“Witch War”

David | Jul 14, 2009 min read

Why didn’t someone tell me there were so many vignette’s in “I Am Legend”?

Anyhow, this little snippet is almost poetry. It’s a great collection of images given in clear, if abrupt, language:

Sky clearing its throat with thunder, picking and dropping long lightening from immeasurable shoulders. Rain hushing the world, bowing the trees, pocking earth. Square building, low, with one wall plastic.

It’s what really stands out to me here. Matheson’s use of imagery is overpowering here, which is okay since there’s not much other than an intriguing incident here. Not even a main character to speak of, nor a clear conflict other than the generic conflict we find in any war. As a writer, the poetics of this piece really appeal to me, and I think it’s a good example of how to work poetic images into narrative.

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