where the land wants to be water, / bodies bubbling up like next-day seltza
-- Speaker (Lines 3-4)

Importance: This line encapsulates the unusual ecosystem of this area. The speaker personifies the land using the word “wants”, which gives the landscape a conscious, mythic quality. The imagery of a swampland hiding bodies juxtaposes the more urban imagery later in the poem, encompassing the cross-world qualities of this unique place.

the music and the music and the music
-- Speaker (Line 12)

Importance: This poem uses nontraditional formatting to give the narrative an auditory quality. Only three individual words are used — conjunction, article, noun — but the italic and bold formatting creates nuance to each usage. This visual choice creates a series of impressions in the reader’s mind, bringing the music in the scene to a dynamic crescendo.

… and find at destination, / nobody – no body – in the back seat
-- Speaker (Lines 16-17)

Importance: This line parallels two contrasting meanings of the word “nobody” to humorous effect...