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Abuse In Mary Oliver's Wild Geese

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Mary Oliver is a highly-acclaimed poet that is well known for her spiritual and prophetic works. Her poems often speak of the sensuous world, and in doing so, raise philosophical questions that test the Judeo-Christian definition of human nature (Allen). Oliver’s spiritualism involving the natural world provokes the distinct lack of respect that so many people seem to have for nature; her hope is that the sense of wonder for nature that she employs in her poems will persuade how people view the world (Tassi). Mary Oliver is also known for examining the effects of an abusive childhood throughout various poems—she is inclined to give the harm that the abuse caused a name so that one can reclaim active responsibility of their mental health (Winslow). Throughout her poems, Oliver seems to invoke a transformation within herself, and she persuades the reader to do the same (Graham). In “Wild Geese,” Oliver …show more content…

Mary Oliver’s words ascend from despair and uncertainty to express that a person must love and accept themselves for who they are and what they have done. Oliver herself had been through so much, and she understands what true pain is. Yet, she continues onward like the earth around her—unwilling to yield to the pain and suffering that bombards her around every corner. She transformed the painful lessons that she learned through abuse and suffering into beautiful words that “calls to you like the geese, harsh and exciting” (646). She invites her readers to undergo a self-transformation—before, they were disconnected from the world, but after examining themselves and understanding that they are worthy, they are united once more with the earth around them in a harmonious

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