Jane Toomer's "Reapers"
             The author of this particular work can be described in a few words, "very disturbed". Jean Toomer seems to be using the world of the supernatural as a basis for her poetry. She seems to be very infatuated with death and how it comes to pass in everyday life. The structure and style of the poem are very basic but the words have a deeper meaning than what is just on the paper. The shelter of death is the theme of this poem and the words identify this throughout the poem. The question that we must ask ourselves about the poem is "How deep did Toomer intend the poem to go into the world of the supernatural?"
             The first thing noticed during the reading of the poem is the appearance of the "Black Reapers". This is a reference to the supernatural world by Toomer. The black reaper is a symbol of death and is sent by death to collect the spirits of the living. This refers to an old fairytale that we all have heard once in our lifetime. These reapers carry long, sharp scythes. These scythes are used to kill the living creature or being that death has called the reaper to retrieve. The reapers play the major role in the poem. They are seen sharpening their scythes preparing for something in the near future. The reapers are preparing to gather the spirits that death has summoned. There appears to be more than one reaper and that is shown in the fourth line of the poem. They start to swing their scythes at the nearby "weeds". The "weeds" are a symbol for the lives of the people in the poem who are awaiting death. The reapers gather and mount their "black horses". These horses could symbolize an illness or plague during this time that reapers use to "kill off" whoever is in their path. This illness drives through the "weeds" or people like wildfire and the "weeds" are helples
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