Well-Educated Mind Poetry Reading List discussion

The Fall of Rome is an interesting poem.

It begins general and broad, about nature and nothing that seemed related to the topic of Rome.

The next several stanzas demonstrate the ways in which a society falls: through tax evasion, mental apathy, sexual perversion (I added the perversion part) -- maybe more like sexual fixation, educated citizens not very intelligent or smart, armies rebelling, government employees discontent.

Then the final two stanzas return back to topics unrelated to the demise of a city. Birds are patiently waiting for the time they may return to the empty city, and reindeer are moving swiftly over a landscape. Obviously, reindeer do not belong in Rome, and it is an indication that this poem isn't only about the fall of Rome, but rather is indicative of many civilizations throughout time. They all seem to follow the same prescription for demise.