Rate-a-Poem: Her Kind

William Haskins · Dec 5, 2005

By Anne Sexton
1928-1974

Her Kind

I have gone out, a possessed witch,
haunting the black air, braver at night;
dreaming evil, I have done my hitch
over the plain houses, light by light:
lonely thing, twelve-fingered, out of mind.
A woman like that is not a woman, quite.
I have been her kind.

I have found the warm caves in the woods,
filled them with skillets, carvings, shelves,
closets, silks, innumerable goods;
fixed the suppers for the worms and the elves:
whining, rearranging the disaligned.
A woman like that is misunderstood.
I have been her kind.

I have ridden in your cart, driver,
waved my nude arms at villages going by,
learning the last bright routes, survivor
where your flames still bite my thigh
and my ribs crack where your wheels wind.
A woman like that is not ashamed to die.
I have been her kind.

Sarita · Dec 5, 2005

This poem is amazing. Beyond words.

mommie4a · Dec 5, 2005

There's a reason one of her books is always on my nighttable.

Perks · Dec 5, 2005

Yeah, it's really wonderful. Never for a moment did I consider letting my eyes wander from the words. Love it.

Cassie88 · Dec 5, 2005

I used to have every poem of hers. How could I have let them vanish moving from place to place over the years? Now, I know one thing I want for Christmas.

JAlpha · Dec 5, 2005

A poem like that is . . . a masterpiece!

brokenfingers · Dec 5, 2005

Wow, I know poetry is subjective but this has got me flummoxed. Must be a woman thing.

I rated it a 3. It didn't really do much for me. While I thought it was an excellent poem, it definitely didn't cause me to voice all the things I've read in the posts before me.

Hmmm... just makes me wonder even more about the quirkiness of poetry...

A. Hamilton · Dec 5, 2005

I voted #4. I thought it was a great poem, well composed and structured, fairly easy to understand but enough of a riddle to make it interesting. There weren't really any elements I didn't like, its just that while I could relate to the idea of it, I couldn't really relate to the actuality of it. Does that make sense?

Ok, what's next?

William Haskins · Dec 5, 2005

broken,

i think the point of view (and accompanying imagery) from the female perspective can account for the part of the enjoyment others have gotten out of it.

however, i think it would be an oversimplification to see its value as simply the poetic equivalent of chick-lit. it's quite a powerful statement, in my opinion.

Perks · Dec 5, 2005

Yes, the defiant, F U, quality should cross gender lines quite well.

unthoughtknown · Dec 5, 2005

I don't read much poetry. This is the best poem I have read in a long time...

brokenfingers · Dec 5, 2005

Oh don't mistake me, my intention was not to diminish it in any way. I was just struck by the disparateness of perspective, seemingly along a gender line.

I agree it is a powerful poem and paints a vivid picture, but I didn't feel though as though it spoke to me. I felt that the poet had given me a glimpse into their mind, but not their heart.

I felt kind of excluded from this mystery. I was unable to fully realize what the poet was trying to say, but the female readers seemed to have grasped it almost instinctively (going by the universal acclaim)

It spoke to me of the mystery of being a woman, or to be more precise, a certain kind of woman (I'm guessing a witch.) But that's the key word - mystery. It answered no questions for me nor revealed any truths. Offered no insight nor gave any clues. In the end I was left as perplexed at what her kind truly is as I was at the beginning. I found no lines contained within that hit that note of acknowledgement, that crossed the gender barrier and said: This is what it's like. Can you feel it now? Can you feel who I am? Can you feel what it is to be that kind of woman?

Or maybe I'm just a dumb male animal after all.

brokenfingers · Dec 5, 2005

Perks said:
Yes, the defiant, F U, quality should cross gender lines quite well.

Hmmm, so is that what the poem is about?

I didn't get that at all. To me it seemed as if she was describing both her loneliness and her pride at being different.

William Haskins · Dec 5, 2005

if you'd like to hear sexton reading this poem, you can do so here.

brokenfingers · Dec 5, 2005

ETA: A 3 star vote is not a "bad" vote (at least to me). It's only a reflection of the poem's impact upon me. And isn't that the only true way to judge a poem?

William Haskins · Dec 5, 2005

you're absolutely correct. i wasn't being critical of your response to it at all; just weighing in, i suppose.

elisadasilva · Dec 5, 2005

brokenfingers said:
It spoke to me of the mystery of being a woman, or to be more precise, a certain kind of woman (I'm guessing a witch.)

A really pissed off woman.

brokenfingers · Dec 5, 2005

elisadasilva said:
A really pissed off woman.

Well, there you go! No wonder I couldn't relate!

I try to steer clear of angry women...

A. Hamilton · Dec 5, 2005

Hmmm, what is she pissed off at? I don't really see her as angry per se.., more like she sees her life as a great burden she has to carry and that translates (transfers?) into this volatile energy..which in paradox is the very force that fuels her survival.

Perks · Dec 5, 2005

brokenfingers said:
Oh don't mistake me, my intention was not to diminish it in any way. I was just struck by the disparateness of perspective, seemingly along a gender line.

I agree it is a powerful poem and paints a vivid picture, but I didn't feel though as though it spoke to me. I felt that the poet had given me a glimpse into their mind, but not their heart.

I felt kind of excluded from this mystery. I was unable to fully realize what the poet was trying to say, but the female readers seemed to have grasped it almost instinctively (going by the universal acclaim)

It spoke to me of the mystery of being a woman, or to be more precise, a certain kind of woman (I'm guessing a witch.) But that's the key word - mystery. It answered no questions for me nor revealed any truths. Offered no insight nor gave any clues. In the end I was left as perplexed at what her kind truly is as I was at the beginning. I found no lines contained within that hit that note of acknowledgement, that crossed the gender barrier and said: This is what it's like. Can you feel it now? Can you feel who I am? Can you feel what it is to be that kind of woman?

Or maybe I'm just a dumb male animal after all.

I think there's a lot of clarity in that review. I'll buy that.

William Haskins · Dec 5, 2005

interesting comments, guys and gals. keep them coming.

i would also suggest looking at what is different about the stanzas. i suspect the real meaning lies in the three facets (burdens?) of womanhood they represent.

A. Hamilton · Dec 5, 2005

William Haskins said:
i would also suggest looking at what is different about the stanzas. i suspect the real meaning lies in the three facets (burdens?) of womanhood they represent.

I was thinking about that..but couldn't quite articulate them. The last two seem more obvious, (keeping house, nurturing, mothering, sexual submission, pain of childbirth perhaps...) but that first stanza .. an almost hormonal angst..., maybe?

rhymegirl · Dec 5, 2005

I thought it was about 3 different kinds of women. I thought the first one was a prostitute, the second one a housewife/mother, and the third one, I don't know maybe a prisoner????

It's not so clear-cut to me, but I think it's an interesting poem and it certainly makes you sit down and pull it apart to try to decipher the meaning.

brokenfingers · Dec 5, 2005

I was thinking about that..but couldn't quite articulate them. The last two seem more obvious, (keeping house, nurturing, mothering, sexual submission, pain of childbirth perhaps...) but that first stanza .. an almost hormonal angst..., maybe?

With the talk of flying about etc, I was guessing either childhood or the single life.

Hmmmm... "haunting the black air, braver at night; dreaming evil, I have done my hitch over the plain houses, light by light: lonely thing..."

I'm leaning towards a single woman. The evil part's got me convinced...

William Haskins · Dec 5, 2005

p.h.:

i think you're spot on, though i would add that the third stanza also describes a sense of living in the shadow of a man, her glories (however meager) subjugated and eclipsed. but there is obviously sexual/childbirth imagery.

the first verse, to me, is a confession of engaging in the duplicity and subterfuge that is so often all that's left to the oppressed, in particular a woman in the first half of the 20th century, who felt a hunger for independence in a world unwilling to grant it. the "witch" during the witch hunts in europe was often the unconventional or adventurous woman.

to me, she is branding herself, perhaps ironically, for exercising her will, describing herself as she must have surely felt others viewed her.

Rate-a-Poem: Her Kind

Rate it below, or expand if no choice applies to you:

5 Stars: A masterpiece

4 Stars: A strong poem, but some elements didn't appeal to me

3 Stars: A good poem, but it didn't move me to any great extent

2 Stars: A flawed or uninspiring piece of work

1 Star: Does absolutely nothing for me

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