Post #3: "Bitch"

From At Work and Bored

This week we are preparing for our first paper. We’ve been asked to choose 1 poem from 6 options and analyze it. I’ve chosen “Bitch” written by Carolyn Kizer in 1984. This poem has only one stanza which contains 33 lines and is intended for anyone that has been in a serious relationship which ended without any real closure for at least one of the people involved.

Here is my paraphrase from the poem:

The speaker has a run-in with a former flame (line 1) and begins talking to her inner self (line 2) trying to convince herself that he means no harm (line 3) and is only an old friend saying hello (line 4). She greets him (line 5) while her defenses begin to kick in (line 6). Trying to convince (line 7) and calm herself (line 8) she inquires about his family (line 9) and he gives her a familiar look (line 10) causing her tough interior to soften (line 11). She longs to embrace him (line 12) but holds herself back (line 13) while continuing the conversation (line 14) and keeping calm (line 15). She’s satisfied that she can control herself (line 16) and begins to reminisce (line 17) about the nights he would come home (line 18) and she would just gaze at him (line 19) but he would be too preoccupied to notice (line 20) or feel too stifled by her and send her away (line 21) until he was ready for her company (line 22). She also remembers when he was nice to her (line 23) on his good days (line 24) and those days mean more to her (line 25) than the bad days and day they broke up (line 26). She’s tells him she’s happy for his accomplishments (line 27) and begins to doubt herself (line 28) and think about her faults from their past (line 29) before comparing herself to his present and future (line 30). She offers well wishes for his wife begrudgingly (line 31) and pulls herself away (line 32) as she says goodbye (line 33). 

The speaker of the poem is a woman that is torn between the thoughts in her mind and the emotions of her heart. "The bitch inside me" is the attitude of a scorned woman and also the behavior of a vicious dog. The speaker's tone shifts between calm and ferocious- calm because of the way she addresses her ex-lover and ferocious because of how her inner self reacts by wanting to attack. There are several aggressive references made that support this claim:

1. Don't start growling
2. The bitch starts to bark hysterically
3. I'll give you a taste of the choke-chain
4. The casual cruelties, the ultimate dismissal
5. I drag you off by the scruff

Although the woman no longer sees her ex as an "enemy" or "trespasser" and chooses to speak politely to him she hasn't fully gotten over the hurt he caused her in the past which appears to have had an effect on her future. This type of scenario reminds me of "You Oughta Know" by Alanis Morissette. The song is about a scorned woman speaking to her ex after he has moved on. She offers him sarcastic pleasantries, congratulates him on his new life, reminisces about their good times and explains to him that she's changed. If the speaker in Carolyn Kizer's poem chose not to supress the bitch inside her this song would describe the encounter with her ex.