- In “The Wife” by Emily Dickenson, what surprised me was her use of verbal irony when she says, “She rose to his requirement, dropped/The playthings of her life/To take the honorable work/Of woman and of wife” (Dickenson 1-4). This surprised me because during her time in the 1800s, being a wife in the way that was expected was to live a life in the house, being subservient to your husband. In these lines, she portrays womanhood and marriage as an honorable thing for women, when in reality it wasn’t, and a lot of women secretly hated it. This is surprising to me because it shows that Emily Dickenson was critical of her time despite the cultural norms and gender standards put in place. When she describes the woman’s individuality before marriage as the “playthings of her life” it reiterates the idea that it wasn’t important, and her responsibility and focus lie with a man not with herself or in other words, “the playthings of her life”.
- The part of the poem that intrigued me was Dickenson’s inclusion of the sea when she says, “as the sea/Develops both pearl and weed” (Dickenson 9-10). This intrigued me because pearls are beautiful creations that come from the sea, but seaweed is bothersome. When you go to the beach and the water is covered with seaweed, it feels weird on your skin, it’s hard to swim through and it tangles up in everything. On the contrary, oysters make pearls, and they are often beautiful and worth a lot of money. This intrigued me because she amplifies how both beauty and ugly can be found in the same place. In relation to marriage, it can be both beautiful and ugly especially in this case where the Cult of Domesticity is the norm. Marriage is beautiful because it solidifies a companionship and women are taken care of financially by their husbands, but it’s ugly in the sense that they assume the domestic responsibilities at the cost of their freedom and independence.
- What puzzled me about the poem were the last 2 lines where Dickenson says, “But only to himself is known/The fathoms they abide” (Dickenson 11-12). This puzzled me because I wasn’t sure what she was referring to whether the “himself” was the ocean, God, or the husband mentioned in the beginning. I assumed it was about the ocean and the fact that only the ocean knows itself and what it can tolerate. This was to represent the woman as the wife to convey the idea that the woman is alone in her sadness and imprisonment in her marriage and only she can save herself.
Powered by:
top
2 thoughts on “Kiara Gonzalez Discussion Board 9”
1. I think in lines 1-4 of “The Wife” by Emily Dickinson, she regards the duties of the wife as “honorable work,” but I don’t believe she is actually portraying them as honorable. I believe her stating “She rose to his requirement, dropped/The playthings of her life…” points to it being a sacrifice of a woman’s individual desires to satisfy the man.
2. I love your analysis of lines 9 and 10 because the amplification of how both beauty and ugly can be found in the same place is not something that came to mind for me.
3. I do believe lines 11 and 12 are referring to the sea because only the sea knows what it holds within.
Kiara, it is so good to see someone discussing the Dickinson poem! Your responses are so thoughtful and your analysis of the poem, which also comes through, is very insightful, reflecting both understanding of historical context and more timeless elements of the poem. You have interpreted those enigmatic lines about the sea very well. I think those lines puzzle many people. The metaphor expresses the fact that only she knows of her discontent, just as only the sea knows what lies at its darkest depths.