Poetry Analysis Blog #4

"The Secretary Chant"
Marge Piercy

The title makes me think of some cheesy chant a group of secretaries made up when they were bored in the coffee room. The poem describes all of the stressful things a secretary must deal with it and how it takes total control over her. Connotative language is all over this poem. It's a giant metaphor saying different body parts are pieces of office equipment like, "My hips are a desk." Onomatopoeia is also used in lines 7 and 14. Piercy wants the audience to feel how overwhelmed the secretary feels in the poem. The audience does feel the stress and anxiety while reading it. The shift occurs in line 21 when she says, "File me under W because I wonce was a woman," because the poem saying she is no longer a human, but apart of the office. The title shows the significance of the secretary's voice that is lost in the jumble of work that must be done. The theme is that sometimes work can be so overwhelming, that you lose yourself in the process.

Response
This poem reminded me of myself now. I feel so stressed with all of my senior project and indoor percussion things that time for myself just doesn't exist anymore. It's a little ironic that I found this poem while in the midst of all the work I have to do...

"Assailant"
John Raven

"Assailant" makes me think that the poet is going to describe a serious attack. The poem describes a man reporting an attack to the police, but it was only a rat. Raven uses a Southern dialect to promote comedy and to show that the man in the poem wasn't educated. Raven wants the audience to think something serious is about to happen, only to laugh when it doesn't. The audience laughs in relief of the outcome. The shift occurs in line 9 when the man says he is talking about a rat and not a man. The title mocks the seriousness of the word assailant. I believe Raven is saying that we shouldn't take life so seriously, and we should all have a good laugh every once in a while.

Response
I laughed at this poem as well because it was nothing like any of the other ones I've read in the chapter. The others have deep themes of love, death, life, etc. while this seems to have no theme at all. However, that's just what Raven wants. He doesn't want us to think so hard, but to merely laugh at how ridiculous life can be.