18 pages • 36 minutes read
John Gillespie Magee, Jr.High Flight
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 1942A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Symbols & Motifs
“Footless Halls of Air”
In the end of the octave, the pilot notes how they “flung / [their] eager craft through footless halls of air” (Lines 7-8, emphasis added), suggesting the plane is soaring through the vast reaches of the immense sky. At this point, nearing 33,000 feet, any plane would be out of range of seeing the ground due to the curvature of the Earth. The space is therefore “footless” (Line 8), without a seeming end. Since lift-off is equated with “slip[ing] the surly bonds of Earth” (Line 1), the sky’s “footless” (Line 8) quality is seen as desirable. Further, the word “footless” (Line 8) implies a sense of boundlessness, or freedom from the material world and its demands. This in turn prepares the pilot for their epiphany in the “untrespassed […] space” (Line 13) they encounter later. Letting go of the “bonds of Earth” (Line 1) to enter the “footless halls of air” (Line 8) lets them become open to the holy experience of seeing “the face of God” (Line 14). These “footless halls” (Line 8) thus symbolize the physical and spiritual freedom found in flight.
The Symbolism of the Lark
John Gillespie Magee Jr.’s speaker explains that during their flight, they have soared “where never lark nor ever eagle flew” (Line 11). This reference is both practical and symbolic. On a factual level, no bird can reach 33,000 feet, whereas the speaker’s plane can. More interestingly, Greek and Christian symbolism tie the lark to Magee’s themes in the last stanza. For the Greeks, larks were seen as divinely blessed because they could take off from the ground at high speed. Thus, they were equated to successful heroes on their journeys, pleasing the gods. The pilot’s own high speed and his feeling of experiencing divinity is in line with this imagery, as is his status as an adventurer discovering new things.
In Christianity, larks are symbolic of faith, openness, and joy. Unlike other birds, who sing while perched, larks sing while in flight upward. This symbolically suggests their song is one of praise, equivalent to the speaker’s “lifting mind” (Line 12), connecting to the Divine in the final line. Further, the lark is considered an optimistic symbol of courage and strength during battle. If one considers the implied notion that the plane is a war plane, this reference has added weight and poignancy.
The Anglican Symbolism of the Eagle
In Anglican churches, lecterns are often carved in the shape of an eagle, with the bird’s open wings seemingly holding the Bible that would rest on the top. In this mythology, the eagle was believed to be the bird that could fly highest in the sky, gaining high-altitude and able to see heaven. The eagle was also believed to be a bird that could stare directly into the sun without flinching. For Anglicans, this symbolized the Christian who would withstand the glory of the revelation of the Divine.
Magee uses this imagery throughout “High Flight,” especially connecting the pilot’s ascent as going beyond the “eagle[’s]” (Line 12) and stressing the ascent is toward the sun. The sonnet’s final images rests too on the pilot’s devotion to the newly found “untrespassed sanctity of space” (Line 13), where they can “[p]ut out [their] hand, and touc[h] the face of God” (Line 14). As Magee was raised by Anglican missionaries, it would make sense he would turn to such symbols to convey his sense of spiritual epiphany.
