The Mutes by Denise Levertov - Essay Example

Close Reading Response to “The Mutes” by Denise Levertov Through the free-verse narrative of “The Mutes” by Denise Levertov, a peculiar sentiment emerging from the view and treatment of women in a chiefly sexist society is a brought across. Levertov explores herein a sensitive theme which feminists would rather, with reasonable protest, hold austere critique of based on a long history of struggle concerning gender inequality and discrimination against women in a male-dominated world. As the poet initiates on applying a tough word “groans” in the beginning of the poem, a reader may naturally be inclined to recollect the mediocre labels for which the knowledge of female species is associated. It would appear as though such groans are an embodiment of a man’s reminder of a woman’s identity in the crisis of being weak, oppressed, exploited, and to a greater extent, a symbolism for sex in a society that has established moral judgment on women according to the norms and rules set via male perspective so that women become disposed to feel a degree of shame and tend to dissolve it in “mutes” – in silence. Essentially, mutes and groans are an irony to each other. The third person speaker expresses at the onset “Those groans men use / passing a woman on the street / or on the steps of the subway / to tell her she is a female / and their flesh knows it” to conjecture that men are more likely the first to act and women are merely fulfilled on keeping to themselves an opinion or interpretation thereof. ‘Flesh’, as it occurs, serves as a term which pertains to an object of interest for men and knowing this, as an acknowledgement of truth for women is something that the latter ought to be aware about even if the subject remains unspoken of in compliance with the general code of ethics. To analyze, as a woman herself, Levertov assumes the position of the speaker and reflects the need to ponder and understand the issue at hand as she inquires “are they a sort of tune, / an ugly enough song, sung / by a bird with a slit tongue / but meant for music?” For a moment, she considers herself partaking the significant mundane female role that consists of an intention to have answers sought in reference to how men regard women in terms of the choice of gesture and language. Apparently, as may be inferred from her literary thought and any woman’s experience of reality altogether, men are capable of revealing desires in sounds they know would connect to the nature of women. Then the speaker proceeds on with her query – “Or are they the muffled roaring / of deafmutes trapped in a building that is / slowly filling with smoke? / Perhaps both.” Seemingly, she manages to figure at this stage that while a man can opt to value woman with a lyrical attitude of conveying emotions, he can otherwise address her in gloom of mistreatment. Either way, such manifestation of groaning bears with it a negative connotation that men are normally in control and women look obliged in conducting themselves to perform the task of pleasing their sex counterparts to the point of satisfying what their groans call for. At the middle of Levertov’s poetic work, a critical reader may recognize the poet’s translational use of the principal word, this time, to illustrate how it differs in function when applied to women. This is evident in the lines “Such men most often / look as if groan were all they could do, / yet a woman, in spite of herself, / knows it’s a tribute” which necessarily communicate the essence of intimacy to a woman. In the common socio-cultural setting we have at present, we have gained profound comprehension of the grounds that fated women with reserved character upon remembrance of the ill past which subjected them to physical abuse, slavery and other forms of inflictions causing trauma that had to be endured through time. That is probably why it is typical for them to keep quiet and allow men instead to deal with matters of major significance particularly in the social, political, and economic aspects of living. For a considerable historical period, we may logically suppose, women’s lack of formal education or training in a couple of fields due to the prevailing racial injustice and gender inequality rendered them to powerless from possessing a voice of command and hence, just conform to following the instructions of the opposite sex. Eventually, their limited potential and self-expression has reduced possibilities of finding resolve to how groans may be adequately understood, for in these groans reside the complexity of the real nature women are. Being the way they are, thus, is simply to relish passion, grief, or love in ‘muted tunes’ though they make no sensible affirmative speech as men do in the state of competence. For most women, maybe, this trait must be a ‘tribute’ for it is a consequence of respect for the passing of time and for changes which are collectively responsible for shaping their thoughts and behavior. In the process, however, Levertov substantiates the tone of the speaker with a pitch of sharp realization on perceiving that a woman’s ‘groan’, regardless of intensity and content, evolves out of tradition and moves out of structured principles and restrictions made by men. On further claiming “so it’s not only to say she’s / a warm hole – It’s a word / in grief-language, nothing to do with / primitive, not an ur-language; / ... She wants to throw the tribute away”, the concerned speaker develops a notion of truth and faith in the abolition of ‘mutes’ and progression of ‘groan’ with new meaning. With the light of her own hope, the narrator sees a modern woman who would spontaneously learn to acquire the skill of adaptation and discernment for the necessary advantage of translating the way she understands herself ‘life after life’ and break free from the old groans of weakness, exploitation, oppression, and fornication in the former unimproved confines of her influence. Work Cited Levertov, Denise. “The Mutes.” Academy of American Poets. 2013. Web. 8 May 2013. http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15370 Read More