This poem was interesting in that the mood was so lighthearted through the first three octaves but then became so unsettlingly bleak in the last. The emotions in this poem come from the wealth of unique description and continuous motif of hats.
To understand some of the references in the text, I researched what some of the hats mentioned looked like. After seeing the general style amongst them, the first three stanzas provided me a very mid- to early-20th century vibe—relaxed and classy. However, the allusion of the Hat Lady to Saint Sebastian was a little eerie and perhaps should have prepared me more for the shift in tone in the last stanza.
The last octave surprised me with how abrupt it changes the direction of the poem. The author appears to describe her mother leaving for the hospital and later the cemetery ("where my father and grandfather waited, head to bare head") after experiencing what I believe to be chemotherapy. Since Pastan was born in 1932, chemo seems a possible explanation. Earlier in the poem, the Hat Lady simply represents that—a woman who sells hats. However, in the last stanza, I believe the Hat Lady becomes a nurse because she wears "a bracelet of needles." Also, nurses wore those little white hats in the early 1900s.
I don't know exactly what the significance of hats are as a symbol, but the author obviously holds some deep connection to them.
I think it's just the poet's way of seeing time or the passing of it? Hats are the way the years are shown?
ReplyDeleteI think you've done some thoughtful work on this.
Conrad, I love how much thought you put into your analysis of a poem. When I read your repsonses, I get the sense you pick apart every detail of a poem meticulously searching for the hidden meaning. Also, after reading your responses I get a better sense of how mine should be for the this dreaded AP test coming up very quickly. Your vocabulary is another part of your responses I envy. You deftly throw in words most kids don't even know, but do it so that it comes across easy to read and doesn't seemed forced. Overall, you're my inspiration for how to right on the AP test.
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