"In The Park" by Gwen Harwood
Introduction
"In The Park" is an fascinating poem written by Gwen Harwood from Australia and a known poet. The poet was delivered up in Brisbane but born in the suburb of Taringa. The poet has a taste of writing poems with the focus of girls in the society especially young women in the motherhood.
Main Theme: Motherhood
In the Park goals towards the motherhood and throughout the poem, the poet brings out the issue of moms and how they are affected by feelings in a negative way with usual perceptions. Additionally, the poet tries to capture the burden women have when raising up their children. The cause is that women seem devalued when their life is all about taking care of children. This essay will revolve around circumstance that a mother faces in the park with her kids. The reason why I chose this Poem in the Park is that it reflects on a mother's life, and how she feels like when raising up her kids. This notion is clearly brought out from the poem in this line "It's so sweet to hear their chatter, watch them grow and thrive she says to his departing smile" (Gwen, "In The Park" 10-12).
Mother's Regrets
At the beginning of the poem, the woman wanted to avoid the passing man because she had loved her but she was regretting now that it was too late to reverse the condition since a lot of things had prospered and she already had kids. The woman had already accepted the condition of her life though seemed had when she says "They have eaten me alive." (Gwen, "In The Park" 14).
Negative Side of Children
The poet brings the reader into a greater light by expressing the issue of the negative side of children to mothers and the family at large. This is because Gwen brings out clearly the mother's regrets at the end of the poem. As such, the mother sees the children as a burden to her when she expresses that "They have eaten me alive." (Gwen, "In The Park" 14). The mother seemed overwhelmed because the children demand her attention as we can see both whine and bicker are tugging her skirt, while the young child has to be nursed.
Pessimistic Tone
Apart from that, Gwen tries to bring a Pessimistic tone in the poem because she wants the reader to understand that once a woman decides to settle and have children, she is no longer concerned with her appearance but rather committed to her children. This is clearly noted when Gwen states that "Her clothes are out of date." (Gwen, "In The Park" 1).
The Man's Perception
Moreover, Gwen only tells the reader that the man had not yet settled as he notes that, "How nice" et cetera. "Time holds great surprises." (Gwen, "In The Park" 6). The tone can tell it because the man seemed surprised by the woman having children early and he thanks, God because he did not fall in love with her. Besides that, the woman appeared to be unkempt and lost her beauty before the man that is why the man says that "but for the grace of God" (Gwen, "In The Park" 8). That shows that the man was not happy with how the woman looked. The woman no longer enjoyed her life but regrets it because she seems tired with the life she is leaving, but she has no choice.
Work Cited
Gwen, Harwood. “In the Park.” The Norton introduction to literature. Mays, Kelly (Digital Portable Edition) 11th Edition, page 655.
