Elizabeth Bishop's Poem The Fish

A detailed Summary of Elizabeth Bishop's Poem The Fish

From the onset of civilization, society has increased its capabilities in the quest for survival. Methods of achieving fundamental needs have been belittled through modernization. In 1946, a time period defined by abundant technological advancement, Elizabeth Bishop describes the art of capturing a fish from water, an act once used simply as a food source, in her poem "The Fish." As the narrator caught the fish only to observe and then release the creature, the reader develops a desire to discover exactly what is being observed. Upon analysis of the work, the poem represents Bishop's personal life, historical events of importance to her, and her views on American society.

First of all, as the fish is held beside the boat, Bishop sees elements of her own personal existence in the animal. For instance, as the fish struggled for air, its gills were "crisp from blood (because breathing) can cut so badly"(Bishop 1211). The fish represents previously repressed inner thoughts, and its advancement into the conscious environment creates extreme pain. Like the fish, most creatures can exist only in an aquatic condition, or a terrestrial condition, just as an individual's thoughts can occupy either a cognizant or a subliminal settin

Costello, Bonnie. "Attractive Mortality." Elizabeth Bishop: Questions of Mastery. Cambridge: Harvard U Press, 1991. 63.

To conclude, the fish in Bishop's poem represents the narrator's personal life, present society, and historical events. Elizabeth Bishop poem describes the art of catching a fish, an act that was once reserved only for a food source, in her poem "The Fish." As the storyteller caught the fish only to observe and then release the creature, the reader develops a desire to discover what is observed.

Finally, Bishop's fish represents the society that produced the poem. According to commentary from Bonnie Costello, author of Elizabeth Bishop: Questions of Mastery, the fish is a sexless creature exhibiting both male and female traits. First, the fish is male when its "untamable, corporeal energy violates the domestic world of wallpaper and roses." (Costello 63) The uncontainable characteristics parallel features of the culture of 1946, the year that Bishop wrote the poem. The pen of the female poet shows both frustration and remorseful acceptance for her man dominated society. Later, the fish's beholder imagines the interior features such as "shiny entrails, and the pink swim bladder, like a big (flower)" (Bishop 1211). The female features are covered from view by the rugged exterior,

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Approximate Word count = 883
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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Elizabeth Bishop's Poem The Fish

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