Bishop 2020

BISHOP
W W W. HOG A N NOT ES . C O M
POETRY NOTES LC 20
67 PAGES
W i de l y reg a rde d a s o ne o f t he m os t im p or t an t Amer i can p oe t s
of the t we nti e th c e nt ur y, E l izab et h Bis ho p l ed a v er y t u r bu le n t
life. She moved from place to place, struggled with
a l c oho li s m a n d e xper i enced heartb reakin g lo ss es. H ow e ve r,
FOREWORD
d e sp i te th e t ra gi c circu mst ances o f her l if e, sh e m anag ed t o
p ro d u c e a s t r i k i n g , c r a f t e d a n d i d i o s y n c r a t i c b o d y o f
p oe tr y. H e r po e m s are def ined by a per f ect io n of to ne , a
h i g h l y re f i n e d d e g re e o f v i s u a l a c c u r a c y, i n c o r p o r a t i n g
h ig h l y d e t ai l ed ob se r va tions of people
an d p lac es a n d moral, histo rical, so cia l a nd p sych olo gi c al
in s igh ts t h a t h a v e c o m p e l l e d t h e a t t e n t i o n o f re a d e r s . I n
th e e a rl y s ta ge s o f her career, Bi sh op w as regard ed ( a nd

so me ti m e s d i sm i ss ed) as a ‘ mi ni at ur i st ,’ or s om eon e wh o
c o n c e n t r a t e s o n s m a l l p o e t i c s t r u c t u re s a n d d e s c r i p t i v e
d et ail . H owe v e r, th e carefu l reader o f h er p oet r y w il l no t ic e
th a t he r wo rk i s by and l arg e c on f ession al . An d w hi le h er li fe
st ory is c h a rte d in her p oet ry, her ap pro ach i s an un us ua l
on e . Mos t of the po ems o n t he cou rse no mi nal ly add ress a nd
d e sc ri be se em in gl y uni mpor tan t su b je cts, s uch as a f il li ng
st at i on , a t our is t d est i nat i on an d a fi sh , t o nam e bu t a fe w.
H owe v er, t he s e a re always rel at ed i n su ch a m ann er as t o
e vok e ( ev oc ati ve) prof oun dly th o ugh t- prov ok in g i nsi gh ts on
t h e hu man co nd itio n. A nat ur al s hy nes s kept Bi sh op o ut of
th e l i m el i gh t, ye t desp ite th is, her w or k h as st ead il y gro wn i n
p op u la ri ty, so m uc h so t hat it i s no w imp os si bl e t o i mag in e a
c ol l e cti on of E ng l i sh p oet ry t hat d oes not co nt ai n at l east o ne
p oe m b y E li za b e th Bi sh op . Gi ven th at h er w or k ref l ec ts s o
in t en s ely o n l i f e , i t c a n p ro v e c ha ll en gi ng , t h ou gh on ce t hi s
c ha l l e nge i s me t , t he rewards o ut weig h any d iffi cul t ies t h e
re a de r ma y experience.
ⓒ Cian Hogan English Notes 2020 2

CONTENTS
A t The Fi s hh ouses 4
Commentary 9
The Prodigal 18
Commentary 20
In the Waiting Room 25
Commentary 30
First Death in Nova Scotia 38
Commentary 41
Questions of Travel 47
Commentary 51
Filling Station 60
Commentary 63
S est ina 68
Commentary 71
A Short Biography 76
Questions 80

At The Fishhouses
________________________________________________________________________
Al th o u g h i t i s a c o l d even i ng ,
d own b y on e of th e fishhouses
a n o ld ma n si ts n e t t in g,
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his ne t, i n the gl oa ming al mo st invisible,
a d a rk p urpl e - brown, 5
a nd h i s s h u ttl e wor n and p ol ished.
Th e a ir s m e ll s so st ro ng o f codfish
i t m a ke s o n e ’s n o se run an d o ne’s eyes water.
Th e fi v e f i s h h o u se s h ave steepl y p eaked ro of s

© C. HOGAN NOTES
a nd n a rro w, c le a t e d g ang p l anks sl ant up 10
to s t o re ro o m s i n t h e g ab l es
fo r t h e wh e e l ba rro ws to be pushed u p an d down on .
Al l i s s i l ve r: th e h e avy surface o f t he sea,
sw e ll in g sl owl y a s i f con sid er i ng sp i l l i ng o ver,
i s o pa q ue , b ut t h e sil ver of th e bench es, 15
th e lo b s t e r po t s, a n d m ast s, scat t ered
a m on g t h e wi ld ja g g ed rocks,
i s o f a n a p pa re nt t ranslu cence
l ike t h e sm a ll ol d b uil di ng s wit h an em er al d moss

grow in g o n t h e i r sh orew ard wal l s. 20
Th e bi g f i s h t u b s a re co m p l et el y l i ned
wi th l a y e rs o f b e a utifu l her r ing scal es
a nd t h e wh e e l ba rro ws are si m i l ar l y plast ered
wi th c re a my i ri de sc en t co at s of mai l ,
wi th sm a ll irid e s c e n t f li es cr awl i ng o n t hem. 25
U p o n t h e l it t l e s l ope b eh i nd th e h ou ses,
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se t in t h e sp a rse b righ t sp r i nkle o f gr ass,
i s a n a n c i e nt wo o d en cap stan ,
c ra c ke d, wi th t wo l on g b l eached h andl es
a nd so m e me l a nc h o ly stains, l i ke dr i ed bl oo d , 30
whe re i ro n wo rk ha s rust ed .
© C. HOGAN NOTES
The o l d m a n a c c e p ts a Lucky St r ike.
H e wa s a f rie n d of my gr an d fath er.
We ta l k of t h e d e c li ne in th e populat i on
a nd o f c o d fi s h a n d herr i ng 35
whil e h e wa i ts f o r a herr i ng boat t o come in.
The re a re se q u i ns on his ves t and o n his t humb.
H e ha s sc ra pe d th e scales, th e pr i ncip al beauty,
from u n n u m be re d f i s h wit h t hat b l ack o l d kn i fe,
th e bl a de o f wh i c h is alm o st wo r n away. 40

Down a t th e wa te r’s ed ge , at t he place
whe re t h e y h a u l up th e boats, up th e lon g r am p
d e sc e nd in g i nt o t h e water, t hin sil ver
tre e trun ks a re la i d ho ri zon t al l y
a c ross t h e g ra y st o n es, do wn and do wn 45
a t in t e rv a l s o f f o u r or fiv e f eet.
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C ol d d a rk d e e p a n d ab sol utely clear,
e l e me n t b e a ra b le t o n o m or tal,
to fi sh a n d to se a l s … On e seal par t i cular l y
I ha v e se e n h e re e v en in g after even i ng . 50
H e wa s c uri ous a b out m e.
H e wa s i nt e re s t e d in mu sic;
© C. HOGAN NOTES
l i ke m e a b e l i e ve r i n to tal im mer sio n,
so I u se d to si ng h i m Bap ti st hymns.
I a l s o sa n g “ A Mi gh t y Fo r t ress Is Our God.”
H e s t o o d up in t h e water and reg ard ed me 55
st e a d il y, mo vi ng h i s h ead a l i t t l e.
Th e n h e wo u l d d isa pp ear, th en su d d enly em erge
a l mo st i n t h e sa m e s pot, wi t h a sor t of shr u g
a s i f it we re a ga i nst h is b et t er judgment.
C ol d d a rk d e e p a n d ab sol utely clear, 60
th e c le a r gra y i c y wat er … B ack, behind us,

th e di gn i fi e d t a l l f i rs begin.
Blu i s h , a sso c i a ti ng wit h t heir shadows,
a m il li on C hrist m a s t rees st and
wa i ti ng f o r Ch rist m as . The wat er seems suspended 70
a b ov e th e rou n d e d g ray and bl ue-gr ay st on es.
I ha v e se e n i t o ve r and over, th e sam e sea, t he same,
sl ig h t l y, in d iff e re nt l y swi ng i ng above th e st on es,

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i c il y f re e a bo ve t h e sto nes,
a b ov e th e st o n e s a nd th en t he wo r l d . 75
If y o u sh o u l d d ip y ou r han d in,
yo ur wri s t wo u l d a c he im med i at el y,
yo ur bo n e s wo u l d begin t o ache and yo ur hand wo uld bur n
a s i f th e wa t e r we re a t r ansm utation o f fire

© C. HOGAN NOTES
th a t f e e d s o n st o n e s an d bur n s wit h a dar k g r ay flam e. 80
If y o u t a st e d it , i t wo uld fir st t ast e bit t er,
th e n b ri ny, the n su rel y bur n yo ur t o ng ue.
It i s l i ke wha t we i mag ine kno wledg e t o be:
d a rk, sa l t, c l e a r m oving, utt er ly free,
d ra wn f rom th e c o l d h ard mou t h 85
of th e wo rld , de rive d f ro m th e ro cky b reasts
fo re v e r, f l owi n g a nd d rawn, and since
ou r kn o wl e dg e i s h i sto ri cal, flowi ng , and f l own.

Glossary
t h e
4 gloaming – twilight, dusk
r ainbow.
6 sh uttl e – t h i s i s a s p e c i fi c r e fe r e n c e t o a
28 capstan – a type of cr a ne consisting of a
device in weaving that holds the weft thread
ver tical dr u m arou n d wh ich a cable is wou n d.
and is used to pass it between the war p
T h i s d e v i c e i s n o r m a l ly u s e d t o m ove h e av y
threads.
weights or to haul in ropes on a ship.
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10 c leated – having wooden or other wedges

32 Luc ky S tr ike – a well-kn own br an d of
attached to the str ucture in order to allow
Amer ican cigar et tes.
one to ga in a footho ld.
37 sequins – br igh t, of ten gold or n amen tation

10 gangplank – u s u a l ly a p o r t a bl e s t r u c t u r e
such as would be found on a dress or
such as a br idge or plank used when boar ding
ma ter ial.
or di semba r k ing from a bo at.
52 total immer sion – involvemen t in someth in g

15 o p a q u e – n o t t r a n s p a r e n t o r i m p e r v i o u s t o
that completely occupies all one’s ener gy and
light so t hat image s c anno t be seen through it.
c o n c e n t r a t i o n . H e r e t h e p o e t i s r e fe r r i n g
18 translucence – allowing light to pass directly to the method of baptism pr actised by
© C. HOGAN NOTES
through, but only diffusely, so that objects on the Baptist denomination of Protestantism.
the other side cannot be clear ly distinguished.
53 Baptist – a Protesta nt den om inat ion t hat
T h e wo r d c a n a l s o m e a n h av i n g a s h i n i n g
baptises people by total immer sion when they
appear ance .
are old enough to under stand and declare
22 h e r r i n g – a small edible fish with silver y their faith.
sca les.
74 transmutat ion – a chan ge from on e for m,
24 ir i desc e nt – having a lustrous or br illiant subst ance , n atu re or stat e to anot her. Th is
appear ance or quality, often in the colour s of word has strong religious connotations for

Commentary
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1. Co n te nt
๏ W he n sh e h a d f in i s he d w rit i ng ‘A t the Fi shh ou ses’ , Bi sh op r ais e d

h er a rm s a b ov e he r he ad i n tri um p h.
๏ M o re th a n a n y ot he r p oem b y Bi sh op o n t he cou r se, ‘ A t t h e

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Fi s hh ou se s ’ prov id es us wi t h a p er fect ex amp le o f h er ma t u re

s t yl e .
๏ Th i s is a c om p l e x piece th at deman ds clo se at t en t io n a n d

c on si d era t io n fro m i ts read ers.
๏ T h e p o e m i s b ro k e n i n t o t h re e d i s t i n c t s e g m e n t s t h a t a re
s ep a rat e d b y a l i n e writ t en in p er fect iamb ic p en tame ter .
๏ In t he op e ni ng se c t ion of th e po em, t he p oet p rov id es a de tai le d

© C. HOGAN NOTES
an d o b ject ive d es cript io n of an o ld fi sh er man , t h e No va Sc o t ia

s h orel i ne a n d t h e pa ra pher nalia of t he fi sh in g t r ade.
๏ Fo ll ow i ng a s hort secon d s ectio n, w e ent er t h e t hi rd, mo re

p rob l e m at i c s e gm e nt of t he po em.
๏ Wri tt e n f o r the m os t part in st rea m of co nsc io usn ess, t h e

s pe a ke r p rovi de s us wi t h a p assi onat e des cr ip t io n of t h e o cea n.
๏ A t th e s a m e t i m e sh e ent er s a mome nt of in ten se sub je cti ve

m ed it at ion .
๏ Th e p oe m op e n s, m uch l ike a cam er a com in g i nt o fo cus , b y

c a re f ul ly se t t in g t he scene. We lear n th at even t ho ug h i t is c ol d,
‘ an o ld ma n s it s n ett in g, | h is ne t , i n th e g lo ami ng al m os t
in vis ib le .’

๏ Th e d e p ic t io n i s a ti m eless o ne w hi ch ev ok es a sense of
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c on ti nu i ty wi th a va n i sh ing way of l i fe.
๏ Th e f i she r ma n c o n ti nu es his w or k t o t he b ackdro p o f t h e set t i ng

s u n a nd ‘t h e fis h h o u ses w it h t he ir ste ep ly p ea ke d roo f s | an d
n arrow, cle at ed gan gp la nk s sl an t up | to sto re ro oms .’
๏ Th e e n ti re sc e n e i s b ordered by the s ea, wh ich i s ‘ swe ll in g

s lo wl y as if c on sid e ri ng spilling ov er ’ an d is b at hed i n a
‘ s ilver ’ l ig h t.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ Fo r a b ri e f mom e n t i t is as i f t he speaker b ecom es t r an sf ix ed b y

t h e mo ve me n t of t h e s ea.
๏ H owe v er, sh e f orc e s h er at tentio n aw ay fro m it t o fo cus o n ‘ the

b e n ch es ’, ‘lo bs t er p ot s’, ‘ma sts’ and ‘smal l ol d bu il di ng s ’ .
๏ In ty p ic a l B i s hop fa shi on , the s peaker beg in s t o con cent r at e on

t h e mi nu t e d e t a il s to be f oun d o n t hes e var i ou s o bj ect s. S he
n o ti c e s t ha t:
Th e b ig f ish tub s are comple te ly line d

wi th layers o f b ea utif ul he rring sca le s
๏ Th e a l m os t m i c rosc opi c exam i nat i on o f t h e scen e con t in ue s

wh en the sp e a ke r te l ls us t hat the wheel bar ro ws are als o l in e d

wi t h ‘cream y iride s c en t co ats o f ma il an d smal l ir id esc en t
f l ie s .’
๏ Th e pi c tu re tha t t he p oet has pain ted i s co mp let ed wh en s he

d e sc ri be s t he a re a ‘ b eh in d t he h ouse s . ’ We lear n t h at t h ere i s
a n ‘an ci en t w ood en cap sta n. ’ Its tw o lo ng ‘bl ea ch ed h an dl es’
a re s ta i ne d . Th e r usted i ro nw or k i s li kened b y t he po et t o ‘dr ie d
b l oo d ’.
๏ Th e re i s a sl ig h t c h a ng e in direct io n i n t h e po em w hen t he
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s pe a ke r a dd re s se s the ol d man . We lear n t h at t h is m an wa s a

fr ien d of h e r g ra nd fa ther.
๏ Th e ir c on ve rsa t i on c e n tres o n t h e d e c l i n e i n t h e p o p u l a t i o n , a n d
on c od f i sh a n d h e rr i n g f ishi ng . O nce ag ain , Bi sh op ’s at t ent i on i s
d r a wn f rom t h e s urf a ce d et ails t o h ig hl y d et ail ed ob ser v at io ns o f
t h e mi n ut ia e o f he r surroun din gs.
๏ S he n oti ce s th e ‘ s eq ui ns’ o n the o ld man ’s ves t an d ‘ thu mb ’ a n d

i n th e p roc e ss b e gi ns t o t hi nk abo ut cou nt l ess f is h t hat t hi s ma n
© C. HOGAN NOTES
h as ‘s c rap ed’ wi t h the wo r n b l ade of h is ‘ bl ac k ol d kn if e’ .
๏ A s th e po e m progresses , i t i s as if th e p oet is d r awn cl os er a n d

c lo se r t o th e se a ’s ed ge. In lin e 4 0, wh ich mar ks t he beg in ni ng o f
t h e sh ort se c ond se c tion o f th e p oem , a p ercept i bl e sh if t o ccur s.
๏ Th e sp e ake r de s c ri b es t he area near t he ‘ wa ter ’s e dg e [ …]

w here th ey h au l u p t he b oa ts’. In a sl ow, meas ured fas hi on he r
a tt en ti on is d ra wn ‘d o wn a nd down’ t ow ards t h e w at er.
๏ L i ne 47 m a rks t h e b e gi nn ing of t he t hi rd sect i on o f t he po e m,

wh i c h m os t re a d e rs f i nd ver y c ha ll en gin g .
๏ It op en s wi th a d e sc ri pti on of t he wat er, wh ich is seen by t he

s pe a ke r a s b e in g:
Co ld d ark d eep a nd ab solute ly c le a r,

elemen t b earab le t o n o morta l,

t o f is h an d t o se als [ …]
๏ Th e se a ha s lo n g been v iewed as a meta ph or for human

c on sc io us ne s s; a n d, as th e s peaker is d r awn t o t h e w at e r ’s
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e d ge , sh e b e gi n s what wi l l am ou nt t o a d eepl y in t ros pec t i ve

m e di ta t io n on knowl e dge and th e n ature of i de nti ty .
๏ N oti c i ng a se a l tha t she has seen ‘ e ve ni ng af te r e ve ni ng ,' sh e

rev ea l s tha t t he c re at u re w as i nq uis i t i ve ab ou t h er an d t h a t
s t r a n g e l y, m u c h l i k e h e r, h e b e l i e v e d i n b a p t i s m b y ‘ t o t a l
im m ers io n ’.
๏ A s t he se a l s e e m s i n teres ted i n m us ic, ‘ sh e u sed to si ng hi m

Bap t is t hymn s’, i n pa r ticu lar ‘A Mi ght y F or tre ss Is Ou r God ’.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ The s e a l ’s reaction is to regard the speaker s t e a d i l y.

Di sa p p e ar in g mom e ntari l y, o nl y t o ‘e me rg e al most in th e sam e
s p ot ,’ he ‘s hru gs as if it were a ga in st hi s b ette r ju dg eme nt ’.
๏ M ea nw hi l e , th e sp e a ke r seem s t o rem ain t r ans fi xed by t he w a t e r.

S he rep ea ts h e r i ni ti a l im p ressio n t hat i t i s ‘ Col d da rk d ee p an d
ab s o lut el y clear’.
๏ Fo r a b ri e f p e ri od , i n l ine 60 , th e p oet gi ves co ns id er at io n t o t he

l and sc a p e b e h in d he r.
๏ H e re , th e d i gni fi e d f i r trees s tand as i f wai t in g fo r t h e ar r i va l o f

C hri s tm a s. H owe v e r, before s he beco mes t oo di st r act ed by t hi s,
h er ga z e re t u r n s t o the s ea:
Th e water seems su spe nde d

abo ve th e ro un de d g ra y a nd blue -gra y stone s.
๏ Th i s s u rfac e de s crip ti on o f t h e s e a y i e l d s t o a m o re de tai le d

ex am in at ion of t h e n a ture of t he wat er i t sel f.

๏ In the p oe t’s v i e w, th e wat er i s a “t ran smuta tio n” of fire that
wou l d c au s e one ’s ha n d t o bu r n an d on e’s wr i st t o ache.
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๏ Th e se l in e s, wh ic h m os t read ers fi nd ver y di ff icu lt t o deci ph e r,

b e c om e c l e a re r w h e n th e sp eaker t el ls us t hat sh e id ent i fi e s
t h e se p ro pe r ti e s w i th kn owled ge its elf.
๏ A l l of thi s is wha t we “ima gi ne k no wl ed ge to b e”:
da rk, s alt , clea r, mo ving, utte rly f re e ,

dra wn fro m t he c old ha rd mouth
of t h e wo rld , d erive d f rom the roc k y bre a sts.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
forever, flo wing an d d ra wn, a nd sinc e
ou r kn o wled ge is hist oric a l, f low ing, a nd f low n.
๏ L i k e t h e w a te r s th a t en circl e t he wor l d, kn ow led ge it s elf i s

continually moving and flowing. All knowledge is indeed
h i s tor ic a l; a s i t i s b a sed o n the lear n ing an d effo r t s o f t h os e wh o
h av e g one b e fore us.
๏ It is di ff i c ul t not to b e i m pres sed b y t he s heer ar t i st i c beau t y a n d

m et aph orical in t en s ity of t hes e l i nes .
2. Styl is t ic F e a t ure s
๏ P oe ts a s d i v e rs e a s J ohn Ashbery, James Mer r i ll , C .K .Wi ll ia m s

a nd Jo ri e Gra ha m ha v e nam ed Bi shop as a m ajo r in fl uen ce on
t h e i r work.
๏ Th e y va ri ous l y ha v e prai sed h er pe rf ec tio n o f ton e, he r so ci al ,

m o ral a nd ps yc h o lo gica l i nsig ht s, her vi sua l ac cu ra cy and her
fo rm a l i nv e nt i on .

๏ A l l o f th e se c h a ra c te ri sti cs are pres ent in ‘A t t h e F ish ho use s’.
E v e n a c u rs ory re a d i ng of this p oem s ug ges t s t o t he read er t ha t
Yeats
i t c ont a in s a c om p l e x p hi l oso phical meditation on the nature of

k n owl ed ge.
๏ In the op e ni ng h a l f o f th e p oem , th e po et pres ent s t he rea d e r

wi t h a hi gh l y ob j e c ti ve acco unt o f the N ov a Sco t ia coas t li ne.
๏ In d oi ng s o, sh e a p peals to all t he s ens es. It is im po r t ant t o

rea l i se t h at t hese de t ails creat e t he p reco nd i t i o ns fo r wh a t
S e am u s H e a ne y h as d escr i bed as t he ‘r hyt h mic h eave’ t ha t
© C. HOGAN NOTES
oc c urs i n l i ne 4 6 .
๏ Th e “ rus t ed iron wo rk ", the “ an cie nt w oo de n ca psta n ” and t h e

“ o l d m a n ” w h o k n e w t h e s p e a k e r ’s g r a n d f a t h e r c re a t e a n
u n c ons c i ous a wa re ne s s in h er m ind of t h e h is t or i cal nat u re o f
k n owl ed ge.
๏ Th us , a s th e s pe a ke r takes i n th e scene and t alks t o a m an w ho

k n ew he r d e a d gra n dfat her, sh e is m ade aw are t hat al l l if e is
t r an si tory a nd t ha t g e nerati on s com e an d go .
๏ Fu rth e rm ore , knowl e d g e, wh ich w ill beco me t he cent r al th em e o f

t h e po e m, i s a ll ud e d to i n the en coun ter wi t h t hi s man .
๏ We l e a r n tha t he wa s a ‘ f ri en d of [ he r] gr an df a the r ,' t hat h e ha s

s ee n a ‘de clin e in t h e p opu la tion’ an d t hat he has s cr aped ‘the
p r in cip al b eau t y fro m u n numb ered f ish ’ .
๏ In l i ne 46 , the lu c i d a nd v i v i d awaren ess , t hat has ch ar act er is e d

t h e f i rst se c t i on of th is c omp le x poem, gives way to a more
d i sc on ne c te d st re a m o f thoug ht.
๏ On ce a ga i n, it i s i mp or tant to stres s t hat alt h ou gh a c le a r

d i sti n c ti on e xis ts b e t ween t he fi r st and t hi rd seg men t s of t h e
p oe m , the y a re i n fa c t co nnect ed .

๏ W i th tho ugh t s of t h e pas t, her ‘ g ra nd f ath er’ and ‘ the de cl in e i n
t he po p ul at io n ’ on h er m ind, t he p oet b ecom es m esm er is ed b y
t h e se a .
๏ B ea u ti f ul ly evok ed in the opening lines of the poem where

B is hop ec h oe s th e l on g ‘ o’ o f ‘ al th oug h ’ wi t h t he bro ad ‘ o’ o f
‘ g l oa ming ,' ‘col d’ a n d ‘ol d’ , the s ea n ow t akes o n a symb ol ic
v al u e.
๏ It co me s t o re p re se nt knowled ge in g ener al an d, i n Seamu s

H e a ne y’s e s ti ma t io n, h ints at the ‘reb irt h o f a rel i g i ou s i m p ul se’
Bishop
i n a s ec ul a r worl d .
๏ W hi l e i t i s v e ry d iff i c ul t to u nt ang le t he p oet ’s t r ain of t ho ug ht i n

t h e se l in e s, a d i sc e r n ibl e patt er n d oes em erge up on cl os e r
rea di n g.
๏ Th e se a c om e s to re p resent t he un kno wn and , i n s om e resp e c t s,

t h e un kno wa b l e .
© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ R el i gi on , w hi c h onc e prov ided m any of t h e ans wer s t o t h e mo re

p hi l os op hi c a l q ue s ti ons t hat li fe p oses , has b een repl aced by
c ol d re as on in t he tw en tiet h cent ur y.
๏ In t he p oem , the tr ad it i onal symbols of religion and Christianity

a re e it h er re pl a c e d o r p us hed to t he backg rou nd :
Back b eh in d us […] | [ …] a ssoc ia ting w ith the ir

s h ad o ws ,
a m illio n C h rist mas t re e s sta nd
wa it in g fo r Christ mas.
๏ A s C hri st i a n hy m n s e nt er t he po et’s min d, sh e is no t greet ed by

s o me d i vi ne c re a t u re, b ut mo re amusi ng ly b y an ord in ar y seal .

๏ R at he r th a n c o n c e ntra te o n th e unkn ow abl e, im po nd er abl e a n d
m yst i ca l q ue s ti ons that hav e been th e p reser v e o f Ch r is t ian it y,
t h e po e t c ho os e s t o e x amin e kn owled ge and reas on .
๏ Th e oc e a n p rov id e s he r wi th a fi t tin g symb ol fo r kno wl edg e. L ik e

knowledge, it is in continual flux, always moving always
c ha n gi ng.
๏ In Pe t er De nm a n’s view, ‘the po em end s wit h a magn if ic e n t

sp ec u lat i on on t h e n at ure of kno wled ge. Ho w do we kno w w ha t
we k now ? H ow d o we hol d on t o exp erien ce?’
๏ Th e p o et f e e l s tha t , l i ke t he co ld water, all kno wl edg e com es a t a

p r i c e . Le a r ni n g i s a di ffi cul t p rocess th at at fi r st t ast es “ b itte r ”
a nd i s o f te n p a in f ul .
๏ H um a n kn owl e d ge i s always co ntin gent up on t h e ach iev eme n t s

of our a nc e s to rs ; a nd t hi s sense, t he po et i s vi nd icat ed i n fee l in g
t h a t a l l kn owl e d ge i s h ist or ical.
3. Essa y Wr it ing
‘ A t t h e F ish ho us e s’ is perhaps Elizabeth Bishop’s best-known and most

m em or a b le p o e m . As su c h , i t is wo rt hy o f inclusio n in any respo nse t o
Bi s h op t ha t yo u m a y b e a sked t o m ake. If yo u decide t o include t hi s
po e m, t r y t o b e a r th e f ol l owi n g p oi nts i n mind.
a. Th e p oe m p ro vi d e s us wi th a com plex co mment ar y o n t he nat ure of

k n ow led g e.

b. Th i s i s a h i ghl y c ra f te d p oem t hat dr aws o n many lang uag e devices in
o rde r to en ha n c e i ts rhythm i c effect.
c. Th e le ve l of d e ta i l i n th e p oem i s t ypical o f Bisho p’s po et r y in g ener a l .

Ma k e s ure yo u un d e rsta nd h ow det ail ed descr ipt io ns in t he fir st half of
th e p oe m re i n fo rc e th e p h i l oso phical m edit at io n t hat t akes place in t h e
f in al s ect io n.
Bishop
© C. HOGAN NOTES

The Prodigal
________________________________________________________________________
The b rown e n orm ou s od or he lived by (a )
wa s t o o c l ose , wi th its breat hing an d th i ck ha ir , (b)
fo r h i m t o j ud ge . The flo or was ro t t en; t he sty (a )

Bishop
wa s p la st e re d h a l fway up wi t h glass-sm oo t h dung.
Lig h t -l a s h e d , s e l f-rig hteo us, ab ove movi ng sno uts, 5
th e pi gs’ e ye s f o l lo wed him , a cheer ful st are—
e ve n t o t h e so w t h a t alw ays at e h er you ng—
til l, si c ke ni ng , h e l eaned to scr at ch her head.

© C. HOGAN NOTES
b ut so m e ti m e s m or nings aft er dr inking bo ut s
(he hi d t h e p in t s b e hind th e two-b y-fo ur s), 10
th e s u n rise g l a z e d th e bar nyard mud wi t h red ;
th e bu r n i ng p ud dl e s seemed to reassu re.
And t h e n h e t h o u g h t h e alm ost mi gh t en d ure
his e xil e y e t a n o t h e r y ear o r more.
Bu t e ve n i ng s t h e f i rst star cam e to war n. 15
Th e fa rme r who m he wo r ked f or cam e at d ar k
to s h u t t h e c o ws a n d ho r ses in t he b ar n

b e ne a t h t h e i r o ve rhang i ng clou d s of h ay,
wi th p it c h f o rks , f a i nt fo rked lig ht ning s, cat ching lig ht ,
sa fe a nd c om pa n i on abl e as i n t he Ar k. 20
The p i g s stuc k out their li tt le feet and sno red.
The l a n te r n - l i ke the sun, go ing away -
l a id on t h e m ud a pacin g aureo l e.
C a rry i ng a b uc ke t a lon g a sl i m y b oard,

Bishop
he f e l t t he b a ts’ u n cert ain st ag g er ing flig ht , 25
his s h u d de rin g i nsi gh t s, beyo nd his co nt ro l,
to uc h i ng h i m. But i t t oo k him a lo ng t ime
fin a l ly t o m a ke up his mi nd to g o ho m e.
Glossary
The titl e of this po em is a reference to the 20 Ark – in th e Bible , th e sh ip th at G od

© C. HOGAN NOTES
parable of th e prodiga l s on (Luke 15:11–32 ). instr uct ed Noah to bu ild in or der save h is
For mo re i nfor mation on this parable , consul t the f a m i ly a n d t h e a n i m a l s o f t h e wo r l d f r o m t h e
cr itical commentar y on this poem. Flood. An a r k is a place t ha t pr ov ides r ef uge .
P ro d i g a l – wa ste ful o r spendthr ift to a degr ee 22 lantern – a light.

border ing on recklessness.
23 a u re o l e – a halo or corona that in ar tistic
2 c lose – t h e p o e t u s e s t h i s wo r d t o d e s c r i b e convention is the painted or car ved
the claustrophobic , stifling atmosphere of life repr esenta tion of a cir cle of lig ht a round t he
in the p i g sty. head of a divine being or a saint.
10 two-by-four – a len gth of timber th at is two 26 Shuddering – shaking or trembling

inches thic k a nd four inches wide , or tha t is u n c o n t r o l l a b l y, u s u a l l y f r o m a n e m o t i o n a l
tr immed to slightly smaller dimensions. reaction such as cold or fea r.
20 companionable – outgoing, sociable , good

com pany.

Commentary
________________________________________________________________________
1. Co n te nt (w ha t t he p o e t s a y s )
๏ A t the he a rt of t hi s i n tensel y emo ti onal po em is a direct refere nc e

t o t he b ib l i c a l p a ra b l e of the p ro dig al so n. Befo re at t empt ing a ny
Bishop
d i sc u ssi on of t he p oe m , it is i m po rtant t o beco me familiar wit h t his

s t or y. The B i b l e (L uke 15:11–32) t el ls us t hat :
Th e re was a m an who had t wo s o ns. Th e you ng er on e sai d t o h i s

f a t h er, ‘ Fa th e r, gi ve m e m y s hare o f the est at e.’ So he divided his pro pe r t y
be t we en th e m . N ot l on g af te r that, t he yo ung er so n g o t t o g et her all he
ha d, s e t o ff f or a d i s tan t c oun tr y and there squandered his wealt h in w il d
li vi n g . A ft e r h e h ad s p e nt e v er yt hing, t here was a severe famine in t ha t
co un tr y, a n d he b e g an to s uff er. So he went and hired himself o ut t o a
© C. HOGAN NOTES
ci t iz e n of th at c o un try, who s ent him t o his fields t o feed pig s. Such w a s

hi s h u n g er t hat h e l onge d to fil l his st o mach wit h t he meal t hat t he pi gs
w e re e a ti n g, b ut no on e gav e him anyt hing . When he came t o his sense s,
he sa id , ‘ H ow m any of m y f ather’s hired men have fo o d t o spare, and he re
I a m st a r vin g to d e ath! I wi l l s et o ut a nd g o back t o my fat her and sa y
to h im : Fa t he r, I h av e s i nn e d agai nst heaven and ag ainst yo u. I am no
lo n ge r w o r th y to b e c al l e d y our s on; ma ke me like o ne o f yo ur hired me n. ’
S o h e g o t u p and w e n t to hi s f ather. But while he was still a long way
o ff , h i s f a th e r s aw h i m and was fil led w it h co mpassio n fo r him; he r an t o
hi s so n, t hre w hi s arm s aroun d him and kissed him. T he so n said t o
hi m , ‘ Fa th e r, I hav e s i n n e d against heaven and ag ainst yo u. I am no lo ng e r
wor th y t o b e c al le d y ou r so n.’B ut t he fath er said to h i s ser van t s,
‘ Q u i ck ! Br i n g t he b e s t rob e and p ut i t o n him. Put a r ing o n his fing er a nd
s a n d a l s on h i s fe e t . Bri n g th e fatt ened calf and kill it . Let ’s have a fe a st
a n d ce l ebr at e . For th i s s on of m ine was dead and is alive ag ain; he w a s
lo st a nd i s fo un d .’

๏ B is hop u se s th i s pa ra ble o f t h e p ro d i g a l s o n t o e x p l o re h e r o w n
s t rugg le wi th a l c oho l i sm .
๏ In fa c t , thi s i s the o nl y p oem sh e wrot e t hat ex ami nes t hi s d ee pl y

p e rson a l a n d d e st ru c tiv e s ide to h er p er so nal it y.
๏ ③ ‘T he Prod i gal ’ op e ns wi t h a g rap hi c dep ict i on of t he f il t h a n d
d e pr iv a ti on of l if e i n the pig sty.
๏ Th e od ou r i s s o off e nsi ve as to b ecom e a ph ys ical , ev en s ol id

p res en ce . It i s ‘b ro wn an d eno rm o us’ and b ecom es so f ami li a r t o
Bishop
t h i s p e rson tha t h e can n o lo nger d i scer n i t .
๏ If t he s m e ll i s u nb e a rab l e, the s ur roun di ng s are eq ual ly s qu a li d.

Th e f l oor i s ‘ro t te n ’ and th e ent i re st y i s “p last ered wit h gl a ss-
smo oth d un g’.
๏ On al l si d e s th e p i gs seem to sur roun d t hi s deh um ani sed f ig ure .

Th e se a ni m a l s, i nc l udin g ‘ t he sow that al ways at e her you ng ’,
a p pe a r c he e rfu l .
© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ In l in e 10 t h e re i s a sl igh t shi ft i n t he p oem as we lear n that after

‘ d r in kin g b ou t s ’ t he man is b ro ug ht even lo wer t h an t h e se
a ni m a ls .
๏ Ly in g i n th e p udd l e s in a drunken haze, h e i s l eft t o b ake i n t h e

blazing sun. Despite the obvious physical, spiritual and
e m oti on al de p ri va t io n of hi s l ife in t he pi g st y, t h is m an feel s t ha t
h e h a s i t i n h i m t o ‘e ndure | hi s exi le yet ano t her year o r mo re .’
๏ In t he s e co n d so n ne t t h a t f o r m s t h e s e c o n d h a l f o f t h e p o e m , i t
i s n ig ht- ti m e . ‘ The f ar mer who m he wo r ked f or ’ is bu sy t end in g
t o the a n im a l s.
๏ In s ha rp c ont ra s t to the far m wo rker, t hes e ani mal s are m ade t o

fe el ‘s af e and c om p a ni on able’ as i f i n an ‘A r k’ . E ven t he p ig s
s ee m c om forta b le .

๏ Th e l i ght of th e s un th at d rew th e w or ker ’s at t ent i on i n t he fi r st
h al f of the p oe m i s repl aced b y t he lig ht fro m t he far m o wn e r ’s
l ante r n, w hi c h i s l ike n ed t o a ‘paci ng aureo le. ’
๏ Th e b ri ght n e ss a n d c o mfor t it affo rd s is d iam et r ical ly opposed to

t h e sp e ake r ’s e xi st e nce.
๏ H is i s a w orl d of sl i my bo ards and spi r it u al b li nd nes s. Li ke t he

b a ts, th i s w orke r is b l ind and uncer t ain an d hi s li fe is b eyo nd h is
c on tro l.
Bishop
๏ Th e p oe m e nd s wi t h a mo vi ng acco unt of t h is m an’s s hu dd e r in g

i n s i gh ts. De s p i te th e wret ched nes s o f h is su r rou nd in gs , an d t h e
a p pa ren t h op e l e s sne s s of hi s sit uat i on , he is m ov ed by s om e
‘ u nk no wn fo rc e to m ake his m in d up to go h ome’.
2. Styl is t ic F e a t ure s ( h o w t h e p o e t s a y s i t )
๏ ① E l i z a b e t h B i s h o p ’s a l c o h o l i s m a n d t h e p e c u l i a r c i rc u m s t a n c e s
© C. HOGAN NOTES
of he r e a rl y l i f e forge d a p recari ou s path i n her con sci ou sn ess .
๏ In thi s p oe m , sh e c onf ro nt s the l onel i nes s an d p ain t hat d og ge d

h er for mo st o f h er ad ul t lif e. Bis ho p u ses t he p ar abl e of t he
p rod i g al so n t o hi gh l i ght th e u gl y and d ehu man is in g nat u re o f
t h e a lc oh ol i c ’s e xis te nce.
๏ H owe v er, wh a t i s mos t remarkab l e ab ou t t h is p oem i s t he

m e a s u re o f h u m a n i t y t h a t t h e p o e t m a n a g e s t o a ff o rd h e r
s u b j ec t .
๏ Fo r a l l the ha rd sh ip , is ol atio n and rej ect io n t h at t he f ar m w or k e r

h as know n, th ere is a n in co ngr uou s sensitivity and depth of
aw aren ess i n h is lan gu ag e a nd th oug h ts.
๏ In p a rt i cu l a r, the d e li cacy of t he descr i pt i on o f t he ani ma l s,

wh i c h are i n sh a rp cont r ast t o th e reali t y o f t h eir s et t in g,
p rov i de s t h e re a d e r with i ns ig ht s i nt o the w or ker ’s ch ar act er.

๏ ④ Perhaps the most st r ikin g stylistic feat u re o f ‘Th e Pro di ga l’ i s
i ts con st ruc t i on .
๏ W hi l e the a rra n ge m e nt of t he po em con si st s o f a v er y fo r ma l

d i vi si on in t o t wo s onn ets of rou ghl y ev en l eng t h, ④ Bi sh op ’s u se
of e rra ti c rhyme a c ti vely u nd er min es this s t r uct u re.
๏ Th i s e rra ti c rh ymin g sch eme i s f i r s t i n t ro d u c e d i n t h e o p e n i n g

q ua tr ain :
Bishop
The b rown e n or mo us o do r he lived by a was t o o clo se,

wi th i ts bre ath in g and th i ck h ai r, B
fo r h i m to j ud ge. The flo o r was ro t t en; t he st y a was

p las te re d h al fway up wit h glass-smo oth dun g. C
๏ Th e f ir st t hre e l i ne s , rh ym i ng a b a, indu ce t h e read er t o ex pe c t

© C. HOGAN NOTES
t h e typ e of rh ym i n g schem e we associ at e w it h a Sh ak esp ea ri an

s o nn et , b ut B is ho p cho o ses no t to all ow t h e p oem t o r h ym e
s moot h ly.
๏ In t h is res pe ct , t h e rh ymin g sch eme mir ro rs th e se nse of

al i en at io n a n d o bvio us disloc a tion th at i s asso ci ate d w ith the
al c oh o lic s tat e o f mind .
๏ In o t h er wo rds , t h e for m o f t he p oe m mi rror s th e po et’s

t he mat ic in t en t .
๏ T h e a l c o h o l i c c a n a p p e a r o rg a n i s e d a n d i n c o n t ro l o n t h e
ou ts id e , b ut t h is e xte r io r of ten d i sg uises an in ner t ur m oi l.
๏ Yo u s h o u l d n o t i c e , t o o , t h a t f o r m o s t o f t h e p o e m , t h e
d e sc ri pt i on s of t h e sty are g iven in such a m ann er as t o s ug ge s t
t h a t th e worke r i s i n f a ct on t he groun d.

๏ W hi l e d ri n ki n g b ou ts b rin g h im lo wer t han t he an im als , i t is on ly
wh en h e li e s f l a t on hi s b ack t hat he w it n ess es t he ‘sta gg er i ng
f lig h t o f the ba ts’.
๏ Th e mo ve me n t of t he s e creat ures d raws t h e w or ker ’s at t en t io n a s

h e f ol l ows t h e ir up wa rd mo ti on .
๏ S i m i l a r l y, h i s s p i r i t i s d r a w n u p w a r d a n d t h i s p r o m p t s a
‘ s h ud d erin g in sigh t’. In t hi s s ens e, t he p oem aff ir m s B is ho p’s
b e li e f tha t e ve n i n the d arkest hour, am id st t he wo r st sq ua l or,
s o me th i ng of t h e nob i li t y of t he hu man co nd it i on can end ure.
Bishop
3. Essa y Wr it ing
I f yo u a re th i nki n g of m a ki ng reference t o t his po em in an essay, yo u

sh o u ld t r y t o b e a r th e f ol l owi n g p oi nts i n mind.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
a.T h i s i s a d e e p l y e m o t i o n a l p o e m t h a t d r a w s o n t h e p o e t ’s l i f e
e x p e r i e n c e . M a n y o f t h e p o e m s b y B i s h o p i n t h i s a n t h o l o g y a re
b i ogr a p h ic a l . Yo u m a y wi sh to dev ot e an ent ire par ag r aph t o t his aspe c t
of h er w o rk.
b.T he fo r ma l s tru c ture o f t h e p oem i s o ffset by t he diso rg anised r hymi ng

s ch e m e. S uc h c o n trol of f o rm and s t r uct ure is t ypical o f B isho p’s
p oe t r y.
c.A l t ho u gh ‘Th e Pro di gal ’ d oes provi de t he reader wit h a dist ur bi ng

i n si g h t i n to t h e de h u ma n isi ng reali ty o f alco ho lism, it s messag e is
u l ti m a te ly he a r te ni n g.Ma n y of t he po ems o n t he co ur se have an uplift i ng
o ut l o ok a t t h e ir h e a rt . Yo u m ay wi sh t o devo t e a par ag r aph t o t h is
a sp ec t o f h e r w or k.

In the Waiting Room
________________________________________________________________________
In Worc e ste r, Massachuset t s,
I we n t wi th Au nt C on su el o
t o ke e p he r dentis t ’s ap p ointment
Bishop
a n d s a t a n d wai ted f or her
i n t h e d e nt i s t ’s wai t i ng ro om. 5
It w a s wi nte r. It go t d ar k
e a rly. Th e wa i ting roo m
wa s f u l l o f g rown -u p peopl e,
a rc ti c s a n d overcoats,
© C. HOGAN NOTES
l a mp s a n d ma g azi n es. 10
My a u n t wa s i nsid e
wh a t se e m e d li ke a l on g t i m e
a n d whi le I wait ed and read
t h e N a ti on a l Geo gr aphic
(I c o u l d re a d) and carefu l l y 15
st u d ie d th e p hoto gr aphs:
th e i n si d e of a vo lcano ,
b la c k, a n d fu l l o f ash es;
t h e n i t wa s spi ll in g over
i n rivu l e ts o f f ire. 20

Osa a n d Ma rti n Johnso n
d re sse d in rid ing breeches,
l a c e d b oo t s, an d p i t h helm et s.
A d e a d m a n slung o n a po le
“ L o n g Pi g,” t h e cap t i on sai d . 25
Ba b i e s wi th p ointed heads
wo u n d ro u n d and rou nd wi t h str ing ;

Bishop
b l a c k, n a ke d wo men wit h necks
wo u n d ro u n d and rou nd wi t h wire
l ike t h e n e c ks of li gh t bulb s. 30
The i r b re a sts were hor r ifying .
I re a d i t rig h t strai gh t th rou gh .
I wa s t o o sh y t o sto p .
© C. HOGAN NOTES
An d th e n I l oo ked at th e co ver :
t h e ye l lo w m a rg in s, th e dat e. 35
Sud d e nl y, f rom i nsid e,
c a m e a n o h ! o f pai n
—Au n t C on su elo ’s vo i ce—
n o t ve ry l ou d or l o ng .
I wa sn ’t a t a l l su rp r ised; 40
e ve n t h e n I kn ew she was
a fo ol i sh , ti m i d wo man.

I m ig h t h a ve been emb ar r assed,
b ut wa sn ’t . W hat t oo k me
c o m pl e te l y b y su rp r ise 50
wa s t h a t i t wa s me:
m y vo i c e , in my m ou t h.
W i th o u t t h i nki ng at al l
I wa s m y f ool i sh aunt,
Bishop
I—we —we re fall ing , fall i ng , 55
o u r e y e s g l ue d t o t he cover
o f t h e N a ti on a l Geog r ap hic,
F e b ru a ry, 19 1 8.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
I sa i d t o m y se lf: th ree days
a n d y o u ’l l b e seven year s o ld. 60
I wa s sa yi ng i t to st op
t h e se n sa t i on of f al l i ng o ff
t h e rou n d , tu r ning wor ld
i nt o c o l d, b lu e-bl ack space.
Bu t I f e l t: you are an I, 65
yo u a re a n E li zabet h,
yo u a re on e o f th em .
W h y sh o u l d yo u be on e, t oo ?

I sc a rc e ly d a red to loo k
t o se e wh a t i t was I was. 70
I g a ve a si de l ong g l ance
—I c o u l dn ’t l oo k an y high er —
a t sh a d owy g ray knees,
t rou se rs a n d s kir ts an d boo t s
a n d di ff e re nt pai rs o f han d s 75
Bishop
l y i ng u n d e r t h e lam ps.
I kn e w tha t not hing st rang er
h a d e v e r ha p pened, t hat no t hing
st ra ng e r c ou l d ever h ap p en.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
W h y sh o u l d I be m y au nt, 80
o r me , o r a nyo ne?
Wh a t si m i l a ri ties
b oo t s, h a n d s , t he fami l y vo i ce
I f e l t i n m y t h roat, o r even
t h e N a ti on a l Geo gr aphic 85
a n d th o se a wf ul h ang i ng breasts
h e l d u s a l l t o geth er
o r m a d e u s a l l just o ne?
H ow I d id n’t kn ow an y

wo rd f o r it h o w “un l i kel y”… 90
H ow h a d I c ome t o b e h ere,
l ike t h e m , a nd over hear
a c ry o f p a in t hat cou l d h ave
g o t l ou d a nd wo rs e b ut hadn’t ?
Bishop
T h e wa i ti ng room w as br i gh t 95
a n d to o h o t . It was sl i d i ng
b e ne a t h a b ig bl ack wave,
a n o t h e r, a n d an oth er.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
T h e n I wa s b a ck i n it .
T h e Wa r wa s o n. Outsi d e, 10 0
i n Worc e s t e r, Massachu setts,
we re ni gh t a n d s lu sh an d co l d ,
a n d it wa s st i ll t he fifth
o f F e b ru a ry, 19 18 .

1 Wo r c e s t e r, M a s s a c h u s e t t s – E l i z a b e t h American explorer s, writer s and motion
Bishop’s place of bir th. picture producer s who were also husband
and wife .
2 A unt C onsuelo – cr itic s are d i vi d e d as t o
w h e t h e r o r n o t t h i s i s a r e fe r e n c e t o 28 p i t h h e l m e t s – (also kn own as th e su n
Bishop’s real-life Aunt Florence . h e l m e t , t o p e e o r t o p i ) a l i g h t we i g h t h e l m e t
ma de of cor k or pit h wit h a clot h cove r,
9 a r c t i c – in Amer ican English, any high designed to shade the wearer’s head from
wa ter p roof ove r sh oe with a w ar m linin g. the sun.
14 N ational G eograp hic – a magazine often 25 Long Pi g – in t he M ar qu esa s I slan ds of

fo u n d i n w ai ti n g r o o m s .
Bishop
Polynesia , hu man f lesh wa s ca lled long -pig.
21 Osa and Mar tin Johnson – Johnson,

Mar tin Elmer and Osa Helen, distinguished
Commentary
© C. HOGAN NOTES
________________________________________________________________________
1. Co n te nt
๏ Th i s i nt en s e ly p ers o na l po em is grounded in a real experience.

A s i f t o re m i n d u s o f t hi s fact, t he op eni ng i s ver y s peci fi c. We
l ea r n t ha t:
‘In Wo rcester, Ma ssachuse tts,
[th e p o et] wen t with Aunt Consue lo

to k eep h er d entist’s a ppointme nt .’
๏ ③ The speaker is equally specific about the time of year. While
ou ts id e i t i s ‘wi n ter ’ and ‘da rk ,’ i ns id e t h e w ait i ng ro om i s

c ro wde d wi t h ‘ gro wn -u p p eo ple , arctics an d ove rc oa ts’.
๏ A s Aun t Co n su e lo recei ves her t reatm ent , t he s peaker w a it s

Bishop
p a ti e ntl y i n th e “waitin g roo m” and beg in s t o read t he “Na tion al

Geo g ra phi c .”
๏ U ns urp ri si n gl y, t h e j our nal cont ai ns ph ot o gr ap hs of a “ volc an o, ”

on e of w hi c h i s d e s crib ed as b ei ng ‘b lac k, a nd fu ll o f a she s’.
๏ In t he p hot ogra p h of th e v ol cano , “rivu lets of fire” sp il l ov er t h e

e d ge s. We a re t he n p resented w ith ano th er ph ot o gr ap h, t hi s t i me
of “O sa a nd M arti n Joh nson dressed i n rid ing b re ec he s. ”
© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ We a r i n g t h e t y p i c a l c l o t h e s o f t h e c o l o n i a l e x p l o re r, t h e i r
a p pe a ra nc e i s i n sha rp co ntras t t o th e i mag e of the ‘ de ad m an
s l un g o n a po le.’
๏ Th e c ap ti on “ ( L o n g P ig )” accom panyi ng t hi s d is t ur b in g im a ge
ref e rs t o t he pr act i c e in t he Marq uesas Is l and s o f Pol y nes i a o f
d e sc ri bi n g h um a n fl e sh as bein g li ke a t yp e o f pi g.
๏ In a dd it io n t o t he s e ph ot ogr ap hs , t he y ou ng sp eaker is dr aw n t o
t h e i m a ge s o f t h e ‘B a bie s, w ith p o inte d he ad s’ and t h e ‘bla ck ,
n a ke d wo m en’ whose necks reas sem bl e t h e n ecks of l ig ht
b ul b s .

๏ A l th ou gh e m b a rra s se d by t hes e, she feels “ too sh y to sto p” h e r
p e rusa l of t he m a ga z i ne.
๏ In l in e 35 , a c l e a r a n d sudden b reak i n t he po em’s na rr ati ve

oc c urs .
๏ A nn ou nc e d b y th e “c ry o f p ain” fro m C on su elo , t h is break m a r k s

t h e po in t i n th e po e m wh en t he s peak er exp er ien ces a m om e nt
of ep iph an y.
๏ A t t he sa m e t i m e , wi nt r y Worcest er reced es in t o t he t wi li gh t a n d
n o rm al c onn e c t io n s b et ween t i me and sp ace b ecom e d is t or t e d .
๏ Th i s s ud d e n, i nt u i t i v e l e ap o f u nd e r s ta nd i n g , wh ic h
c e nt res on he r s e nse of her ow n id en tit y, cau ses h er t o f eel a s if

s h e i s “ fa lling .”
๏ In o rd e r t o a n c h or h ersel f, t he yo ung E li zab et h’s ey es rema i n

fi x e d on t h e N a t io n al Geo gr aphic and in p ar t icu lar on t h e d at e . I t
i s ‘F eb ruar y, 19 1 8 .’
๏ Th e n e xt s ta n za , wh ich for m s t he t hi rd s ect io n o f t h e po e m,

op e ns on c e a ga i n wi th an affi r mati on o f i de nti ty .
๏ Th e s pe a ke r re m i nd s h ersel f th at in t h ree d ays s he wi ll b e

“ s e ven years o ld ” a nd th at she i s on e o f t hem , “an E liza be th .”
๏ Ob vi ou sl y b e wi l d e red and con fu sed b y t h e ph ys ical and cul t ur a l

t r ai t s th a t sh e ha s f ou nd i n th e N atio nal Geo gr ap hi c, s he b egi ns
t o qu e st io n he r own i d ent i ty.
๏ In w ha t i s p re s um a b l y a reference t o the w id er h um an r ace, sh e

op e nl y w ond e rs why sh e ‘ sh ould be ’ on e o f t hem . So in t ens e a re
t h e f ee l in gs tha t t he s e quest i ons pro vo ke in t he s peaker, t h a t
s h e fe e l s a s if sh e i s:
[…] f alling off
th e ro u nd ,

tu r n in g wo rld
in to c o ld, blu e-b la ck spa ce .
๏ Th e e ff e ct of a l l t h is on t he sp eaker i s alm os t p hy si cal. U nab le t o

r a i se h er he a d u p , she gi ves a si delo ng g lan ce t o t h e o t he r
p e op l e i n t h e wa i ti ng room .
Bishop
๏ A nd i n th e p oe t’s a l te red st ate of cons cio us nes s, t he as sem bl e d

p e op l e a re re d u c e d to an al m ost su rreal g rou pi ng o f:
tro u sers a nd skirts a nd boots
an d d iff ere nt p ai rs of ha nds
lyin g u n de r the la mps.

© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ A l l of t h is l e a d s t he p oet to ad m it t hat no t hi ng st r an ger h ad e v e r

h ap p e ne d t o he r.
๏ Fo r t he f i rst ti m e i n h er l ife, she b ecom es aware of h er o wn

existence. This awareness causes her to question the
“ s i mi lari t ies,” th e “ family vo ic e ” and o t her p hy si cal at t r i bu t e s
t h a t m a ke us wh a t we are.
๏ A t th e sa m e t i m e , she s crutin ises th e con nect i on s t h at jo in he r

t o th e wid e r worl d . She fi nd s t he reali t y of h er ex is t ence t o be
t h e re su l t of a n ‘u nlikely ’ series of events that have brought her
t o th is ve r y room whe re sh e has j us t heard h er au nt let ou t a c r y
of p ai n .
๏ Th e unrhymed quatrain that makes up the fourth sta nza o f t h e

p oe m de sc r ib e s t he po et’s sen sat i on o f f ain t in g ‘ be ne ath a b i g
b l ac k w ave’.

๏ Th i s d isc o nc e rt in g se ns atio n preced es t he s peaker ’s ret ur n t o
t h e re al i t y of t h e room, t he co ld ou tdo o r s an d f in all y Wor l d Wa r I .
Th e fi rst l i ne of the f i nal s tanza su gges t s t hat t he po et h as be e n
c om p le t el y a l te re d by t hi s exper i ence.
๏ A l th ou gh the worl d h a s not chan ged and i t i s st i ll t h e ‘ fifth o f

F eb rua ry, 1 9 18,' t he po et di stan ces her sel f fro m t hi s fact . T he
ou ts id e worl d i s d e sc r ibed as b eing ‘ it. ’ Th e f in al des cr ip t io n of
Bishop
t h e “sl ush” a n d c o l d i s no t a p ar ticu larl y ed if yi ng on e.
๏ M an y of E li za b e th B i sh op ’s po ems on y ou r co ur s e cent re on the

p oe t’s re c ol l e c ti ons of her c hi ld h ood . Per h aps t he m os t s t r ik i ng
© C. HOGAN NOTES
a nd re ad il y n oti c e ab le sty lis tic featu re o f t hi s po em is t h e

m a nne r i n w hi c h t he sp eaker t akes on t h e v oi ce o f a ch il d a nd
t h e re b y im p os e s a child -li ke s imp l icit y on t he ima ge ry a n d
la ng u ag e.
๏ In ve ry o rdi na ry, a lm ost u n- po etic l ang uag e, t i mes and pl a c e s

a re l a b el l ed wi th p re c is io n:
‘In Worce ste r, Massa ch use tts’;
‘I sa id t o myse lf three da ys
and yo u’l l b e seven ye ars o ld’;
‘it was sti ll th e fifth | of F eb rua ry, 1918.’
๏ Th e p oe m ’s p e rs pe c ti ve is t ol d ent i rel y f rom t he s ix -y ear- ol d

E l iz a be t h’s p oi n t of vi ew.
๏ Th e c ry of p a i n, th e dat e on the Nati on al Geo gr ap hi c and t he

u n f a m i l i a r a d u l t s a l l m a k e h e r s u d d e n l y a w a re t h a t s h e i s
d i ffe ren t.

๏ A l th ou gh the re s ul ta n t quest i ons (Who i s t hi s per s on ca l le d
E l iz a be t h? An d wh y i s sh e who s he i s? ) are po sed in relat i ve l y
c hi l d i sh la n gua g e , t he y are d eeply p ro f ou nd a nd se arch in g .
๏ Th e p o em t he n q ui c kl y takes on the asp ect of an en qu ir y in t o t h e

n at ure of se l f a nd id ent ity, wh ich are bo t h u nd eni abl e asp ect s o f
t he hu man co nd it io n .
๏ B y p ortr ay in g a re s e rved sol i tary chi l d wai t in g fo r h er au nt – no t

h er m oth e r or fa t he r, but her aunt – t he p oet f orces us t o
c on si d er th i s c h i l d as bein g co mp l et ely sep ar at ed f rom he r
Bishop
b a c kgro und .
๏ Fo r a l l i n te n ts a n d p urpo ses or p han ed, t h e y ou ng g ir l co ns id e r s

t h e c ul tur a l rol e m od e ls th at are o n o ffer.
๏ Th e im a ge s a nd p h ot ogr ap hs i n the N at io nal Geo gr ap hi c a re

n ea rl y a l l su gge st i v e of vi ctim i sat i on and d om in at io n.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ In p a rt i cu l a r, the s p e a ker i s rem i nd ed of t h e po si t io n o f w om e n i n

s o ci e ty. From th e “c ry of p ain" of t hat “fo olish , ” “timid " w om a n,
h er a un t , to t he “ awf ul ha ngin g b re asts , ” t h e s peaker is m a de
t o con si d e r th e re pre ssio n o f wom en.
๏ Responding to these largely negative representations of

h u m an i ty, t he youn g po et recedes into h er o wn t h ou gh t s. T hi s
p roc e ss o f re e v a l u atin g her p lace i n t he wo r ld i s ob vi ou sl y a
d i stu rb i ng one f or t he s ix-year-ol d E l izab et h.
๏ In par t icu lar, th e ima ge o f t h e v o l c a n o e r u p t i n g i n ‘r ivule ts o f

f ire ’ is s ug g es t ive o f t he viol en t ch an ge tha t she is a bo ut to
u n derg o.
๏ In ad d i ti on to t h is , th e m ore at tentiv e reader w il l n ot i ce t hat t h e

s ett i ng of the p oe m (th e dentis t’s wai t in g ro om ) is us ua l ly
a ss oci a te d wi t h p a i n an d d iscom fo rt.

๏ Fu rth e rm ore , t h e a tm o sp here in t hi s p ar t icu lar wai t in g roo m is
s t i fl i ng a nd c l a u st rop ho bi c. The po et’s react i on t o al l t hi s is t o
b e c om e c om p l e te l y d i sor i ent at ed.
๏ Th e s e nsa t i on o f f a i n tin g ‘ be ne a th a b ig b lac k w a ve, | a no the r,

an d an o th er ’ p re c e d es her ret ur n t o t he h ar sh reali t y o f t h e c ol d
ou td oor s a n d Worl d War I.
๏ In t hre e da y s , th e you ng El i zabet h w ill b e sev en y ear s o ld , w hi c h

i s t he c om m onl y a c c ep ted ag e o f reas on . H ow ever, i t is here i n
t h i s wa i ti ng room th at her un ders tandi ng o f her pl ace i n t he
Bishop
wor ld ha s fo re ve r b e e n altered .
๏ Th i s is a p rof oun d and co mp l ex poem that poses some of the

m ost f un d a me n ta l q ues tio ns a b o u t t h e hu man co nd it i on a n d
id en t it y.
3. Essa y Wr it ing
© C. HOGAN NOTES
G i ve n th at m a ny c r i ti c s hol d this to b e o ne o f Bisho p’s mo st impo r t a nt

po e ms , y ou sh oul d c onsi d e r menti oning t he po em in any essay o n he r
w or k . T h e f ol l owi ng p oi n ts m ay help y o u t o o rg anise yo ur appro ach t o
th i s p oe m i n a n e s sa y.
a. O nc e a ga i n , Bi sh o p fo cuses o n an unco mfo r t able exper ie nc e

ari s i ng out a m e mo ry of her o wn chi ld ho o d. Given t hat man y of
t he p oe ms o n t he cour se b y E li zab et h Bisho p dr aw o n h e r
childhood memories, you may wish to devote an entire
pa ra gra p h t o thi s a sp ect o f her wor k.
b. D e sp i te th e s e e m in g sim pl ici ty o f the po em’s lang uag e, t his is

a h ig hl y c om pl e x a nd t ho ug ht -provo king po em. T his is t ypi c a l

o f Bi sh op ’s p o e try. Other po ems o n t he co ur se, such a s
Se s ti na , f ol l ow t h is p att er n.
c. T he a rti st ’s e y e for det ail is never far fro m Elizabet h B ish op ’s

po et ry. In t h e c a s e of thi s p oem , t he po et manag es t o crea t e a
v i vi d wo rd p ic t u re of the wait ing roo m o n t hat day in F ebr u a r y
19 18. Ma n y of th e p oem s t hat are i ncluded in t his ant ho l og y
ac h ie ve a s i mi la r e ffect. Yo u m ay wish t o devo t e a sepa r a t e
pa ra gra p h t o Bi sh op ’s eye fo r d etai l.
Bishop
© C. HOGAN NOTES

First Death in Nova Scotia
________________________________________________________________________
In t h e c o l d, c o ld p ar l or
m y m ot h e r la i d ou t Ar th ur
b e ne a t h t h e c h ro m og r ap hs:
E dwa rd, Prin c e o f Wales,

Bishop
wi th Prin c e ss Alex an d r a, 5
a n d K in g Ge o rg e wi t h Qu een Mar y.
B e l ow t h e m on t he t ab l e
st o o d a s t u ff e d l oo n
sh o t a n d s t u ff ed b y Uncle
Arth u r, Arth u r’s fath er. 10

© C. HOGAN NOTES
Si nc e U nc l e A rt hu r f i red
a b ul le t i nt o h im ,
h e h a d n’t sa i d a wo rd .
H e ke pt h i s o wn co un sel
o n h i s wh i te , f rozen l ake, 15
t h e m a rb le -t o pp ed tabl e.
H is b re a st wa s deep an d whit e,
c o l d a n d c a re ssabl e;
h i s e ye s we re red glass,
m uc h t o b e desired. 20

“ C om e , ” s a i d my m oth er,
“ C om e a nd s a y go od-bye
t o yo u r li tt l e co usi n Ar t hu r.”
I wa s l if t e d up and g i ven
o n e l il y o f t h e vall ey 25
t o p ut i n Arth u r’s h and.
Arth u r’s c o ff i n was

Bishop
a l it t l e frost e d cak e,
a n d th e re d-e yed l o on eyed it
f rom hi s wh i te , frozen l ake. 30
Arth u r wa s ve ry sm al l .
H e wa s a l l wh it e, l i ke a d oll
© C. HOGAN NOTES
t h a t h a d n’t b een pai nted yet .
Ja c k F rost h a d s t ar t ed to pai nt him
t h e wa y h e a l way s p ai nted 35
t h e Ma p le L e a f (F orever ).
H e ha d ju st b egu n on h i s hair,
a f e w re d st rokes, an d th en
Ja c k F rost h a d d ro p p ed th e br ush
a n d le f t h i m whit e, fo rever. 40
T h e g ra c io u s ro yal co upl es
we re wa rm in red an d er mi ne;

t h e i r f e e t we re wel l wr ap p ed u p
i n t h e l a di e s ’ erm ine t r ai ns.
T h e y i nvi te d Ar th ur t o b e 45
t h e sm a ll e s t page at co ur t.
B u t h o w c o u l d Arth ur go ,
c l ut c h i ng h i s tiny li l y,
wi th h i s e ye s shu t u p so t i gh t
Bishop
a n d th e roa d s deep in sn ow? 50
G l os s ar y
Nov a S coti a – the second smallest province 8 loon – a fish -eatin g divin g bird fou n d in
in Canada. nor thern regions of the nor thern
hemisphere.
1 p a r l o r – a livin g room th at is n or mally set
aside for enter taining guests. 14 to keep … co u n sel – to rema in silen t or
to keep your opinions to your self.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
3 c hromographs – pictures that created by

means o f chro mo lith ogr ap hy, wh ich w as t he 28 frosted – Amer ican English for iced.
fi r s t m e t h o d fo r m a k i n g t r u e mu l t i - c o l o u r
pr ints. (Before the chromolithogr aph, pr ints 36 Maple Leaf (Forever) – Patr i o ti c s o n g
were coloured in by hand.) com posed by Alexan der Mu ir in Octo ber
1867, th e year of Can ada’s C onfeder at ion.
4 Edward – E dw ar d V I I ( A l be r t E dw ar d,
1841–1910) was King of the United 42 erm ine – t he w hite f u r of a n er min e , a
Kingdom of Great Br itain and Ireland, King small weasel, on ce va lued as a sym bol of
of the Commonwealth Realms and the wealth, nobility or high r ank.
Emperor of India.
42 tra i n s – l o n g par t at th e bac k o f a gow n
5 Alexandra – Alexandr a of Denmar k, or robe t hat tr ails on th e grou nd
E d w a r d ’s w i f e a n d t h e b e a u t i f u l e l d e r
46 p a ge – a ser vant or attendant.
daughter of Kin Chr istian IX of Denmar k.
6 Ki ng Geo rge w ith Queen Mar y – K i n g

George Frederick Ernest Alber t (1865–
1936) a nd Mar y of Tec k, Qu ee n o f E ng lan d
(1867–1953).

Commentary
________________________________________________________________________
1. Co n te nt
E v oc at iv e
Bishop
๏ ‘ Fi rs t De ath in No v a Scot i a ’ is a poig na nt, re stra ine d a nd

b e au ti fu ll y e voke d re co ll ect io n of a pai nf ul ch il dh oo d mem or y.
๏ Th e p o em , n arrat ed e n t i re l y i n t h e p a s t t e n s e , o p e n s b y t e l l i n g
u s th at Ar thu r wa s la i d o ut in t he ‘c old, c old p ar lor ’ .
๏ I n t e re s t i n g l y, t h i s i s t h e o n l y p u b l i s h e d p o e m b y E l i z a b e t h
B is hop tha t i nc l ud e s m ent i on of her mo t her.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ Gi ve n t h e t ra g i c ci rc um stan ces of her rel at io ns hi p wi t h he r

m oth e r, i t is not su rpr isi ng that that t hi s w om an i s as so cia t e d
wi t h d e a th.
๏ ③ T h e s c e n e i s c a re f u l l y a n d v i v i d l y d e p i c t e d i n t h e o p e n i n g
s t an z a. Th e b od y of t he speaker ’s dead co us in Ar t h ur li e s
b e ne a th :
[…] th e cho romo gra phs:
E d ward Princes o f Wa le s,
With P rincess Ale xa ndra ,
An d K in g Geo rge with Que e n Ma ry.

๏ On the ta b l e b e l ow thes e p ictu res o f t he B r it i sh roy alt y st an ds a
s t uff e d lo on. Thi s bi rd was sh ot and s t uffed b y “ Unc le Ar thu r,
A r th ur ’s f ath er.”
๏ In t he se c ond s ta nz a , we l ear n th at this bi rd has n ot sai d a w ord

s in c e ‘ Unc le Art h ur | fire d a bulle t in to him ’.
๏ W i th c hi l dl ike s im p l i c i ty, B isho p d escr i bes t h is d ead bi rd. I t is

s n ow wh it e , it s b re a st i s ‘care ssab le ’ and it s red g las s ey es a re ,
from th e c hi ld ’s p oi nt o f vi ew, ‘ muc h to be de sired ’ . In t he t h ird
s t a n z a , t h e v o i c e o f t h e m o t h e r p u n c t u a t e s t h e n a r r a t o r ’s
Bishop
rec ol l e c ti on of th e draw ing roo m:
‘c o m e,’ said my mothe r,
‘c o m e and sa y go od-bye
to yo u r little cou sin Arthur.’

© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ Th e sp ea ke r i s l if t e d up and gi ven a s ol it ar y ‘lily o f th e vall e y |

t o p ut in A rthu r’s h an d.’ In a d es cr ip t io n t hat recall s t he
s p e a k e r ’s d e p i c t i o n o f t h e s t u ff e d l o o n , w e a re t o l d t h a t
‘ A r t h u r ’s c o ff i n w a s a l i t t l e f ro s t e d c a k e’ . I n t h e c h i l d ’s
i m ag in a ti on, t h e bi rd eyes th is cake greedi ly.
๏ Th e pen ul t imat e s tanza c o n c e n t r a t e s o n t h e p o e t ’s re c o l l e c t i o n

of Arth u r’s p hy s ic a l a pp earance i n the co ff in .
๏ E mp h as i si ng t he fa c t that Art hu r was ver y sm all , sh e t el ls u s t ha t

h e re se mb le d a do l l that hadn’t been p ain t ed yet .
๏ A s t h e c h i l d n a rr a tor at temp t s to make sen se of al l t hi s sh e

c on cl u de s t h a t:
J ack F rost ha d s ta rte d to pa int him

th e way he alw ay s pa inte d
th e Map le L ea f (F ore ve r).
๏ In a n ob vi ou s re f e re n c e to Ar t hu r’s in jur y, t he sp eaker f eels t h a t

J a c k Fros t h a d on ly managed ‘ a f ew re d strok es ’, and t hen he
d rop p e d th e b ru sh an d l eft th e l i ttl e bo y ‘w hite fo re ver ’.
๏ In t he f i na l s ta nz a , t he yo ung E liz ab eth’s gaz e o nce agai n set t l e s

on th e c h rom ogra p hs i n the d r awi ng ro om . In her mi nd ’s e ye ,
Bishop
A r t hur b ec om e s c a st in th e rol e of a s tran ded at t en dan t w ho h a s

b e e n i nv it e d t o c ou rt.
๏ P rep a ri ng to gre e t hi m f or mall y, the as sem bl ed roy alt y a re

p res en t i n f orm a l c l oth es of ‘red a n d e rmi n e’.
๏ C lut ch i ng t h e f lo we r th at the speaker p laced in hi s h and , Ar t h ur

i s f orc e d to d e c l i ne thei r o ffer to at t end t h e co ur t :
B u t h o w cou ld Arthur go,

© C. HOGAN NOTES
with h is e yes sh ut up so tight
an d th e ro ad s de e p in snow?
2. Styli s tic F e a ture s
๏ Th i s i s ye t a no t he r p oem b y Bi shop o n t h e co ur s e t h at d eals w it h

t h e po e t’s m emori es of her trou bled ch il dh oo d .
๏ In ord e r to h e ig h te n the i mpact of h er reco ll ect io ns , t he sp ea k e r

rec ou nt s h er sto ry i n t he lang uag e o f a y ou ng ch i l d .
๏ A c co rd i ng ly, the l a n guage emp l oyed by Bi sh op i s st r ai gh t fo r wa rd

and she frequently makes use of repetition in order to

a p p ro x i m a t e t h e i d i o m o f a y o u n g c h i l d i n t h i s f o c a l i s e d
n arr at ive.
๏ A s t he c hi l d tr ie s to m ake s ens e of w hat has h app ened t o h e r

c ou si n, t h e u n fa m i l i a r l ang uage of death is t r ans fo r med in t o t h e
m ore f a mi li a r l a ngu age of t he bedt i me s t or y.
๏ In th is m a nne r, Art hu r’s co ffin b ecom es a “ froste d ca ke , ” w ha t is

p res um a bl y b lo od o n hi s hai r, is t r ans fo r med in t o Jack F ros t ’s
p a in t an d the p ic t u re s of royalt y wait for Ar t hu r t o co me t o cou r t .
Bishop
“ B is h o p us e s h i ghl y d e ta i l e d ob servat io n, o f peo ple, places and event s ,

t o e x p l ore u ni q u e p e rson a l e xperi ences in her po et r y.”
D i sc u s s t hi s s ta t e m e n t, sup por ti ng yo ur answer wit h reference t o t he

p o e tr y of El i z a b e th Bi shop on your co ur se. Leaving Cer t 2016
๏ ④ Most readers will notice that this poem is typical of Bishop’s
p oe tr y i n g e n e ra l i n that it relies heav il y o n vi su al d e t a il.

© C. HOGAN NOTES
(p a i nt e rl y e ye )
๏ H owe v er, d e s pi te th e accu rate and vi vid d epi ct io n of t h e s ce ne ,

t h e se tti n g a l s o s e em s str ang ely d reamli ke.
๏ In a v e ry c l e a r se n se , t he imag ery i n th e p oem i s roo t ed in ex a c t

a nd p re c i se ob s e rv a ti ons o f t h e c i rc u m s t a n c e s s u r ro u n d i n g h e r
c ou si n’s wa ke .
๏ H owe v er, t h e re a d e r is l eft wi th t he feeli ng t hat h e or s he h a s

b e e n wi t ne s s t o a n i m ag ined or sur real even t .
๏ B is hop w a s i nt ri gue d by t he fro tt age t e c h n i q u e u s e d b y t h e a r t i s t

Max Ernst. He aimed to create art through a series of
u n c ont rol l e d a s s oc i a tio ns t hat g ave an i mag in at iv e i mp ress io n of
t h e ob j ec t ra t h e r t h an the o bj ect i t sel f.

๏ Th i s is pre c i s e ly what sh e achi eves h ere. T he d epi ct io n o f
A r t hur ’s wa ke gi v e s a chi l d-l ike imp ress io n o f t h at day wh en t h e
s pe a ke r w e nt t o s a y go o dby e t o her co us in .
๏ N oti c e how he r u nd e rs tandin g t hat Ar t h ur i s n o l on ger al iv e is

rel a te d t o th e rea de r t hro ug h m et ony my and m et aph or.
๏ Th e l it tl e b oy q ui t e l i te rall y b ecom es an ot h er ob ject i n t h e roo m,

m uc h l i ke the c h rom ogr aphs and th e s tuff ed lo on .
๏ In ord er to c om e to ter m s wi th her cou si n’s d eat h, B is ho p

Bishop
c on stru c ts h e r own pr iv ate myt ho lo g y. Co nv ent i on al im ages o f

d e a th h a ve n o re a l rol e i n this po em.
๏ A l th ou gh c l e a rl y wri tten i n end ear ing, chi ld -l ike lan gu age, t h e re

i s l it tl e o r no h u ma n com fo rt. Th e t wo ad ul t fi gu res i n t h e po e m
s ee m to h a ve c l ose r a sso ciati on s wi t h deat h t h an li fe.
๏ ④ The b ro a d vowe l sounds and predominance of cold ad ject i ve s
a re j ux ta p os e d wi t h th e nu rser y rh ym e-l ike r h yt h m to offer a

c hi l l i ng e vo c a t io n o f a cheerles s chi l dhoo d.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
3. Essa y Wr it ing
I f y ou sh oul d d e c i d e to m e n ti on ‘ F ir st D eat h in No va Sco t ia’ in an es sa y,

yo u may wi sh to i nc l ud e th e f ol lo wing p o int s:
1. T hi s is o n e of t hre e p oe m s on the co ur se t hat deals wit h Bishop ’s

rec o l l ect i on of h er c h il dh o o d . Giv en t he d o m i nance o f t hi s t hem e, yo u
ma y w is h to the p ossi bi li ty o f it app eari ng as a quest io n t er m.
2. O n a t e c hni c a l l e ve l , t h is is a hig hly cr aft ed po em. T he lang uag e is

res t r a i n e d and e a c h w o rd i s des ig ne d so as t o g i ve a chi l d -l i k e
i mp res s i on of Art h u r’s wa ke. Bi shop ’s use o f t his t ype o f nar r a t iv e
v oi c e ad d s to t h e im me d ia c y o f the po em.

3. T he d et ai l i n thi s p oe m is vi vid . Ho wever, when t aken as a who le, t h e
p oe m h a s a d re a m-l ike o r surreal q uali t y. Many o f Bisho p’s po ems o n
t h e c ou r se a re st ron gl y in f luenced b y her int erest in ar t .
Bishop
© C. HOGAN NOTES

Questions of Travel
________________________________________________________________________
Th ere a re t oo m a n y wa te rfall s here; t he cro wded st reams
hu rry t oo ra pi dl y d own t o th e sea,

Bishop
a nd t he pre s su re of so m an y cl ou d s on th e mou ntainto p s
m a ke s t he m s p il l o ve r th e sid es i n so ft slow-motion ,
tu r n i ng to wa t e rfa l ls u n d er o ur ver y eyes. 5
—F o r i f t ho se stre a ks, th ose m il e-lo ng , shiny, t ear st ains,
a re n’t w a te rfa l ls ye t ,
i n a q ui c k a ge o r s o , a s ag es go h ere,
© C. HOGAN NOTES
th e y proba b ly wi ll be .
Bu t i f th e st re a ms a n d c lo uds keep tr avel l i ng , t r avell i ng , 10
th e m ou nt a i ns l oo k l ike t he hu l l s of capsized ship s,
sl i m e - hu n g a n d ba r na c l e d.
Th in k of t he l o ng tri p home.
S ho ul d w e ha ve st a ye d a t h ome an d th ou gh t o f here?
W he re sh o u l d we b e to d ay ? 15
Is i t ri gh t t o b e wa tc h i ng st ran ger s in a pl ay
i n t hi s st ra n g e st o f t h e a t res ?

Wh at c hi l d i s hn e ss i s i t that whil e t here’s a breat h o f life
i n o ur bodi e s , we a re de t erm i ned to r u sh
to se e th e su n t h e o t h e r way arou nd? 20
Th e ti n ie st g re e n h u m mi ngbi rd in t he wo r l d ?
To st a re a t so m e in e xp li c ab le old st on ewo r k,
i ne xp li c a bl e a nd im pe n e t rab le,
a t a ny vie w,
Bishop
i ns ta nt ly s e e n a n d a lwa ys, alw ays del i gh t fu l ? 25
Oh , m us t we d re a m ou r dream s
a nd h a ve t h e m , to o ?
A nd h a ve w e room
fo r on e mo re fo l de d s u n set , stil l quit e war m ?

© C. HOGAN NOTES
Bu t s ure l y i t woul d h a ve been a pi t y 30
no t t o h a v e se e n t h e t re e s alon g t his road,
re a l l y e xa gg e ra te d in t h e ir beau t y,
no t t o h a v e se e n t h e m gest ur ing
l i ke no bl e pa n t o m im ist s, ro bed in p i nk.
—N ot to ha v e ha d to stop for gas and heard 40
th e sa d, t wo -n o t e d , woo den tu ne
of d i spa ra te wo o d e n c l og s
c a re l e ss ly c l a c kin g o ve r

a gre a se - s t a i ne d fi ll in g -station f l oo r.
(In a no th e r c ou n try the c lo gs wo uld all be t est ed. 45
E a c h p a ir th e re wou l d h a ve id en t i cal pi t ch.)
—A p it y n o t t o h a ve h e a rd
th e ot he r, l e s s p ri mi ti v e mu sic o f t he fat b rown b i rd

Bishop
who sin gs a b ove t h e b ro ken g aso l i ne p ump
i n a b a mb oo c h u rc h o f Jesu it b aroque: 50
th re e to we rs, f i v e si lve r crosses.
—Ye s, a p it y n o t t o h a ve pon d ered ,
b l ur r’ d ly a n d in c o n c l usi v ely,
on wha t c on n e c t i on c a n exis t f or centu r i es

© C. HOGAN NOTES
b e tw e e n t h e c rud e s t wo o den f oo t wear 55
a nd , c a re fu l a nd fi ni c ky,
th e whi t tl e d fa n t a si e s o f woo d en cages
—N e ve r t o ha v e stu d i e d hist or y in 60
th e we a k c a ll ig ra ph y o f son gbi rd s’ cag es.
—A n d ne ve r to h a ve h a d to li sten to r ain
so m uc h li ke po l it i c ia n s’ speeches:
tw o h ou rs o f u n re le n t i ng o rato r y
a nd t he n a su d de n g o l de n sil en ce 65
i n w hi c h t h e t ra v e l le r ta kes a no t eb oo k, wr it es:
“I s i t l ac k of i m agi n ati on that m akes us co me

to i m agi n e d p lac e s , no t j ust stay at h ome?
Or c ou l d Pas c al h av e be en no t en t i rel y r igh t
ab ou t ju s t s it t i ng q ui e tl y in o ne’s roo m? 70
Co nt i ne n t, c i t y, c ou n try, so ciet y:
th e c ho i c e is ne v e r wi de an d never free.
A nd h e re , or th e re … N o.
S ho ul d w e hav e s t ay e d at h ome,
Bishop
whe re v e r t h at m ay b e ?”
1 h e re – Br azil.
3 p e r m e a t e d – spread throughout.
5 translucenc y – allowin g ligh t to pass th rou gh , bu t on ly dif f u sely, so th at objects on th e oth er side
© C. HOGAN NOTES
cannot b e cl ea r ly see n.
8 m o n ke y s u i t – an over all.
19 w i c ke r w o r k – thin twigs, canes or reeds woven t ogether to make objects such as baskets and
chai r s.
24 d o i l y – a d e c o r a t i ve m a t , u s u a l ly m a d e o f l a c e , l i n e n o r p a p e r, t h a t i s p u t o n p l a t e s u n d e r c a ke s
or par ty food to display the food attr actively.
25 taboret – a low solid seat without ar ms or a back.
27 hir sute – hair y or bushy.
27 b e go n i a – a type of plant.
28 extraneous – unconnected or inappropr iate .
32 m a r g u e r i t e s – a type of daisy.
33 croc het – a fo r m o f n e e d l e wo r k u s e d t o m a ke c l o t h e s o r d e c o r a t i ve i t e m s f r o m wo o l o r t h i c k
sti ff thread .
39 ESSO – the Easter n Standard Oil Company.

11 h u l l s – the body of a ship excluding other par ts, such as the masts and engines.
22 ine xpl i cable – incapable of being explained or justified.
35 d i s p a ra t e – used to descr ibe things or people so unlike each other as to be incompar able .
45 J e s u i t – R oman Catholic religious or der en gaged in missionar y and educational wor k

wor ldwide .
45 b a ro q u e – in gen er al, bizar re or h igh ly exagger ated in style .More specifically, a h igh ly
or nament al sty le of Euro pean architecture a nd a r t that was popular from the mid-16th to the
ea r ly 18th centur ies , or thi s per iod in European h ist or y.
Bishop
51 finic ky – fussy or concentr ating too much on small, unimpor tant details.
62 Pa s c a l – Blaise Pascal, a French mathematician and philosopher (1623–62). The reference to

Pascal allu des to h is obser vation th at all h u man evil comes f rom ‘man ’s bein g u n able to sit still in
a room’.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
Commentary
________________________________________________________________________
1. Co n te nt
๏ ① ‘Q ue s ti ons of Tr ave l’ cent res on two im po r t ant asp ect s of t h e
h u m an c ond it i on: i nd i vi d ual i ty and t he val ue of t r av el.

๏ Th e u n de r ly i n g m e ss age i n th is p oem i s t hat ever y j ou r ne y
involves encounters and that such encounters are
ov er wh el m i n gl y p osi ti ve.
๏ Du e t o h e r f a t he r’s d eath an d her mo th er ’s ner v ou s breakd ow n,

B is hop s p e n t h e r most of h er ch ild ho o d wi t h relat i ves i n No va
S c oti a a nd Ma s s a c hu s etts .
Bishop
๏ A ft e r gra d ua t i ng from Vass ar Co lleg e in 1 93 4, s he t r ave l le d

e x te n si ve l y i n Eu rop e and N or th Afr i ca. In 19 51 sh e mo ved t o
B r az i l , whe re s he l i v ed fo r 15 y ears bef ore ret ur n in g t o t he
U ni t ed St a te s to t e ac h at H arvard U ni ver s it y.
๏ A l l th i s c on st a nt t ra vel i m bued Bi s hop ’s poet ry w it h r ich a n d

v ari e d se t ti n gs a nd i m ager y.
© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ In th i s p oe m , t he a c t of trav el beco mes a cent r al met ap ho r and

s y mb ol ise s he r se a rc h fo r iden tit y.
๏ In so m a ny of the p oem s by El i zabet h B is ho p on t h e L eavi ng

C e rti f i ca te c ou rs e , d islo cati on , lo nelin ess and con st an t do ub t
a re as s oci a te d wi t h t hi s s earch for id ent i t y. Ho wev er, i n t hi s
p oe m the t one i s sl i ght l y different .
๏ The poem opens with a breathtaking description of the

l and sc a p e . In a s e ri e s o f l ines t hat are fi ll ed w it h energ y a n d
m ove m e nt ( ki na e s th e ti c im ager y ), we l ear n t hat ‘ th ere are too
m an y wa terf alls h ere ’.
๏ A t a d i st an c e , a nd from t he po et’s p er sp ect iv e, t he clo ud s on t h e

m oun t ai n top s forc e thes e w aterf alls t o ‘sp ill o ver ’ t he si des .
๏ Th e n, i n l i ne 5 , t he sp eaker b egi ns to po nd er t he t i me i t t akes f or

on e of t he s e wa t e rf a l l s to for m . In a place o f s uch mo vem ent a n d

e ne rgy, t he p oe t f e e l s th at n ew water fal ls wi ll be creat ed in ‘a
q uic k ag e’.
๏ S he t he n t u r n s h e r gaz e to the mo un t ain t op s, wh ich lo ok l ik e

‘ t he h ul ls o f ca psi zed ships, | slime h u ng a nd b ar na cle d’.
๏ In th e s e c ond st a nz a, th e po et beg in s t o con si der t h e lo ng

j ou r ne y ho me . In m a ny o f th e p oem s b y Bi sh op o n t he Leav in g
C e rti f i ca te c ou rs e , the wo rd ‘ h o me ’ is an em ot i on all y charg e d
on e . Onc e a ga i n, c o ncen trat i ng o n h er search fo r ho me, sh e a sk s
a p rof ou nd q u e st io n:
Sho u ld we h ave staye d a t home a nd thought of he re ?
Wh ere sh o u ld we be toda y?
๏ C ons i de ri n g he r rol e as a to ur i st , she w on der s if it i s: ‘rig ht to

b e wat ch ing st ran gers […] | in this str an ge st o f th ea tre s ’.
๏ W i tho ut an sw e ri ng t his qu est i on, the sp eaker t hen wo nd er s w hy

h u m an b e in gs ha v e a ch ild i sh need t o ‘ r ush ’ t o t he o t her s id e of
t h e worl d i n o rde r to see a hu mmi ng bi rd or so me ol d st o new or k .
๏ In th e f in a l l i n e s of this s tanza, the po et asks t wo fu r t he r

q ue s ti ons . Sh e won der s whet her o r no t h um an bei ng s mu st
‘ d ream [ the ir] d reams a nd ha ve the m to o? ’
๏ Fi n al l y, the s p e a ke r p o ses a rheto rical qu est i on :
An d h ave we roo m
F o r o n e m o re f old ed sunse t, still quite w a rm?
๏ In th e thi rd st a n za , the po et go es som e w ay t ow ards an sw e r in g

s o me of t he q ue s ti on s sh e h as alread y p os ed. Sh e t el ls u s t ha t :
[…] it wo u ld have be e n a pity

no t to h ave see n th e t re e s a long this roa d
๏ Th e n, i n a re m i n de r o f th e u nex pected ex amp les o f cul t ur a l

d i ve rsi ty t h a t t ra v e l offers , th e speaker des cr ib es st o pp in g a nd
h ea ri n g:
t h e s ad , t wo - no te d, w oode n tune of dispa ra te wood en

clo g s carelessly c lac k ing, ove r a gre a se -sta ine d
fillin g s t at io n flo or.
Bishop
๏ H e r j our ne y ha s ta k e n her o ut sid e th e cu lt u r al un if or m it y o f t he

Wes t, wh ere s ho es a re mass pro duced an d hav e an ‘i de nti ca l
p i t ch ’.
๏ C ont i nu in g in m uc h the same vein , t he po et rem in ds u s t hat he r

j ou r ne y to t h is c oun try has affo rd ed h er t h e o pp or t u ni t y t o he a r
t h e m us ic of t h e :’fat b ro w n bird | w ho sin gs a bo ve th e b ro ke n
© C. HOGAN NOTES
g a so lin e p u mp’.
๏ Th e c a ge f rom whi ch this b ird sin gs pro vi des a su bt l e remi nd e r

of th e c u lt u ra l a nd hi st or ical her i tag e o f t h is p lace.
๏ De si gn e d i n a m a nner th at recalls Jes ui t b aroq ue st y le , i t

b e c om es , in t he p oe t’s imag in atio n, a p iece of l iv in g hi st o r y.
๏ S e t t o th e b a c kd rop o f p ou rin g r ain, w hi ch rem in ds t he s pea k e r

of p ol i ti c ia n s’ sp e e ch es , t he s tanza ends wi t h t h e t r avel ler t ak i ng
h er n ot e b ook a n d w ri tin g:
Is i t lack o f imag ina tion tha t ma ke s us come

to i mag in ed places, n ot just sta y a t home .
Or c o u ld P ascal h ave be e n not e ntire ly right
Ab o u t ju st sittin g q uie tly in one ’s room?
Co n tin en t, C ity, C ou nt ry, Socie ty:
Th e c h o ic e is n eve r wide a nd ne ve r fre e .
An d h ere, o r th ere [… ] No. Should we ha ve sta ye d a t

ho m e,
Bishop
wh erever th at ma y be ?
T h es e po n d e ro us fi n a l two sta nzas reaffir m t he value o f t r avel.
๏ Th e Fre nc h p hi l oso p her B lais e Pas cal, w ho i s men t io ned b y t he

p oe t, b e l ie ve d th a t h um an ev il w as i nex t r icab ly l i n k e d t o m a n ’s
© C. HOGAN NOTES
i n ab i l it y t o s it q ui e tl y in o ne’s ro o m.
๏ H owe v er, the t o n e o f t h e p o e t ’s t r a v e l j o u r n e y e n t r y s u g g e s t s

t h a t s he d oe s not a gree wi th h is o bser vat i on .
๏ In th e fi n a l st a nz a o f the po em, t he po et offer s u s a ② p rof ou nd
rem i n de r o f th e rol e t h at p lace play s i n f or m i n g o ur i d en t i t y. Th e

a c t of t ra v e l l i n g b eyond th e co nfi nes o f ou r s ur ro un di ng s no t
on l y c h al l e ng e s ou r u nd er st and i ng of w ho w e are, b ut a ls o
q ue s ti ons th e ve r y noti on o f “ho me ."

๏ In 19 51 , hop i ng t o e s cape t he crip p lin g lo nel in ess o f her li fe in
N e w York, B is ho p , th en aged 4 0, d ecided t o em bar k on a rou nd -
t h e -wo rl d t ri p.
๏ W he n the sc h e d ul e d hol iday w as cancel led d ue t o ov er bo ok i ng ,

s h e d ec i de d to t a ke the o nly b oat avai lab le. Th is bo at t oo k he r
t o Sout h Am e ri c a , whe re her li fe was co mp let el y alt ered .
๏ It i s no t s ur pr is i n g, then, that she w as p rom pt ed t o w r it e a n

e nt i re c ol le c t i on of p oetr y on t he nat ure an d val ue of t r av el.
Bishop
๏ Th e p oe t Anne Ste v e n so n h as sai d o f “Quest i on s o f Tr avel” t h a t

i n th i s p oe m , B i s hop prov ides t he read er wi t h: ‘qu est io ns o f
a ff ec t io n, of ri ght and wron g, of ① t ime an d t i melessn e ss;
q ue s t io ns t h at ad d res s t he res po nsi bil i t ies — and st r an gen ess —

of b e i ng al iv e . A nd of bei ng con sci ous t hat deat h o r n on -b e in g,
n o m atte r w hat y ou do , i s ju st a s tep away fro m wherever yo u
a re.’
© C. HOGAN NOTES
๏ B is hop ’s l if e – h e r c ons tant j our ney ing fro m pl ace t o p lace a nd

h er re f us a l t o s e tt l e do wn – m i rro red her b eli ef t hat t he hu ma n
search for identity is best served by challenging familiar
c on ce p t s of s e l f .
๏ In th i s p i ec e , t he t i tl e p oem o f her col lect i on Qu est i on s o f Tr a v e l

(1 96 5) , t he sp e a ke r won ders wh ether or n ot i t was pr u den t t o
l ea ve t he s ta b i l i ty a nd fam ili ar ity o f h om e i n ord er t o t r a v e l
a b roa d .
๏ Th e p oe m i m p l i e s that wit ho ut con tin ual r i sk and i ns ecur i t y,

t h e re c an b e no re a l sp iri t ual g ro wt h.
๏ In m a ny re sp e c ts , t he po em is t yp i cal of B is ho p’s p oet i c s t yl e .

S t r uc tu red a roun d a seri es o f r ich o bser vat i on s t h a t g i v e r i s e t o
m ore qu e st io n s tha n answ ers, it mo ves in creasi ng ly i nw ards s o

t h a t th e e xa mi na t i on of t he ext er nal wo r ld b ecom es a q ues t f or
s el f -i d en ti ty.
๏ T he p oem o p en s b y p ai nt in g a ma rv el lo usl y d eta il ed a n d

co lo ur ful s c en e o f t h e e xt erio r la nd sca pe .
๏ Th i s ‘st rang est o f the atre s’ t o w hi ch t he t ou r is t ar r i ves i s

‘ c ro wed wi t h streams’ an d m oun tain s and i s im bu ed wi t h a n
almost palpable energy conveyed through a series of
Bishop
k i n ae s the t ic i m a ge s.
๏ Th e s he er s c a le of th e ext er nal p hy si cal l and scap e, co up led wi t h

t h e le n gth of t i m e i t takes t o fo rm th ese nat u r al feat u res, f orc e
u s to ref l e c t o n the b revi ty o f hu man ex is t ence.
๏ Th e res t of the po e m am oun ts to an enqu ir y i nt o w hat makes u s

wh o we a re . The im a ger y, whi ch is as var i ed and co lo ur f ul as t h e
c ou ntr y t h rou gh wh i ch t he po et is t r avel li ng , h ig hl ig ht s t he
i m p orta nc e of se e m i ngl y insi gn ifi cant d et ail s in es t abl is hi ng a
© C. HOGAN NOTES
p e rson ’s id e nt i ty.
๏ There is an implicit contrast between the ‘disparate’, or

d i ffe ren t, a sp e c ts o f l ife i n this co un try an d t he wo r ld f rom w hi c h
t h e tra ve l l e r ha s c om e .
๏ This contrast is
captured by the
poet when she
describes the
sound of the
wooden clogs on
the filling station
fl o or.
๏ Th i s e ve nt be c o m e s
a m e ta p hor for the

value of travel. It reminds the speaker that individuality
(s o m e thi n g t ha t i s rap i dly van ishi ng i n t h e Wes t ) is t o b e
c he ri sh e d.
๏ Th e imagery in the rest of the poem hints at the religious, social,

p ol i ti c al a nd a rt i s ti c di fferences t hat exi st in d ifferen t cu lt u res.
๏ In t he f in a l t wo s ta nz as o f the po em, w hi ch are s et apar t i n

i ta l i cs , Bi s hop a tt e m pt s t o p ut so me sh ape o n t h e relev ance o f
t h e se t ra ve l ob se r va ti on s.
Bishop
๏ A nd a l tho u gh t h e fi na l qu est i on o f t he p oem do es rem in d t h e

rea de r of th e prec a rio us nat ure o f Bi s ho p ’s l i fe, t he mo od of
t h e se l i ne s i s o ve r whel m ingl y po si t ive.
๏ For Bishop, at least, the need to travel, to question and

c ha l l e nge j u st w ho we are, ou twei ghs any of t he b enef it s of
s t ab i l i ty or h om e .
© C. HOGAN NOTES
3. Essa y Wr it ing
Q u es ti on s o f Tra v e l i s c on si d ered by m o st cr it ics t o be o ne o f Elizabe t h

Bi s h op ’s m ost s i gni f i c a n t p oe ms. If yo u are t hinking o f ment io ning t he
po e m in an e ss a y, y ou m a y wa nt t o co nsider so me o f t he fo llo wing po int s :
1. In t y p i ca l B is ho p fa shi on, t he p oem mo ves fro m co nsider ing t he

e x te ri or worl d to a d e e p er co nsid er atio n o f self. In t his respect i t is
v er y si m il a r t o othe r po ems on the co ur se such as ‘At t h e
Fi s hh ous e s ’ a n d ‘In th e Waiti ng Ro om’ .
2. Th e n ot io n of hom e a n d all i t s im p licat io ns is o ne aspect o f t h e

h u ma n c on d it io n t o w h i c h t h a t B i s h o p re t u r n s a g a i n a n d a g a i n i n

h e r p oe tr y. Gi v e n the i m po rtance of this t heme in her wo r k, yo u
m ig ht wis h t o d e vote an enti re p ar agr aph t o t his aspect o f he r
wo r k .
3. On ce a ga i n, Bi sh op m akes effect i ve use o f a r ang e imag er y a n d

l an g ua ge d e v ic e s i n ordre t o p ro duce a hig hly descr ipt ive po e m
t h a t ra i se s p ro f oun d q u esti ons abo ut t he human co ndit io n.
Bishop
© C. HOGAN NOTES

Filling Station
________________________________________________________________________
Oh , b ut i t i s d irty!
—t h i s l it t l e fi ll in g st ation ,
oil s o a ke d , oi l-p e rmeat ed

Bishop
to a di s t u rbi ng , o ve r-all
b la c k t ra nsl uc e n c y. 5
Be c a re f u l wit h t h a t mat ch!
Fa th e r we a rs a d irty,
© C. HOGAN NOTES
oil - s o a ke d mo n ke y su it
th a t c u t s h i m u n d e r t he ar m s,
a nd se ve ra l q ui c k a nd s au cy 10
a nd g re a s y so n s a ssis t h i m
(i t’s a f a m il y f i ll in g st at i on )
a l l q ui te t h o rou g h l y di rt y.
Do t h e y l ive i n t h e st at io n? 15
It h a s a c e m e nt p orch

b e hi n d th e p um ps, and on it
a se t o f c rush e d a nd grease i m p regn at ed
wi c ke rwo rk;
on th e wi c ke r so f a 20
a d irty d og , q ui te c o mf y.
Bishop
Some c o m ic b oo ks pro vid e
th e on l y n o t e o f c o l or—
of c e rt a i n c o l or. T h ey li e
upo n a b ig d im do i ly 25
d ra p in g a t a b ore t
© C. HOGAN NOTES
(p a rt o f t h e se t ), b e s id e
a b ig h i rsu t e b e go n ia.
W hy t h e e xt ra ne o u s pl ant?
W hy t h e t a b ore t? 30
W hy, oh wh y, th e d oil y?
(E mb ro i de re d i n d a isy stit ch
wi th m a rg u e rit e s, I th in k,
a nd h e a vy wi th g ra y croch et .)

Some b od y e m broi dered th e doil y. 35
Some b od y wa t e rs t he p l ant,
or oi ls i t, m a y b e . S omeb o d y
a rra n g e s t h e rows o f cans
so t h a t t h e y so f t l y say:
E S S O – SO – SO – SO 40
to hi gh st run g a u t o mobi l es.

Bishop
Some b od y l ove s u s all .
Bishop poses interesting questions delivered by means of a unique style.

© C. HOGAN NOTES

Commentary
________________________________________________________________________
1.Co n ten t
Bishop
© C. HOGAN NOTES
T he a r re s t i ng o p e n i n g l i n e o f th i s p oe m is
cer ta inl y n o t t he t r a di t i o n a l s t u ff o f p o e t ry. F rom
t he o ut se t , it is c le a r to t h e re a d e r t h a t t hi s
road si de f illin g s t a t i o n i s ‘ dir t y ’ and g r ubby. In fact , t he
sp e ak er su gge st s t ha t the e nti re area is ‘o il so aked’ t o t he po in t of

se e min g ‘ d i st urb i n g’. The f i n al li ne o f t he fir st st anza hint s at t he fa c t
th a t a si d e from b e i ng d i rty, this p lace is also po t ent ially dang ero us: ‘ Be
ca re fu l wi th th at m atc h !’

In th e se c o n d st a n za, th e p eopl e wh o inh ab i t t his g r i m y pl a c e
m ak e an ap p e a ra n c e . Th e f a ther, who ‘wear s a dir t y | o il so aked mo n ke y
s u i t’ , i s s urroun d e d b y se ve ra l ‘ quick and saucy so ns ’ who assist him i n
hi s wo r k . We a re to l d tha t th is i s a family filing st at io n and in t he n e xt
st an za th e sp e a ke r won d e rs whether o r no t t hese peo ple live at t he i r
pl ac e of work. Lo oki ng a l i ttl e mo re clo sely at t he scene, t he po e t
o b se r ve s th a t b e hi n d th e p orc h there l ies a ‘ set o f cr ushed and g reased –
| i mpreg n a t e d w i c ke rwork .’ Sl owl y, fur t her sig ns o f family life beg in t o
eme rg e. I n th e th i rd sta n z a , the chil dren’s co mic bo o ks co me int o vi e w.
T h es e p rov i d e t he onl y ‘note o f co lo r’ in what is o t her wise a ver y dr a b
Bishop
se tt i n g. Th e n, i n l i ne 2 5 , the po et o bs er ves a ser ies o f it ems t hat se e m

pa r t i cu l ar ly out of p l a c e i n this environment . T he mo re o bser vant rea de r
w i l l n o ti c e t ha t e a c h of the se i tem s – ‘a big dim do ily’, ‘dr aping t abo re t’
an d ‘ hi r s ut e b e goni a’ – h i nt a t a femi nine presence.
In th e ne xt s t a n z a , th e p oet p oses a ser i es of quest i on s ab ou t

th e s e ob jec t s. Sh e won d e rs why this plant was placed here. It see m s
in c on gr u o us wi th the oi l -soa ked fi ll ing st at io n. Similar ly, she wo nde r s
‘ w h y oh wh y’ w oul d a n yone p lace a do ily in such a place? Yet so me on e
© C. HOGAN NOTES
ha s s een f i t to d e c ora te a n d em broi der t his do ily in o rder t o ado r n t h is

di r t y ‘l it tl e f i l l i ng s tati on.’ In ad di ti on t o all t his, so mebo dy has ar r an ge d
th e ca n s of o i l :
So t h at t h ey sof t l y say:
E S S O – so – so – so
t o h i gh -st ru ng au t omo b i l es.
T h e fin al l i ne of th e p oe m c an be read as a deeply mo ving answe r t o

so me of th e hu m oro u s q ue sti ons the speaker has po sed in t he previo us
st an zas . T he re a so n why th e se ext raneo us o bject s are fo und in t his lit t l e
f il l i n g st at i on i s a si m p l e one :

‘Som e b ody lo ves us all.’
A s w i th s o ma n y of th e poems b y B i sh op o n th e L eaving Cer t i fic a t e

co ur s e, ‘F i l l i ng Stat i on’ c on ta i ns an ob ser vat io n o f t he ext er nal wo r ld t ha t
br in gs a b out a c ha n ge of a wareness in t he speaker. T he g r ammati c a l
lo gi c of t he p oe m c e n tre s on t he p ro no un ‘so mebo dy’. F o r mo st o f t h e
po e m, t he s p e a ke r i s a m u se d by the i dea t hat ‘ so mebo dy ’ has cho sen t o
ad o r n th is g ri m y a nd d e sol a te p lace wit h deco r at io ns. To beg in wit h, t he
to n e o f th e s p e a ke r’s voi c e i s bo th pr is sy and co ndescending . She is a s
sh o c k ed b y th e fi l t h of th e stat io n as she is amused by t he unkno wn
pe r s on ’s a tt e m p ts t o b e a u ti f y this p lace. It is impo r t ant t o realise t hat t he
o b j ect s th a t a d or n th i s sta ti on hint st ro ng ly at an ano nymo us femini ne
pre se n ce . One c a n onl y a ssume t hat t his per so n is t he mo t her o f t h e
f am i l y i n q u e st i on. Gi ve n th e co ntext o f Bisho p’s life – t he lo ss o f he r
m o th er a n d t he p ro f oun d e ff e c t that t his had o n her – it is int erest ing t h a t
an an on y m ous a n d a b se n t m other fi gure sho uld feat ure in t his po em. A s
th e de ta i l s o f l i f e i n th e p etrol st at io n slo wly emerg e, t he speak e r
ex p er i e nc e s a m om e nt of e pi phany. T his pat t er n o f t ho ug ht , whe re
se e min gl y i ns i gni f i c a nt d e ta i l s l ead to a mo ment o f pro fo und insig ht , i s
o n e t ha t i s f oun d e l se whe re i n the po ems by Bisho p o n t he co ur se.
S l ow l y, th e po e t i s f o rc ed t o con ced e th at ever yo ne i s l oved b y

so me on e. T hi s l a c k of c on ve nti onal t heo lo g y is o nce ag ain t ypical o f
Bi s h op ’s p o e try.Wh o or wha t this som eo ne is is never fully ar t iculat e d i n
th e p o em . H owe ve r, i t i s c l e ar t hat the speaker asso ciat es t his per so n
w i th a ca l m i ng a n d f e m i ni ne presence. In t he clo sing st anza, it beco me s
cl ea r th at t hi s u nkn own f orc e has a calming effect o n t he ‘ dist ur bing ’ ,
‘ d i r t y’ an d ‘ o i l so ake d s tati on ’. Just as t he ‘ beg o nia’ and ‘ do ily ’ so ft e ne d

th e h ar s h a p p e a ra nc e of th e fil li ng st at io n, t he symmet r y o f t he ca n s
qu i e te n s th e ‘hi g h-s trun g automo bi les .’
Bishop was an accomplished artist. Her eye for detail and

ap pre ci a ti o n o f t one a nd c on trast are readily ident ifiable feat ures o f h e r
po e tr y. In t hi s p oe m th e c ontrast b etween t he dir t y o il-so aked st at io n a nd
th e c ol ou r o f th e c h i l d re n ’s co mi c bo o ks br ing s t he ent ire scene i nt o
sh a r p er re l i e f. Al th ough thi s scene is descr ibed in g reat det ail, it i s
o b vi ou s th a t B i sh op ’s te c hn i q ue is m o re ar t ist ic t han pho t o g r aphic. S he
no t o nl y re l a t e s th e sc e n e b ut reinter pret s it fo r t he reader. It is t ypica l o f
Bi s h op ’s p o e ti c st yl e tha t vivi dl y rendered descr ipt io ns o f individu a l
as p ect s of p a rti c u l a r ob j e c ts com bi ne t o creat e an ar t ist ic impression o f
th e en ti re sc e n e .
3. Ea ss y Wr it ing
I f yo u c h o ose to m e n ti on ‘Fi l li ng Stat io n’ in an essay, yo u may wish t o

m ak e u se of
so me of th e fo l l owi ng p oi n ts:
a. Ye t ag a i n, Bi s ho p ’s ke e n e ye for det ail is apparent . Given t hat so ma ny

o f t h e p o em s b y Bi s hop on th e co urse demo nst r at e an ar t ist ic sensibi li t y,
yo u may wi sh to d e vote a n e n tire p arag r aph t o t his aspect o f her wo r k.
b. Th is i s ye t a n othe r p oe m on the co ur se t hat co nt ains a mo men t o f

ep ip h an y or h e i ght e ne d a wa reness. A ny par ag r aph t hat ment io ns t hi s
f ea t u re o f B i sh op ’s styl e should d emo nst r at e ho w seeming ly insig nifica n t
de t ail s h elp c re a te s u c h m om e nts o f insig ht in t he po et .

c.T he a b s en t mo the r f i gu re in t his po em makes it suit able fo r co mpar is on
a n d co nt r a st wi th su c h p oe m s as ‘Ses t ina’, ‘F ir st D eat h in No va Scot i a ’
a n d ‘I n t he Wai ti ng R oo m’.

Sestina
________________________________________________________________________
Se p te m b e r ra i n f a l l s on the ho use.
In t he f a i li ng l ig h t, the ol d g r andmo t her
si t s i n t h e ki tc h e n with th e child
b e sid e th e L i tt l e M arv el Sto ve,
re a di ng t h e j oke s f rom th e almanac, 5
l a ug h i ng a n d ta l kin g t o hid e her t ear s.
She t hi n ks th a t he r eq uinoct ial t ear s
a nd t h e ra in t h a t b eat s on th e ro of o f t he ho use
we re bo t h f o re to l d by th e alm anac,
b ut o n l y kn o wn t o a grandm oth er. 10
The i ron ke ttl e si ngs o n the st o ve.
She c ut s so m e bre ad an d says to th e ch i l d ,
It’s ti me f o r te a n o w; bu t th e ch i l d
i s w a t c h i ng t h e t e a kettle’s smal l h ard tear s
d a nc e l ike m a d o n t h e h ot b l ack st ove, 15
th e wa y t h e ra in m ust dance on th e h ou se.

Tid y i ng u p , th e o l d g ran d m oth er
ha ng s u p th e c l e v e r al manac
on it s st rin g . Bi rd l i ke, the alm anac
ho ve rs h a l f o p e n a bove th e ch i l d, 25
ho ve rs a b ove t h e o ld gr an d m oth er
a nd h e r te a c u p fu l l of dar k brown t ear s.
She s hi v e rs a n d sa ys she thinks t he ho use
fe e ls c h i ll y, a nd pu t s mo re woo d in t he sto ve.
It w a s t o b e , sa ys the Marvel St o ve. 30
I kno w wha t I kn o w, s ays t he al m anac.
W i th c ra y o n s th e c hil d d raws a r ig id ho use
a nd a wi nd in g p a th way. T hen th e ch i l d
p ut s i n a m a n wi th bu t t on s l i ke tear s
a nd sh o ws i t p ro u d ly t o t he gr an d m oth er. 35
Bu t se c re tl y, whi le t he gr an d m oth er
b us ie s h e rs e l f a b ou t th e st ove,
th e l i tt l e m oon s f a l l do wn li ke t ear s
from b e twe e n t h e p ages o f t he al m anac

i nt o t h e f l owe r be d th e ch i l d 40
ha s c a re fu l ly p la c e d i n th e f ron t o f t he ho use.
Ti m e to p l a n t te a rs, says t he almanac.
Th e gra nd mo t h e r s i ng s t o t he m ar vell ou s sto ve
a nd t h e c h i ld dra ws an oth er inscr utabl e h ou se.
Thi s poem i s wr itten in the highly str uctur ed 5 a l m a n a c – a publication, often published
ses ti na for m. The se s tina is a n o ld fi xe d for m annually, that includes a calendar for the
o f p o e t r y, d a t i n g a s fa r b a c k a s t h e 1 2 t h year as well as astr on omical infor mation
centur y. It consists of six six-line stanzas and and details of anniver sar ies and events.
a thr ee- lin e co ncluding s tan za . Th e en din g
words of the first stanza are repeated 7 equinoctial – any time occur r ing at or
throughout each subsequent stanza in a set n e a r e i t h e r o f t h e t wo e q u i n oxe s .
patter n. The s ame s ix wo rds a ppea r in th e
39 inscrutable – enigmatic or hard to
concluding three-line stanza, two in each line .
interpret because not expressing any
4 M ar ve l Stove – a br and name for a solid obvious m ea nin g.
f u e l s t ove .

Commentary
________________________________________________________________________
1. Co n te nt
๏ T he po et An ne Ste v e n son has said of B isho p t hat she ‘was especi a ll y

fo r t u n a t e i n h e r gi ft f or m aki ng ever yt hing she wro t e int erest ing ’. R e a d
a lo u d , ‘ Se st in a’ q ui c kly re semb les a fai r yt ale.
๏ T he t o n e o f th i s c hi ld h oo d b edt im e sto r y emerg es mo st clear ly fro m it s

i ma gi n at ive d e ta i l s.
๏ Th e t ea ke ttl e c a u se s ‘ tea rs ’ t hat ‘ da nc e. ’ Th e al man ac, wh ic h

‘ h o v e rs’ i n a ‘Bi rdl i k e’ f a sh io n, not o nl y pro vi des t h e g r and mo t he r
wi t h j oke s, b ut a ls o h i nts at the in evi t abl e pro gres si on of t im e a nd
t h e re f ore fu t ure s a d ne ss.
๏ Th e ch i ld c a n h e a r the a l m anac and th e s t ov e s peak. O ne of t h e m os t

i mp o r ta nt s t ylis t ic feat u re s of t hi s p oem is t he m ann er in wh ic h
these details separate the c h i l d ’s perspective from the
gr an dmo the r ’s .
๏ In th e op e ni n g l i n es, th e g randmo th er at t em pt s t o am us e t h e c h il d
a n d t he re b y c o m fo rt h e r. Yet , as t he po em con t in ues , t he chi ld ’s
p res en ce i s m ore ke e nl y fel t, fi rst t hro ug h her nar r at i ve vo ice a nd
t h e n t hrou gh h e r d ra wi ng.
๏ In t h i s d ra wi n g, the c hi l d unw itt i ng ly p resen t s us w it h a fascinating

froz e n ta b l e a u of ch ild h o od lo ss and g r ief .
๏ Wr i tt e n i n a st ri ct po e t i c f o rm, ‘ Ses tin a’ i s y et ano t her ex amp le o f t h e

i n ab i l it y o f Bi sh op ’s c h i l d ho o d m emo ries t o y iel d a h app y po em.
๏ Th e o p en i ng li ne s e ts th e t o n e fo r t he ent i re p oem . In t he dy in g of
t h e y e a r, a u tum n, ‘ r ain f alls o n the hou se ’. It is dar k i n t h e ho us e
a n d t h e ‘ ol d g ran dmo th er | sits in th e k itch en w ith th e c hild ’ . A n y

h o pe o f wa rm th su gge ste d b y the m ar vel s t ov e, jo kes and l aug hi ng i s
q u ic k l y da s he d i n th e f i nal l i ne o f th is st an za w hen t he s peaker t e l ls
u s th at t h e c hi l d i s me re l y ‘la ugh in g an d talk ing to h ide h er te ar s ’ .
๏ In t h e s e c ond s ta n z a we lear n that t hi s chi ld b eli eves t h at t h e

a lm an a c h a s s om e how f oret ol d not o nl y t he r ain y weat h er, b ut he r
s ad n es s.
๏ M ea n w hi l e , t he ra i n c on ti nu es to ‘ be a t on the ro of o f the ho us e ’
a n d i n th e b a c kgro un d the kett l e sin gs on t he s t ov e. In t he f in al l in e
of th e se c o n d s ta n z a , w hi ch f or ms a ru n- on -l in e with the third
s t an z a, th e g ra nd mothe r cu ts so me b read an d say s t o t he chi ld ‘I t’s
t i m e f or tea n ow ’.
๏ H owe v er, th e c hi ld i s transf ixed by t he ‘te ak ettle ’s sma ll ha rd

t e ars ’ . As t h e m oi s tu re f rom the teaket t l e f all s on t o t he ho t s t ov e , it
b oi l s. In t he c hi l d ’s i m a gi n atio n it ap p ear s t o ‘d an ce like ma d’. Th e
gr an dmo the r ti d i e s t he h ouse and hang s ‘ th e cle ver a lma na c | on i ts
s t r in g ’.
๏ On ce aga i n, t he s ta nz a e nd s w ith B isho p m akin g u se o f en ja mbm e nt

i n o rde r to m ove th e poem g ent l y fo r ward . It i s im po r t ant t o
rem e m ber th at th e v i e w o f t he s cene i s gi v en f rom t h e chi l d ’s
p er sp e c ti ve .
๏ Th e a lma na c , ha n gi ng on t he st r ing, b ecom es “bi rd- li ke” an d ho ve r s

a bo v e the ol d g ra n d m oth er. T he prev ail in g at m os ph ere is on e of
s or ro w an d l os s.
๏ S h i v er in g f rom th e c ol d , the gr and m ot h er con t in ues t o s hed ‘d ar k

b ro w n te ars’. In the n e xt s tanza, we ret ur n t o t h e ch il d, w ho i s no w
d r a wi ng a ri gi d hou se . Th e draw ing co nt ai ns a man w ho al so ap pe a r s
t o b e c ry in g.
๏ In t h e f in a l si x-l i ne sta nz a, this mo tif of “ tea rs” is co nt i nu ed. T he

c h il d retu r n s h e r ga z e to th e “a lma na c" ‘w hile the gr an dm oth er
b u s ie s he rself ab ou t th e sto ve ’.

๏ In t he l i t tl e gi rl ’s i m a gi n a ti on, the mo on sh apes in t hi s al man ac a re
s ee n t o d ri p off the p a ge i n to h er d rawi ng :
int o th e f lo wer be d [ she ] ha s ca re fully pla ce d in the

f ro n t o f th e hou se.
๏ The final lines, which are contained in the closing tercet,

e n ca p s ul a te t h e e nt i re p oe m. T he al manac rem in ds u s t hat it is ‘ti m e
t o p la n t t ears’ a s th e grand m ot her tends t o t h e s t ov e an d t he c hi ld
c on t i nu es to d ra w a noth e r enig mati c o r “insc ru tab le ho use . ”
2.Sty lis t ic F e a t ure s
๏ P e r h ap s the mos t rea d i l y iden tif iabl e feat u re o f t hi s po em is t h e f a c t

t h a t i t i s a s es t in a. The ses tin a i s a rat her od d, f ix ed fo r m.
๏ It is n o t typi cally r h ymed (a lth o ugh rh ymed sesti na s do exi st) a nd

rel ie s fo r its st ruc t ure o n a st ri c t p a t te r n of re pe at ed e n d wo rd s .
๏ Th e se st in a n e e d not h a v e a fi xed metre, t ho ug h m any po et s u se

ia m b ic t et ramet er or iam bic pe nt amete r.
๏ B ec a us e i t ke e p s re p e a ti ng t he sam e en d wo rds f or 39 l in es ( si x
s es te t s a n d a n e n d i n g en voi o f t h re e l i n e s ) , t h e s e s t i n a i s w e l l s u i t e d
fo r s u b j ec t s t h a t re q u i re inte nse o bse rv ati on o r med ita tio n .
๏ A l l s est i na s f ol l ow the sa m e sequ ence of en d wo rds , wh ich can b e

rep re s e nt e d a s foll o w s :
F i rs t s tan za: 1-2-3-4-5-6
Se c o n d s t an za: 6-1-5-2-4-3

T h i rd s t an za: 3-6 -4 -1 -2 -5
F o u rth s tan za: 5 -3 -2 -6 -1 -4
F i ft h s tan za: 4-5-1-3-6-2
Si x t h s tan za: 2-4 -6 -5 -3 -1
E nv oi : Fi rs t l in e co ntains 2 and 5
Se c o n d li ne c on t ai ns 4 and 3
T h i rd li ne c o n tains 6 and 1
๏ Th e en t ire po e m i s ste e p e d in an a t mosphe re of loss and sadness.

B is h o p d e fi n e s t hi s gri e f thro ugh a ser ies o f pre c ise a n d e voc a tive
a dj ec t iv es : ‘f ailin g’, ‘small ’, ‘ha rd ’, ‘rigid ’, ‘w inding ’, ‘ma rve llous ’,
‘ in s c r u t ab le’.
๏ Th e ac c ur a c y a nd c l a ri ty of t hese w ords are enric hed by a ser ie s of

metaphors and similes that highlight the deep tragedy of this
c h il d h o od .
๏ We l e ar n t h at the b uttons that the chi ld d r aw s are l i k e t ear s and t h a t

t h e se t ea rs d a nc e l i ke m a d . Th ere is a poigna nt ine vita bility to th e
s ad ne ss t h at p ervad es t h e p o em.
๏ Th e e nt ire sc e n e wa s ‘k n o wn to a gra ndmothe r’ and ‘w a s to b e’.

N ot ic e h ow the gra nd m other ’s p resence wo r ks t o o ffset t he c ol d
a tm os p h e re tha t d om i n a te s the po em.
๏ S h e i s as soc i a t e d wi th the sto ve and t he war mt h t hat emanat es fro m it .

H owe v er, sh e , to o, b e c om es p art o f t he hear t ache and so r ro w t h a t
c h ar a c te ris e Bi sh op ’s c hi l d ho od m em or ies.
๏ It is a h a ll m a rk of El i z a b e th Bi shop ’s p o et r y t hat she wr it es o f past pa i n

wi t h ou t p at h o s a n d w i t h p rec isi on . In fact , t hro ug ho ut t his po em, t h e

s pe a k er c ho os e s n ot to c onnect d i rect ly wit h t he emo t io ns t hat t h e s e
m emo r ie s e n ge nd e r. It i s l e f t t o read er t o do t hat .
๏ L i k e so m a n y oth e r p oe m s b y Bi sho p on t he Leaving Cer t ificat e co u rs e ,

t h i s p oe m p re s e nts a n a c c ount o f an event t hat bo rder s o n t he surrea l .
๏ N ot ic e h o w in the si xth sta nz a t he i l lust r at io ns o f t he mo o n’s phas e s

fa l l f rom t he a l m a na c ’s p ag es o nt o t he child’s dr awing . Here, t he
a lm an ac re mi nd s t he c hi l d that i t i s ‘time to pla nt te a rs ’.
๏ Th e im p l ic a t i on , a lt h ough never s tated , is t hat t he adult B isho p wi l l

h a v e t o re a p th e fut u re sa d ness that will inevit ably result . T he final li n e
of t h e e n voi perf ec t l y c a pt ures t he sad t r ut h t hat , fo r Bi sho p at l e a st ,
t h e id ea of h om e i s a n “ in sc ruta ble” or enig mat ic o ne.
3. Essa y Wr it ing
‘ S est i na’ i s a p e rf e c t e xamp le of Bisho p’s mast er y o f what is a ve r y

di ffi c u lt po e ti c fo rm . In th i s sense i t mig ht be wo r t h yo ur while includi ng
th e p oe m i n a ny d i sc ussi on of B ishop ’s po et r y t hat yo u under t ake. Yo u
m ay w is h t o i nc l u d e som e of the fol lo wing po int s.
a. Th e p oe m fo c us e s onc e a gain o n B isho p’s painful memo r ies. In t h is

re s p ec t , you ma y wi s h t o c o m pare o r co nt r ast t he p o em wi t h ‘F ir st D ea t h
in N ov a S c oti a’ a nd ‘In the Waiti ng Roo m’.
b. W h i le th i s i s a n e m oti ona l a nd po ig nant acco unt o f childho o d lo ss, t h e

f ac t t ha t t he p o e m i s wri tten i n t he sest ina fo r m prevent s it fro m
be co mi n g to o se n ti m e nta l .
c. No t ice th e p re c i s e n a ture of the di ct io n and det ail in t his po em. T hi s

le v el of p re c i si o n i s a f e a ture of Bi shop ’s po et r y in g ener al. Yo u may w is h
to d e vo t e a n e nt i re p a ra gra p h to this as pect o f her wo r k.

Eliza be t h B i s h op ( 1 9 1 1 – 1 9 7 9 )
A Short Biography
W hi l e E li z a b e th B i s h o p ’s cri t i cal reputation h as gro wn st ead i l y si nc e

he r d e at h i n 19 79 , she wa s i n fact no t t hat well kno wn o ut side o f ea s t
co as t A m e ri c a n p oe try c i rc l es d uri ng her lifet ime. T he o nly child o f
W il l i a m Th om a s Bi s hop a n d Gert rude May B o o mer B isho p, she was bo r n
o n 8 Fe b r ua ry 1 91 1 i n Worc e st er, Massachuset t s. Eig ht mo nt hs aft er h e r
bi r t h , t he w e a l th y a n d c om f ortabl e circumst ances o f her backg ro und w e re
sh a t te re d whe n he r f a th e r d i e d of Bri g ht ’s disease. Her mo t her t o o k t he
de at h v er y b a d l y a n d f or th e next fi ve year s she spent sever al ext end e d
periods in mental institutions. During these periods, Elizabeth was

effe c ti ve l y orp ha n e d a nd l i ve d wit h rel at ives in Wo rcest er, B o st o n and he r
n a t i v e G re a t Vi l l a g e , N o v a S c o t i a . T h e n , i n 1 9 1 6 , h e r m o t h e r w a s
diagnosed as being “incurably insane” and was institutionalised
pe r ma n en tl y. Al th ou gh Ge rtrude Bishop lived fo r a fur t her 18 year s, s he
w ou ld ne ve r s e e he r d a u ghte r ag ain. In t wo po ems o n yo ur co ur se, “F ir s t
D e at h i n No va Sc o ti a ” a nd “ In t he Wait ing R o o m ”, B isho p ret ur ns t o he r
m em or i e s of th i s p e ri od of h er li fe. F o r a br ief per io d t he pro spec t of
li v in g wi th he r m a te r n a l gra nd parents i n No va Sco t ia held o ut t he pro mi se
o f a se c ure a n d s ta b l e e n vi ronment i n which B isho p co uld reco ver f rom
th e t r au m a o f he r e a rl y ye a rs. Ho wever, her ext remely wealt hy family fe l t
th a t N ova Sc o ti a w a s too ru ral , t oo backward and t o o Canadian a nd
de ci d e d t o u p ro ot he r on c e a gai n. The pro mise o f st abilit y was replac e d
by t he real i t y of a n om a d i c e xi stence dur ing which Elizabet h lived a s a
g u es t i n th e h ous e s of he r re l ati ves. In ‘Quest io ns o f Tr avel’, a po em t ha t
is i n cl u de d f or st ud y on the L eaving C er t ificat e co ur se, B isho p asks t h e
po i gn an t q ue s ti o n, ‘sh o u ld we ha ve sta ye d a t home whe re e ve r tha t
m a y b e. ’ Gi ve n t he c i rc um sta nces o f her childho o d, it is no t sur pr is in g
th a t t he ide a o f ‘h o m e’ wa s such an alien co ncept t o Elizabet h Bish op .
C a s t ad r i f t a nd fe e l i ng te rri b l y i sol ated , she develo ped acut e depress io n
an d a d ebi l i t a ti n g fo rm of a sth ma.
It w a sn ’t u n t i l 1 9 2 5 , a t t he age of 1 4, th at h er education began i n

an y fo r mal s e ns e of th e word . At t he same t ime, t he yo ung Elizabet h w a s
in t rod u ce d to th e worl d of p oetr y by her aunt Maud. She beg an t o re a d
as si d u o us l y. In p a rti c u l a r, she read the g reat Vict o r ian po et s Alfred L ord
Te n n ys on , R al ph Wa l d o Eme rso n, Rob ert Bro wning and Tho mas Carly le .
I n t e re st in gl y, e ve n a t th i s you ng ag e she felt it necessar y t o co mmit t he
po e ms th a t s he h a d re a d to m em or y. Year s lat er as a t eacher at Har v a rd,
Bi s h op req u i re d h e r stu d e nts to d o t he same. At t he same t ime sh e
de v elo pe d a fa s c i na ti on wi th g osp el hymns and children’s fair yt ales . I n
19 26 s he a tt e nd e d N orth Sh ore Co unty D ay Scho o l in Swampsco t t . It w a s
he re t ha t s he f i rst p ub l i she d her ow n po ems in t he scho o l lit er a r y
m ag az i ne . T he n , i n the a u tumn of 1930, she ent ered t he prest igi ou s
Va s s a r C oll ege wh e re she wa s introd uced t o t he w r i t er M ar i anne M o ore
by th e c ol l e g e l i b ra ri a n. Al though Mo o re was 24 year s B isho p’s sen io r,
th e rela ti on sh i p fl o uri sh e d . U nder Moo re’s t ut elag e she beg an t o ha v e
co nf i d en c e i n h e r o wn a b i l i ti es and q uickly abando ned plans she h a d
o n ce he l d of a c a re e r i n m e d ici ne. In 1935 Mar ianne Mo o re published a
ha n d fu l o f B i sh op ’s e a rl y p oe ms i n a co llect io n ent it led Trial Balances .
It wa s du rin g h e r ti me in Vassar th at t he defining aspect s o f h e r

ad u l t p e r so na b e g a n to e m e rge. Whil e she became invo lved wit h a g rou p
o f ex tr a ord i na ri l y ta l e nte d f emal e wr it er s including Mur iel Rukeys e r,
E le a no r C l a rk a n d Ma ry Mc C ar thy, she was also pro fo undly lo nely a nd
ha d no rea l e xi st e nc e outsi d e of her co lleg e life. She also fell desper at e l y
in l o v e wi th he r room m a te . As a result o f her unrequit ed lo ve fo r t hi s
w om a n, s he b e g a n to h a rb our feeli ng s o f shame and g uilt abo ut he r
se x u al i ty. W i th d ra wi n g i n to h ersel f, her behavio ur became increasing ly
ec ce n t r ic a nd sh e d i sta n c e d h ersel f fro m many o f her peer s. D espit e he r
un do ub t ed a b i l i t y, h e r c ol l e ge g rad es w ere no t co nsist ent and she be ga n
to fi n d s ol a c e i n a l c oh ol . W h en she left Vassar in 1935 she was dee p ly
de pre s se d , a s ha m e d of h e r f eel ings fo r o t her wo men, she felt det ac he d
f rom t he w i d e r w orl d a n d had alco ho lic t endencies. Her inst inct i ve
re a ct i on t o a ll th is w a s t o be gi n a li fe-l o ng q uest fo r t he o ne t hi ng t h a t
sh e h ad a l wa ys l a c k e d – hom e . B ishop cho se t o call t he fir st po em in he r
f ir s t co lle c ti o n of p oe try ‘The Map’. In many respect s t his hint ed at t he
di re ct io n he r l i fe a nd work would t ake. She lived in F r ance fo r sev e r a l
ye a r s in th e m i d -19 30 s, tha n ks in par t t o t he pat ro nag e o f t he pap e r-
m an uf a ct uri n g he i re ss L oui se Cr ane. She mo ved t o F lo r ida, set t ling fo r a
br ie f wh il e w i th C ra n e . W h i l e she now o wned a ho use in Key West , sh e
co nt i n u ed t o tra v e l . At the sam e t im e, her at t empt s t o g et her w or k
pu b l i sh ed m e t w i th re p e a te d f ail ure, so much so t hat she beg an t o do ub t
he r ow n ta l e n ts a s a wri te r. ⓒ Ci an Ho g an
H ow e ve r, h e r c a re e r d id beg i n to t ake off when , in 1 94 5, sh e wo n

th e H ou g ht on Mi ff l i n Poe try Priz e Fel lo wship and lat er t hat year, o n f oo t
o f t h at s uc c e s s, N o rth & South was p ublished. In 1946 she was on the
m o ve ag ai n , t hi s t i m e re tur ni ng t o her nat ive No va Sco t ia fo r t he fi r st
ti m e i n 1 6 ye a rs . H e r tra ve l d i ar ies from t his per io d co nt ain ear ly ver sio ns
o f “ A t th e F i sh ho us e s” a n d “ The Pro di g al”, her o nly po em t o deal wit h h e r

st r u gg le w i th a l c o ho l i sm . Both these po ems are o n yo ur co ur se; and “ A t
th e Fi sh ho us e s” i n p a rti c u l a r d isp lays a level o f mat ur it y t hat sing le s
Bi s h op ou t a s one of th e m ost i mp or t ant po st -war Amer ican po et s. Fo r
th e n ex t f e w y e a rs sh e l i ve d i nter mi t t ent ly in F lo r ida but was st ill a s
re s t le s s a s e ver. Th e n , i n 1 9 5 1 s he vi si t ed Br az i l . T hi s t r i p had a p ro fo un d
im pa c t o n Bi s ho p . In h e r tra ve l di ary she no t ed:
S he fel l ill w hi l e i n Bra z i l a n d d elayed her ret ur n ho me. F o r t he next 1 0

ye a r s E l i zab e t h Bi s h op wa s h app y. She fell in lo ve wit h Lo t a de Mace d o
S oa re s, wi th w ho m she ha d been l ivi ng , co nt ro lled her dr inking and f or
th e f ir s t ti m e i n h e r l i f e , f e l t at hom e. Alt ho ug h she fo und it difficult t o
w r i t e, s he w on t he P u l i tz e r Pri ze for Po et r y in 1956 and in 1965 her t hi rd
co ll ec ti on of p o e try, Qu e s ti on s o f Trav el , appeared.
In 1 96 7 th e re l a ti v e pe a c e of her n ew li fe was o nce ag ai n shattere d

w h en S oa re s c om m i tte d sui c i de. Al thoug h she at t empt ed t o co nt inue on
li v in g i n Br a z i l , th e c ou n try ha d lo st it s appeal fo r her. Her life was on c e
ag ai n in f re e f a l l a n d , n ot f or the fir st t ime, her clo se fr iend and ment o r,
th e po et R ob e rt L owe l l , c a m e to her ai d. He ar r ang ed fo r her t o act as h is
re p l a cem e nt a t H arv a rd w h i l e he w as o n ext end ed l eave. H er rep ut at i o n

as a w r it e r, ho we ve r, c onti nued t o r ise. T he Co mplet e Po ems w a s
pu b l i sh ed i n 19 69 . Th e f ol l owi ng year, t his co llect io n wo n t he prest igi ou s
N a t io na l Bo ok Aw a rd f or Poe try.
Th e fi n a l ye a rs o f B i s h op’s l i fe were str an gely rem i niscen t o f he r

ye a r s a s a n un d e rg ra d ua te . She d rank heavily and suffered fro m bo ut s of
se ve re d e p re s si o n a nd a sthm a. Fo r the fir st t ime in her life, she w rot e
f ree l y abo ut he r e a r l y c h i l d hood. ‘ In the Wait ing Ro o m ’ , which is o n t he
Le a vi n g C e rt i fi c a t e c ou rse , i s a fi ne ex ample o f her lat er st yle. Elizabe t h
Bi s h op d i e d s ud d e n l y of a c ereb ral aneur ysm o n Sat urday, 6 Oct o be r
19 79 . S h e w a s 68 . S h e ha d wri tt en l ett er s t hat mo r ning and was ready in g
he r s el f fo r d i nn e r a t the c ri ti c Hel en Vendler ’s ho use when she died. S he
ha d be e n sc h e d ul e d to re a d at Har vard’s Sander s T heat re t he fo llo w in g
ev e ni n g , a nd , i n he r a b se nc e , her fri ends and co lleag ues g at hered a n d
g a ve h er i n te n d e d re a d i ng. At her req uest , t he wo rds ‘awful but cheer f ul ’
w e re i ns cr i b e d on h e r tom b stone.
Questions
F ro m th e p oe try o f E l i z a b e th Bi shop t hat yo u have st udied, select t he

po e ms t ha t , i n y our op i n i on , b est dem o nst r at e her skilful use o f lang u a ge
an d i mag er y to c onf ront l i f e ’s harsh realit ies.

J u s ti f y y our s e l e c ti o n b y d e m onstr ati ng B isho p’s skilful use o f lang u a ge
an d ima ge ry t o c o n f ron t l i f e ’s harsh realit ies in t he po ems yo u h a ve
ch os e n . (L e a vi n g C e rt 20 1 7 )
“B is h o p m a ke s effective use of symbols and metaphors to explore

pe r s on al experiences that deliver tho ug ht -pro vo king t r ut hs abo ut t h e
hu man co nd i t i on.”
To w h at e xten t do you a gre e or d isag ree wit h t his st at ement ? Suppor t

yo u r a ns we r wi th re f e re nc e to the po etr y o f Eavan B o land o n yo ur co ur se .
ESM
PT
[ … ] e x p lo re p e rs ona l experiences that deliver t ho ug ht -pro vo king t r u t hs

ab o ut th e h um a n c o n d i ti on.”
W HAT W H Y WH E RE HOW
W HAT A R E T H E PE RSON AL E X PERIEN CES ?
W HY A R E T H EY SO PE RSON AL ?
W HE RE DO WE SEE TH E M ?
W HAT A R E T H E T H OU GH T PROV OKING T R UT HS ?
W HY A R E T H EY T H OU GH T PROVOKIN G ?

H O W DO E S SH E C ON V E Y TH E M ?
T R UT H = C H ILDH O OD IF U N H APPY C AN LEAD T O LAT ER PAIN
T R UT H = DE AT H C AN BE C ON FU SING F OR A YOUNG CHILD
A t op i c se n te n c e se q u e n c e sh ould always co nsist o f
① a b ro ad q ue s ti o n fo c use d sent ence
② a mo re fo c us e d sup p orti n g sentence
③ a co nt e nt p ha s e .
P - Qu es ti o n 3 0% 10+ 3 + 5 18
—— — — — —— —— ———————————————-
C - S tr u ct ure 3 0%
L - L an gu a ge 30 %
M - S p e l lin g 1 0%

Bishop 2020

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BISHOP

an d p lac es a n d moral, histo rical, so cia l a nd p sych olo gi c al

th e e a rl y s ta ge s o f her career, Bi sh op w as regard ed ( a nd

ⓒ Cian Hogan English Notes 2020 2

In the Waiting Room 25

First Death in Nova Scotia 38

ⓒ Cian Hogan English Notes 2020 3

his ne t, i n the gl oa ming al mo st invisible,

a nd h i s s h u ttl e wor n and p ol ished.

i t m a ke s o n e ’s n o se run an d o ne’s eyes water.

Th e fi v e f i s h h o u se s h ave steepl y p eaked ro of s

a nd n a rro w, c le a t e d g ang p l anks sl ant up 10

fo r t h e wh e e l ba rro ws to be pushed u p an d down on .

Al l i s s i l ve r: th e h e avy surface o f t he sea,

sw e ll in g sl owl y a s i f con sid er i ng sp i l l i ng o ver,

i s o pa q ue , b ut t h e sil ver of th e bench es, 15

th e lo b s t e r po t s, a n d m ast s, scat t ered

l ike t h e sm a ll ol d b uil di ng s wit h an em er al d moss

ⓒ Cian Hogan English Notes 2020 4

wi th l a y e rs o f b e a utifu l her r ing scal es

a nd t h e wh e e l ba rro ws are si m i l ar l y plast ered

wi th sm a ll irid e s c e n t f li es cr awl i ng o n t hem. 25

se t in t h e sp a rse b righ t sp r i nkle o f gr ass,

The o l d m a n a c c e p ts a Lucky St r ike.

H e wa s a f rie n d of my gr an d fath er.

whil e h e wa i ts f o r a herr i ng boat t o come in.

The re a re se q u i ns on his ves t and o n his t humb.

H e ha s sc ra pe d th e scales, th e pr i ncip al beauty,

from u n n u m be re d f i s h wit h t hat b l ack o l d kn i fe,

ⓒ Cian Hogan English Notes 2020 5

whe re t h e y h a u l up th e boats, up th e lon g r am p

d e sc e nd in g i nt o t h e water, t hin sil ver

tre e trun ks a re la i d ho ri zon t al l y

a c ross t h e g ra y st o n es, do wn and do wn 45

C ol d d a rk d e e p a n d ab sol utely clear,

to fi sh a n d to se a l s … On e seal par t i cular l y

H e wa s c uri ous a b out m e.

l i ke m e a b e l i e ve r i n to tal im mer sio n,

I a l s o sa n g “ A Mi gh t y Fo r t ress Is Our God.”

H e s t o o d up in t h e water and reg ard ed me 55

Th e n h e wo u l d d isa pp ear, th en su d d enly em erge

a l mo st i n t h e sa m e s pot, wi t h a sor t of shr u g

C ol d d a rk d e e p a n d ab sol utely clear, 60

th e c le a r gra y i c y wat er … B ack, behind us,

ⓒ Cian Hogan English Notes 2020 6

Blu i s h , a sso c i a ti ng wit h t heir shadows,

a m il li on C hrist m a s t rees st and

wa i ti ng f o r Ch rist m as . The wat er seems suspended 70

a b ov e th e rou n d e d g ray and bl ue-gr ay st on es.

I ha v e se e n i t o ve r and over, th e sam e sea, t he same,

sl ig h t l y, in d iff e re nt l y swi ng i ng above th e st on es,

yo ur bo n e s wo u l d begin t o ache and yo ur hand wo uld bur n

a s i f th e wa t e r we re a t r ansm utation o f fire

th a t f e e d s o n st o n e s an d bur n s wit h a dar k g r ay flam e. 80

If y o u t a st e d it , i t wo uld fir st t ast e bit t er,

th e n b ri ny, the n su rel y bur n yo ur t o ng ue.

It i s l i ke wha t we i mag ine kno wledg e t o be:

d a rk, sa l t, c l e a r m oving, utt er ly free,

d ra wn f rom th e c o l d h ard mou t h 85