"Enterprise" was written by the Indian poet Nissim Ezekiel and published in his 1960 collection The Unfinished Man. The poem follows a group of people on a "pilgrimage" whose long trek begins with a strong sense of purpose but ends in devastation and disillusionment. The pilgrims, who come across as idealistic yet somewhat naive and ill-prepared, get so beaten down by their journey that, once they reach their destination, they don't even remember why they're there. The poem has been read as an allegory for a number of things (including the journey of life itself, India's emergence from the grip of colonial rule, and the flaws of organized religion). Above all, it speaks to the way that idealism can falter in the face of reality, the divisive nature of pride, and the value of focusing on the journey rather than the destination.

• Read the full text of “Enterprise”

• “Enterprise” Summary

• “Enterprise” Themes

  • 

    The Journey of Life

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-30
  • 

    Idealism vs. Reality

    Where this theme appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-30

• Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “Enterprise”

  • Lines 1-3

    It started as ...
    ... The burdens light.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 3-5

    The second stage ...
    ... match our rage.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 6-10

    We stood it ...
    ... sage had taught.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 11-15

    But when the ...
    ... — and grows.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 16-20

    Another phase was ...
    ... he smelt the sea.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 21-25

    We noticed nothing ...
    ... some merely bent.

    

    

    

    

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  • Lines 26-30

    When, finally, we ...
    ... to gather grace.

    

    

    

    

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• “Enterprise” Symbols

  • 

    The Natural World

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Line 5: “The sun beat down to match our rage.”
    • Lines 11-12: “But when the differences arose / On how to cross a desert patch,”
    • Line 20: “Our leader said he smelt the sea.”
    • Line 23: “Ignoring what the thunder meant,”
  • 

    Darkness and Shadows

    Where this symbol appears in the poem:

    • Line 15: “A shadow falls on us — and grows.”
    • Line 28: “The trip had darkened every face,”

• “Enterprise” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language

  • Asyndeton

    

    

    

    

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    Where asyndeton appears in the poem:

    • Lines 8-10: “On things the peasants sold and bought, / The way of serpents and of goats, / Three cities where a sage had taught.”

  • Caesura

    

    

    

    

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    Where caesura appears in the poem:

    • Line 3: “light. The”
    • Line 6: “well, I”
    • Line 15: “us — and”
    • Line 17: “attacked, and”
    • Line 19: “group. I”
    • Line 25: “broken, some”
    • Line 26: “When, finally, we”

  • End-Stopped Line

    

    

    

    

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    Where end-stopped line appears in the poem:

    • Line 4: “call.”
    • Line 5: “rage.”
    • Line 6: “thought,”
    • Line 8: “bought,”
    • Line 9: “goats,”
    • Line 10: “taught.”
    • Line 12: “patch,”
    • Line 14: “batch.”
    • Line 15: “grows.”
    • Line 17: “way.”
    • Line 19: “pray.”
    • Line 20: “sea.”
    • Line 21: “went,”
    • Line 22: “hope,”
    • Line 23: “meant,”
    • Line 24: “soap.”
    • Line 25: “bent.”
    • Line 26: “place,”
    • Line 27: “there.”
    • Line 28: “face,”
    • Line 29: “rare.”
    • Line 30: “grace.”

  • Irony

    

    

    

    

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    Where irony appears in the poem:

    • Lines 1-30

  • Repetition

    

    

    

    

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    Where repetition appears in the poem:

    • Line 3: “The”
    • Line 5: “The”
    • Line 25: “Some,” “some”

  • Alliteration

    

    

    

    

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    Where alliteration appears in the poem:

    • Line 2: “minds,” “making”
    • Line 3: “second stage”
    • Line 10: “cities,” “sage”
    • Line 14: “best,” “batch”
    • Lines 16-17: “when we / Were twice attacked”
    • Line 17: “way”
    • Line 18: “claimed,” “liberty”
    • Line 19: “leave”
    • Line 20: “said,” “smelt,” “sea”
    • Line 21: “noticed nothing,” “we went”
    • Line 25: “broken,” “bent”
    • Line 27: “We,” “why we were”
    • Line 29: “neither,” “nor”
    • Line 30: “where we,” “gather grace”

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    Where appears in the poem:

  • Sibilance

    

    

    

    

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    Where sibilance appears in the poem:

    • Line 20: “said,” “smelt,” “sea”

• “Enterprise” Vocabulary

  Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.

  • Pilgrimage
  • Exalting
  • Burdens
  • Stood
  • Copious
  • Sage
  • Straggling
  • (Location in poem: Line 1: “It started as a pilgrimage”)

• Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Enterprise”

  • Form

  • Meter

  • Rhyme Scheme

• “Enterprise” Speaker

• “Enterprise” Setting

• Literary and Historical Context of “Enterprise”

• More “Enterprise” Resources

  • External Resources

    • "India's Most Famous Jewish Poet" — An article in Tablet magazine about Ezekiel's relationship to India, Britain, and Judaism.

    • What Is a Pilgrimage? — Learn more about the kind of journey referenced in the poem.

    • More Poems by Nissim Ezekiel — A selection of Ezekiel's work, including the well-known "Night of the Scorpion." 

    • Ezekiel's Obituary — An article discussing the poet's life and work.

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