Gwendolyn Brook The Mother Summary

In Anne Sexton’s poem “The Abortion”, she uses literary devices to reflect her heart wrenching decision of whether or not to abort one of her children, which reflects the style of confessional poetry because she is sharing her personal feelings and experiences. Anne Sexton was a famous poet of confessional poetry, where the poets write about their private experiences with feelings about death, trauma, and depression in their lives. Anne Sexton wrote from the point of view of an upper middle class woman. She had two children, and the stress of having them, gave her life long depression. Sexton was sent to a psychiatric hospital after the birth of her second child. “The Abortion” displays all of Sexton’s feelings that she has about her abortion.

Susan Sherwin’s view on abortion is primarily focused through the lens of feminist philosophy. Her article focuses primarily on how the feminist view provides more holistic, and less cold view on the topic of abortion that is more inclusive of the mother. The feminist view of abortion is primarily focused on looking at the factors that affect the mother through the process of the abortion, such as a woman’s feelings around the fetus, is conception, her partner, and her obligations. These are all factors that are not usually thought of by non-feminist thinkers. This is usually because the discussion around this topic is, as the author puts it “generally grounded in masculinist concepts of freedom (such as privacy, individual choice, and individuals’ property rights with respect to their own bodies)” (Sherwin.1997, 100). This view, as she puts it, primarily focuses on the morality and legal aspects of abortion. The basis of Sherwin’s paper centers around a feminist model from which to look at abortion. This model takes into account the emotional impact that an unwanted pregnancy has on the woman, who will be impacted most by this event. It gives sole power of design to the woman, who “may make mistakes in their moral judgements, but no one else can be assumed to have the authority to evaluate and overrule their judgements”. (Sherwin.1997, 102) Sherwin also advocates against the division of the mother and the fetus as separate entities during bioethical discussions. This also

Megan Stielstra, the author of “Channel B,” deals with her struggles of postpartum depression by stalking her neighbor, who had just recently given birth as well, with a baby monitor. In this aforementioned essay, Stielstra uses despondent word choices to effectively show insight, heartbreak, compassion, and the responsibilities that factor into being a mother for the first time. The reader finds the story more relatable because the author is providing an account of her own experience. She demonstrated to the audience that by obsessing over her neighbor it made her “feel less alone in this crazy world” (250). Hearing the same crying from another new mother validated her feelings of despair. New mothers, who feel alone, are the focus audience

The tone of hopelessness in this poem is very obviously the result of regret, or the feelings of what motherhood may have been. For a majority of the poem the mother focuses on what their lives would have been having “never giggled or planned or cried” (4) or how they “will never wind up the sucking thumb” (4). Although these are only a few examples it is very evident how the mother, although denied the joy of motherhood, longs for the child she almost had, saying, “believe me, I knew you, though faintly, and I loved, I loved you/ All” (5). In an attempt to take a more positive outlook on the mother tries to justify herself saying how much better the child’s life would be, that as a mother she would never have the chance to “neglect or beat/ Them…” (4). The story behind “the mother” is just one example of hopelessness that Brooks prominently saw throughout her community, obviously this feeling of regret and lament was prevalent throughout many women who, although chose to have abortions, were not done out of not wanting the child, but by force in order to keep a job, house, or some other commitment in which carrying and properly raising a child would be near impossible.

The Walls are Talking by Abby Johnson is an important book that every person considering abortion should read. As the women in the book account the tales of their abortions it is hard for the reader not to be horrified by the grotesque and dangerous actions taking place in abortion clinics. The Walls are Talking not only terrifies the reader of the true nature of abortion but also makes them empathize with the emotional turmoil that these women are thrown into. This can be seen particularly in one of the stories where a woman who already had nine abortions asked to see the ultrasound of her baby being aborted. The sight of her baby’s murder was so powerful that she decided she would no longer advocate for abortion.

The mother’s struggle for identity is also presented through the poem’s depressing imagery as well as the figurative and literal language. The first quatrain states the sad, regretful statement of “too late” (4). This imagery of loneliness is reflected upon the passion and pain involved with her once lover. When the

In class, we discussed three different possibilities of the meaning of Gwendolyn Brooks’s story “The Mother.” The first and most probable interpretation of this story is that it is narrated by a mother who has gone through a miscarriage and is trying to warn other mothers not to get abortions because they will regret it. This interpretation contains the greatest amount of solid evidence and makes the most sense. The other two, while less plausible, still have some argument for them. The second theory is that the story is narrated by a mother who has undergone an abortion and is living through the heartache of it, and is now trying to convince other mothers to not do this. The third, and least plausible meaning, is that this is narrated by

When others recall personal experiences relating to this issue, "The Mother" by Gwendolyn Brooks touches up on the emotional topic of abortion. Accepting abortion and the consequence of it can be difficult for some people, while others are accustomed to it without it being a problem. Brooks allow us to see from a mothers view of abortion and show a mother's reaction to this type of situation. It brings forth a political debate topic, but cannot really be used to divide for a pro and against side. The emotional complexity leads the reader to really think about the inner turmoil of a woman going through the situation. Abortion is a complicated experience for all involved. For instance, in October Baby, a girl named Hannah goes through countless

The road to motherhood is a personal journey with many hidden emotions and agendas. Some journeys are dark and dreary and unspoken. In the poems “Metaphor” by Sylvia Plath and “The Mother” by Gwendolyn Brooks both have many similarities and a little differences. Both of the mothers in the poems feel the pain of being a mother. Although the mothers took different paths of motherhood they both have regrets and wish things would have been different.

The poem “The Mother” by Gwendolyn Brooks is about the aftereffects and feelings that come from an abortion. The woman in the poem shows remorse over the children she aborted earlier in her life and regrets that she gave up the chance to be a mother to them. This poem, while about a woman who chose to have abortions, still carries with it a clear pro-life message.

In Gwendolyn Brooks’ poem, The Mother, Brooks uses great word choice, imagery, figure of speech and symbolism to allow the readers to get a sense of what the woman in the poem, who is remorseful in her actions and in the period of reflection after having had an abortion, is going through. Literary technique is very important for a fantastic poem, and Brooks does a great job of using them. Word choice is very important

Sallie Tisdale’s “We do abortions here” is an informational narrative discussing the controversial topic of abortion coming from a primary source. Tisdale’s purpose is to bring a humanistic side to the issue of abortion, she attempts to lift the cruel and unjust stigma behind the procedure but ultimately lets her audience make their own decision on the matter, since she does not let her opinion on abortion be known but provides all the details regarding the procedure from a nurse’s perspective, including the good and bad experiences she sees on a day to day basis, from sharing “transient bonds” with her clients to handling “bloody remains” and the “numbing sameness” of her job. Tisdale’s story is an example of narration because she structures

When I think about my children I could not imagine life without them. When I picture their faces, a few emotions come to mind, such as, love and happiness. The thought of not having them never crossed my mind. Some women are forced to make the difficult decision, not to bring their children into the world. No matter why they make this choice one can probably agree that it has to be emotional for them. In her poem “The Mother,” Gwendolyn Brooks writes in free verse so the reader is able to notice the speaker’s emotions change. Her rhyming patterns show that she cares for, mourns for, and desires for her aborted children.

Nevertheless, poetry could even be the way a person gets things that is bothering them of their chest. In this case two female poets were writing about something that occurs daily in everyday life. In this essay I will compare and contrast two poems as well as the poets. One being, “The Mother” by Gwendolyn Brooks. As well as, “ Because I could

In the beginning of the poem the mother makes it clear that she is reminiscing on her abortions with “Abortions will not let you forget” (line1) from this line we understand that she is a mother, she addresses the audience directly with the word “you” this automatically involves the audience into the poem. The first line brings you into the poem and makes you want to read more. The lines following this gives insight into the first line. Just because someone has an abortion it will not let them forget, the saying out of sight out of mind does not apply in the case. “The children you got that you did not get” (line2) the way Brooks worded this line appeals to me. “ the children you got” meaning the baby or fetuses she was pregnant