* Sweeney's emotional detachment: Sweeney is presented as a detached and emotionally numb character, unable to form meaningful connections or experience genuine affection. This emotional sterility mirrors the inability to create life.
* The fragmented world: The poem's setting is a broken and chaotic world, where the natural order seems disrupted. The nightingales' song, typically associated with fertility and life, is twisted and distorted, reflecting the overall sense of sterility.
* The symbolic references: The references to "the waste land" and the "dead" suggest a barren and unproductive landscape. This aligns with the theme of infertility, highlighting the lack of growth and potential for renewal.
While infertility isn't explicitly mentioned, the poem's imagery and symbolism create an overarching sense of sterility and a world devoid of life-giving potential. This ties into the broader themes of alienation, decay, and the fragmentation of modern life.
However, it's important to note that "Sweeney Among the Nightingales" is a complex and open-ended poem, and different readers may interpret the theme of infertility differently. Some might argue that the poem explores the broader themes of human alienation and the loss of connection, with infertility being a metaphor for this broader sense of emptiness and despair.