The natural passing of "identity" among women who live together, who are related, and society's weight put upon the stereotypical woman/housewife. It has a metaphysical touch, questioning the self, being and its" validity. It portrays the contradiction of morals, nature and instinct. Intuitive feelings that arise yet are pushed back under the surface by our culture. Rich conveys these concepts through, image, repition, line breaks, metaphors and personifications.
1.) This section i see as dealing with realization. I find this section breathtaking and is the part that first drew me to this poem.
"she steel-wool burnishes.
the battered kettle".
"She steel-wool" really catches me. The opposing materials; steel; rigid and hard, wool; soft and moldable. This could imply her state of mind or emotion. The kettle i saw as her life. Polishing, it battered removing what's collected over the true surface, only to collect once again unless continuously burnished. The duties to herself, her family and society.
In the second stanza the mention apples introduce many connecting images for me. The colloquialism "the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree" comes to mind first. The juxtaposition of apple and cramp led me to the menstruation ( apples of red color) and how women who live together or are related develop the same menstruation cycle. The following line "with sudden emptiness" in continuation to the previous line is the realization of the natural assimilation of ones surroundings/culture and kin. The epiphany asks, who are you when you realize you"re someone else? This emptiness literally contradicts the next two lines which speak of the satiation of the cereal, the grains picked by another's hand. It is that fullness that brings the feeling of emptiness. The idea of food, is prevalent to the idea of consumption; being consumed. .
"Love: the refrigerator.
With open door".
- the possibilities of love.