Sylvia Plath Morning Song Analysis

In exploring this poem the tone of the opening line – “Abortions will not let you forget” – can be viewed as regretful and as offering a kind of warning. As we move through the poem the tone of line four, might be called literally imaginative, as she say; “The singers and workers that never handled the air”. While in lines 5-6 the tone seems at first brutally honest and realistic and then affectionate and realistic. As she continues to lines 7-10, as well as in many lines of this poem, the mother expresses herself as a person who is fully familiar with all the small, subtle realities of parenting. She even expresses her attitudes toward her abortions even more complex.

The children are unnoticed by others and the mother is the only one that is protecting them. This poem shows the hard times that the mother must face because her children have died. However the mother is coping with them while still protecting her children after they have died, This is the mother's way of coping because she is not yet ready to let go of her children and still wants to care for them. This poem shows this through nature by portraying the mother as a bird who is protecting her nest. Also the poem uses nature by describing the harsh times as a winter wind that has caused harm to the mother and her children.

‘Prayer before Birth’ is a dark and disturbing poem written from the point of view of the unborn child who is preaching to God that when he is born, hoping he is not affected by the horrors of society. Macneice 's negative views towards current society are shown through the fetus’ spiteful thoughts; in the fifth stanza, Macneice lists how the unborn child wants to avoid ‘bureaucrats’ hectoring him, avoid being laughed at ‘by lovers’ and not be frowned at by ‘mountains’-this portrays how paranoid the fetus is. Not only is he worried about being judged by ordinary people, but also the landscape surrounding him. The influence of nature will affect his unspoilt unborn form, but he should not be looking at it pessimistically. One of the most powerful effects used by Macneice is the repetition of the phrase ‘I am not born yet.’ This emphasises the fact that he has not yet

"The Mother," by Gwendolyn Brooks, is a sorrowful, distressing poem about a mother who has experienced numerous abortions. While reading the poem, you can feel the pain, heartache, distress and grief she is feeling. She is both remorseful and regretful; nevertheless, she explains that she had no other alternative. It is a sentimental and heart wrenching poem where she talks about not being able to experience or do things with the children that she aborted -- things that people who have children often take for granted. Perhaps this poem is a reflection of what many women in society are feeling.

This simile is a representation of the egocentric attitude of the poet, as the birth of her child is simply a reminder of her disintegrating life. While Wright and Plath both convey views on the beginning life, Wright focuses on how it is natural and beautiful, while Plath considers birth to be a burden. After birth follows life, as expressed by Dickenson and Wright.

A Mother to her Waking Infant was first published in 1790; the poem is narrated by a mother who is focusing her thoughts and words towards her newborn baby. The poem is directed solely at the child of the title, with the mothers words starting as the child awakes, Now in thy dazzling half-oped eye. Joanna Baillie uses a number of techniques to mirror and represent a new mothers emotions and affections for her child. The meter and form of the poem help to emphasise these emotions and the various other uses of language contribute to the effect of the piece on a reader.

Sylvia Plath and Gwen Harwood tell two very different stories of parental relationships, Mother Who Gave Me Life praising Harwood’s mother and speaking with love and affection, whereas Plath’s Daddy is full of hate for her father. These reflections on the poet’s parental relationships are made using imagery, symbolism and tone.

The poem “The Mother” written by Gwendolyn Brooks in 1945, is a poem that focuses on the immeasurable losses a woman experiences after having an abortion. The poems free verse style has a mournful tone that captures the vast emotions a mother goes through trying to cope with the choices she has made. The author writes each stanza of the poem using a different style, and point of view, with subtle metaphors to express the speaker’s deep struggle as she copes with her abortions. The poem begins with, “Abortions will not let you forget” (Brooks 1), the first line of the poem uses personification to capture your attention. The title of the poem has the reader’s mindset centered around motherhood, but the author’s expertise with the opening line, immediately shifts your view to the actual theme of the poem. In this first line the speaker is telling you directly, you will never forget having an abortion. Brooks utilizes the speaker of the poem, to convey that this mother is pleading for forgiveness from the children she chose not to have.

At the end of the first stanza, the poet says “the steady breaking and wombing”. Steady breaking reminds you of the waves breaking on the beach on a nice clear morning, which implies it is a good memory. The word “wombing” is very rarely used in everyday life. It means to be doing nothing, being oblivious to the outside world. In addition, it implies protection and comfort. Before a baby is born, it lives in the mother’s womb, where the mother protects it and comforts. The womb is the baby’s home, although only for a short while. When the

The third stanza of the poem expresses the emotional connection between the mother and the child having grown stronger. “O node and focus of the world” (11). Her child is the center of her world. This symbolizes just how important her child is to her, it was become the “focus” of her life. “I hold you deep within that well/ you shall escape and not escape-/ that mirrors still your sleeping shape;/ that nurtures still your crescent cell” (12-13). The “well” represents the woman’s womb that molds and “nurtures” that child while it sleeps. The part that speaks about the child escaping refers to the child no longer being inside of the mother yet always being a part of her. The mother will always have an emotional connection to her child.

Daystar by Rita Dove emphasizes gender roles and the expectations society has towards being a mother. It is often believed that mothers should assume responsibility for cooking, cleaning, tending to their demanding children and husbands. The poem illustrates the challenges women endure to live up to society’s expectations to be a fit mother and wife. As seen through the main character mothers have to make sacrifices that often puts everyone else’s happiness before their own. For example, the women in the poem desired to have time to herself but she couldn’t because she had endless chores and children to care for. Not having time to herself made her feel lost and unfulfilled.

Maya Angelou said, “To describe my mother would be to write about a hurricane in its perfect power. Or the climbing, falling colors of a rainbow” (Wanderlust 1). The relationship a mother has with her child transcends all other relationships in complexity. Maternity largely contributes to the female identity in part because the ability to sexually reproduce is uniquely female. With this ability often comes an unparalleled feeling of responsibility. That is, mothers experience an inherent desire to protect their children from the world and guide them through life. Serving as a child’s protector then transforms a woman’s perspective, or the female gaze. While these protective instincts often arise naturally, they are also reinforced by the ideas society’s perpetuates about motherhood. Globally, women are expected to assume the roles of wives and mothers. The belief that motherhood is somewhat of a requirement assists in the subjugation of women and reinforces a plethora of gendered stereotypes. While some women enjoy the process of childrearing, others feel that having a family comes at an irreparable cost: losing sight of oneself. In response to the polarized views surrounding maternity, several authors have employed different writing techniques to illustrate the mother-child dynamic. Through the examination of three narratives, spanning fiction and non-fiction, one is able to better define maternity and the corresponding female gaze in both symbolic and universal terms.

The next stanza moves on to talk about how Plath's apprehension stops her from bonding with he child with these lines: "I'm no more your mother / Than the cloud that distills a mirror to reflect its own slow / Effacement at the wind's hand." Here Plath (the ‘cloud') is resenting giving birth to her image as it reminds her of her own inevitable mortality. The child is the mirror, which reflects the dissipation of the cloud.

An analysis of poems discussing the different ideas of infancy and what infancy and childhood means to different people. The ideas of infancy vary across the poems from being a curse to the family to being a blessing from the heavens or even a key to break out of the boundaries set by reality. The poets use various literary devices such as metaphors, similes and different poem structure to convey the message that they carry. Each poem has its own viewpoint on infancy. On the whole four of the poems, “Infant Joy” –William Blake, “You’re” – Sylvia Plath, “Once upon a time” – Gabriel Okara and “Piano” by D.H. Lawrence all have a more positive view towards infancy whereas, “ Infant Sorrow” – William Blake and “Prayer before birth” – Louis MacNeice show a more pessimistic side towards infancy. Despite the fact that each poem has its own different point of view on the subject of infancy, they all seem to share one thought which is the fact that infancy represents innocence and in some cases a fresh start.

The poem is about being pregnant and she uses nine lines with 9 syllables in each line. This is stated in the first line of the poem. There is a sense of regret about the pregnancy throughout the piece. Plath focuses on the negative attributes of being pregnant and the inflections of it on her. "An elephant" suggests her belly is showing and she feels large. However, Plath describes herself as a "ponderous house" suggesting that she is slow and clumsy because of her weight and she is trying to hide this. "This loaf's big with its yeasty rising" implies that she is getting even larger as time goes on. In the 6th line the impression that this is her first pregnancy and she is feeling obese is shown when she says, "money's new-minted in this fat purse." Two meanings can be derived from "a cow in calf." One being that she is a child giving birth to a child. The other is that she feels the baby is bigger than her, literally a calf giving birth to a cow. Plath also gives the idea of being ill and having pains when she says, "I've eaten a bag of green apples." However, at the end she knows there is nothing she can do but go through with the pregnancy; "boarded the train there's no getting off."