In summary, "Ambulances" is a poem on death. The poem depicts what happens when a seriously ill person is carried to the hospital in an ambulance. Despite the dismal theme, the poem features some of Philip Larkin's signature touches, such as his ambivalence regarding death. Larkin described himself as a "miserable old man who has never laughed", and it's clear that he took this state of mind very seriously. Larkin was born on March 12, 1933, in Coventry, England. His father was a government worker and his mother was a housewife who enjoyed writing poetry and stories. When Larkin was only six years old, his family moved to Hull, where his father got a job with the Department for Education and Science. Although they had little money, his parents tried to make sure Larkin and his sister went to school regularly. When Larkin was eleven years old, his father died from cancer. After this loss, Larkin's mother decided it would be best if she moved the family back to Coventry, because she didn't feel like she could afford to keep them there anymore. Life in Coventry wasn't easy for Larkin: he felt lonely and abandoned. This is probably why he became so obsessed with death later in life. Larkin started writing poems at age fifteen.