Edward Hopper and The House by The Railroad

1. The picture immediately drives my eyes towards the windows by the left side. Though, that is most probably because through Edward Hirsch's writing in which he personified the house. This leads me to notice things that seem human. The windows, for me, resembles eyes of a person. I believe Hopper, in fact, does this with intentions to do the same as what Hirsch has done. In the picture, the side in which I believe resembles eyes is lightly drawn with bright colors whilst the central to right side is in shadows.

To me, I feel the thing that I am most drawn to is the color of the sky. The fading colors or transitions of colors of the skies always intrigued me. That is what my eyes lingered on time after time looking at this picture. While there probably is no artistic reason that draws me to the sky, Hopper does do a magnificent job with the colors. The details of the sky is really great. It is nice to see the time put into the background. This is why I believe that the sky is not only the background but also a complimentary to some other parts of the pictures. Possibly, it lends emphasis to the house or maybe it draws it away as it was for me. Quite possibly it is a figurative message presenting the house as a lonely object when placed in a broad spectrum such as the sky. Nonetheless, the painting is enjoyable like one of my favorite, Nighthawks; incidentally, also a painting by Edward Hopper.

2. Hirsch has noted many things within the painting. He's nicely noted the setting, the literal structure of the house and it's relationship with the railroad and also the figurative intentions. 

The first line in the first stanza clearly stated the time of day and it really explains what the message beneath the picture is. The sky in the painting is quite nice with the blue but also sickens with the yellowish-green color. This poem, with the first stanza introducing the time, brings out further the ominous nature of the painting by talking of the loneliness and the boredom and sadness this personified structure is feeling. 

The personification is to gain one's sympathy while reading for the house. That intent is done, not necessarily well as I personally didn't enjoy the poem as I did for the painting but the personification really lead me thinking about the emotions of the house.

The repetition of words did not make any significant progress but it did emphasize the structure, possibly even in a different perspective after being driven through the emotions and personifications of the house. But ultimately, it did not amplify any emotions.

Finally, the poem did, in a sense, give a new perspective to the painting. The painting, at first glance, seems to be a very literal portrait; of course, that is without any analysis. But after the Hirsch's poem, it gave showed me another possible undertone that Hopper may have drawn.