Poetry Explication of The Silence of Women - Essay Example

English 09 April Explanation of the poem “The Silence of Women” by Liz Rosenberg Rosenberg is a well known poet,endeared by children even, as she had written books for them. She is a versatile genius, who is employed as a professor of English at Binghamton University. The Silence of Women is a very popular poem written in the backdrop of a male chauvinistic society, where women folk have no say. Gender discrimination was the order of the day, and women had only a submissive role. Her collection of poems titled ‘Children of Paradise’ which come out in 1994, bears expression to her grouse against male domination in the society.

The poem discussed in the topic is included in this collection of poems. She lashes out at men, not with any emotional remarks, but in a humorous way. She says that men get mellowed as they grow in age, or as they grow older, but women are diametrically opposite in nature. They give vent to their suppressed emotions through instinctive outbursts.According to the poet, women become emotional as they grow in age, for the simple reason that they have been submissive to men over the years. They never got any upper hand at home or at their work place, during their prime period.

So, at a later stage, they express their subdued feelings by shouting out at their husbands. This helps them overcome their disappointment or unfulfilled ambitions. The poet feels sorry for those husbands or men who surrender to their wife’s irritation. It is obviously ironic on the part of men to be docile to their wife’s remarks, as they were once intolerant and impatient with their women. She cites examples of husbands being drawn to malls by their wives, or being ordered about in public places.

Expressions like “hauled” “sit there! and don’t you move!” bear expression to the (excess) freedom of expression enjoyed by women at a later stage. The poet is not a feminist totally, but, through the poem, she wants to drive home the idea that women despite their love for their husbands all through their life, try to dominate them when they become weak in health or mind. The poem picturises the emotional drama of a woman, who loves her husband, but fails to be polite to him. There are quite a number of lines in the poem that bring out the poet’s sympathy as well as cynicism to women.

A care in point is the line:“A lifetime of yes has left themHissing bent as snakes” (Rosenberg).The poet, being a woman, knows very well that woman never enjoyed equal status with men, right from their childhood days. This is the sole reason for women being antipathetic to their male counter parts, and it grows as they (women) grow in age. Fortunately or unfortunately, men tend to be more dependent on their wives as they grow old and get weak. It is purely psychological on the part of the poet to use the imagery of snakes, thereby expressing her strong protest over the wasted years of women.

Youthful women had no space in society to raise their opinions or views. Generally, women lament at a later stage for their passive role in society. This in turn provokes them to be harsh to their aging husbands, despite the strong love they have for them. The paradox lies in the fact that roles are reversed men and women at home and in society, at a later stage. The striking remark in the poem,“the chicken hatching back into the egg” (Rosenberg) is the blunt expression of women about their husbands, that they turn to be weak and dependent on their wives as they grow old.

The use of such rich imageries, perhaps, brings out the angry protests of women, including poet, against the supreme of the males in society. Gender equality was never an issue in society, though occasional outcries were heard from certain quarters off and on. Women are strong in spirits, though they are referred to as weaker sex. In other words, one can say that women prove their strength as they grow old, whereas men fade out in their later years. The silence of women cannot be mistaken for their weakness.

They maintain their individuality in a subjugated form initially, and later on bounce back to limelight. So it is actually a transition from spotlight to limelight, if one goes by their graph of life.Women are acknowledged only at home, and that too, for the invaluable responsibility they undertake at home, which men at any stage of their life wouldn’t dare to. It is quite natural that women lose their identity and individuality by being submissive to men, and men realize this only when their roles are reversed at a later stage.

Women make a lot of compromises for their families, unlike their husbands. Freedom of expression is dear to anyone, irrespective of gender. They turn against men in the latter part of their life. This poem reveals the emotional trauma in making endless scarifies for their husbands, but are left degraded on underestimated everywhere, for the best part of their lives.Works CitedRosenberg, Liz. The Silence of Women. Litstudies. 2008. Web. 09 April 2012.