How would you explain the metaphor of the hypodermic needle in the fifth stanza of "Trumpet Player"? Does Hughes mean that music is the needle that...

In the last stanza of "Trumpet Player," Hughes writes that "It's hypodermic needle / to his soul." Yes, this means that the music the trumpet player makes soothes some of his pain and acts like a tonic to him. The effect of this metaphor is to emphasize how strongly music acts upon the performer. It's also a reference to the earlier lines that read, "that is longing for the sea / where the sea's a...

In the last stanza of "Trumpet Player," Hughes writes that "It's hypodermic needle / to his soul." Yes, this means that the music the trumpet player makes soothes some of his pain and acts like a tonic to him. The effect of this metaphor is to emphasize how strongly music acts upon the performer. It's also a reference to the earlier lines that read, "that is longing for the sea / where the sea's a bar-glass / sucker size." In these lines, the trumpet player's desire for the sea, and his desire to overcome his pain, cause him to turn to a "bar-glass," or to drinking. The contrast between the bar glass and the hypodermic needle is that the trumpet player is drowning his sorrows by drinking but the music, like a drug, lifts his soul. The poem is about the ways in which the trumpet player's music is an expression of both joy and pain, particularly pain from the past, including slavery. The metaphors of the needle and the bar glass continue the idea that his music combines elements of both joy and pain.