The poem juxtaposes humans and nature as two mighty opposites, contending for supremacy. Each battles the other, in a forceful back and forth. The area around the mouth of the Neva River seems a very inhospitable place for human habitation; only a few poor people eke out a living there. Then comes Peter the Great with a stupendous vision and the power to carry it out. Atop swamp and forest, Saint Petersburg rises up in such splendor the narrator calls it one of the wonders of the world. Man has subdued the river into a scenic spectacle for human enjoyment: The narrator writes warmly of the “Neva’s augustly flowing water” decorating the city majestically (Introduction, Line 45).

But though humanity has its years of triumph, nature only seems to be tame. In fact, it bides its time, and when opportunity presents itself, the river rises up. The poem personifies the water as a malevolent force with an ill-will toward the city, describing it as seeking vengeance, lying in wait to strike like thieves breaking into houses, and as behaving like a mighty beast that escapes from a cage and wants to kill everything in sight. The rising, raging water is cannot be stopped—all the splendor of Saint Petersburg is overwhelmed in a few hours.