his early statements about the concept of a flash of life. This contrast can be illustrated in the photo as the image gets darker the further down it goes. This is very similar to the poem as the more he writes the more cynical he becomes. He even ends the poem by stating,”leaving behind what you have already forgotten” in a very negative and cynical tone. Thus mirroring the image that no matter how much the man waves his arms at the surface, he is already too far gone for anyone to help. (531 words)