The poem
It was taken some time ago. At first it seems to be a smeared print: blurred lines and grey flecks blended with the paper;
then, as you scan it, you see in the left-hand corner a thing that is like a branch: part of a tree (balsam or spruce) emerging and, to the right, halfway up what ought to be a gentle slope, a small frame house.
In the background there is a lake, and beyond that, some low hills.
(The photograph was taken the day after I drowned.
I am in the lake, in the center of the picture, just under the surface.
It is difficult to say where precisely, or to say how large or small I am: the effect of water on light is a distortion
but if you look long enough, eventually you will be able to see me.)
does anyone know what the history or anything is of this poem? cause its just to close to an incident i know of.
We talked about this poem in English class and we decided on that she was talking about birth not death! Because it may say drowning but the baby is being born. Well thats what we came up with!
Atwood criticizes men and society in her poem “This Is A Photograph Of Me” by saying women are pushed to side, have stereotypes put on them, and essentially drowned. The picture looks smeared and blurry, as was women’s role in society, but as one studies the photograph more carefully, you see a branch in the upper left hand corner, and on the right, “halfway up/what ought to be a gentle/slope” (10-12) is a house.…
Read the whole commentAtwood criticizes men and society in her poem “This Is A Photograph Of Me” by saying women are pushed to side, have stereotypes put on them, and essentially drowned. The picture looks smeared and blurry, as was women’s role in society, but as one studies the photograph more carefully, you see a branch in the upper left hand corner, and on the right, “halfway up/what ought to be a gentle/slope” (10-12) is a house. The hill “ought to” be gentle, but that does not mean it is gentle. Females “ought to” be gentle, but are we always? The branch in the left (liberal) hand corner is the movement for gender equality.
In the center of the picture but in the background is a lake. The photograph was taken the day after the speaker drowned in this lake. She can be seen “just under the surface” (18) if you look hard. The water, or society and men, distorts her: it is almost impossible to tell her size. Yet it can be seen if studied closely.
The woman’s death in this poem is set in parenthesis, in an aside, as if it is not worthy of being part of the poem. Men and society’s expectations and whims pushed the speaker under the lake and drowned her. This poem may be a reflection upon the past, because this photograph was taken “some time ago” (1). Atwood wrote the poem in 1998, and it could be a memory of years past when she first felt oppressed by society.
This poem seems to show the woman's struggle to be equal to a man. The person seems so low as if only needed to sidewardly mention that they drowned in this lake. She seems to be oppressed by men(the lake) and only able to varely scale and not even size.
A further thought would be that the female voice of the poem is saying something that is impossible - was taken the day after i drowned. Women could be seen to be making outrageous comments that cannot be true. The society is "drowning" her because what she is saying is so surreal.
Who said the speaker of this poem is female?
People jump to conclusions about poems based on what they think they know about the gender and interests of the poet.
They're not always the same. Try reading the poem with a male speaker, and you will see that there is something that transcends gender-struggles being said here.
Sorry, but I cannot see this from a man's point of view. If you know enough about Atwood, you would see the connection between this poem and gender struggles. And the isolation women have gone through. Just my opinion though. :)
This poem is didactic in the sense that it challenges the reader to take time in life to examine and consider things properly otherwise you will have a very surface valued impression of life, an impression very much like the first stanza of the poem. Taking this interpretation immediately we are challened to read this poem properly with depth and analysis rather than to take it at surface value.
We don't think This is a Photograph of Me is based purely on the discrimination of women by a society dominated by males. Instead, Margaret Atwood concentrates more on the unreliability of memory and on the incongruence between the speaker (who may or may not be female) and the reader. Indeed, a reader's interpretation is gender-based, yet the poem does not only deal with the oppression of women by a society controlled by men.
This poem was actually written in 1966 not 1998, when Atwood was 26. Also, it was the first poem in her first book of poetry. This poem should be viewed as a suggestion to the reader from Atwood, telling us that things, including this poem, should not be taken just at face value and no matter what one is examining, be in gender struggles or works of literature, there are always going to be different interpretations.…
Read the whole commentThis poem was actually written in 1966 not 1998, when Atwood was 26. Also, it was the first poem in her first book of poetry. This poem should be viewed as a suggestion to the reader from Atwood, telling us that things, including this poem, should not be taken just at face value and no matter what one is examining, be in gender struggles or works of literature, there are always going to be different interpretations. Her reference to her death could also be viewed as a rebirth. Possibly at the age of 26 she realized herself what she is trying to tell the reader now, that things are not as they seem, and in order to understand them one must put aside all cultural differences and look at things bellow the surface free of bias.
When i first read this poem, what struck me were the images - like the surface of the photograph - all blurred.
She has drowned in the lake so nothing is clear - her face, the surroundings. It struck me as something about the merging of identities, being immersed in activities that kind of drown you.
Also the bluriness reminded me of those holographic papers, where you stare at something long enough and then you see a picture.
...and I am the one who took the picture when i saw the body under the surface
Just because the poet is a female does not mean that it is in her voice. you should never asume (when reading poetry) that the author/poet is talking about themselves and their own struggles or anything of that nature because it isnt a known fact. if margaret atwood was a women rights leader...it doesnt mean she is writing about it.
All of what people have said regarding this poem is true, whatever someone makes of a poem is what they see, and what they believe the poet may be trying to get across to them. The branch may be a connection to her family, the house being society, the slope that ought to be easy is a challenge, the lake is the origin of her life, the water that distorts the light and the light itself could possibly be something…
Read the whole commentAll of what people have said regarding this poem is true, whatever someone makes of a poem is what they see, and what they believe the poet may be trying to get across to them. The branch may be a connection to her family, the house being society, the slope that ought to be easy is a challenge, the lake is the origin of her life, the water that distorts the light and the light itself could possibly be something sacred? Atwood couldn't beat the challenge (Slope) to make it into society (house). she sees her family (tree) being eaten by it's anus and realizes that the vaginal discharge in between her hairy, disgustingly revolting legs have now been forever forgotten. she is now aware that if the men do not stick their penises into the vagina that it cannot be as she is trying to set it out to be. thank you, and i like jacking off to hot chicks on webcams.
I really cant understand what she was trying to say to tell ,, do you have an idea what she wanna say ?????
i am so confused about this poem
Romantic poets consider "Nature" as mother which has cordiality and tenderness towards mankind as her chid. But Atwood has here brougth the violent side of the nature towards man. It is that man as superior being in this world loses his identity in climatic condition and landscape given by nature. Thus she brings nature as not mother, but extremeness of nature towards man.
Atwood is a troubled woman.This poem speaks to the supression of women through the media of men and the society
so is there actually a body in the water?
This poem is about dinosaurs and poop
Reality
The services and sacrifices of woman are immersed like the photograph of her under the lake if the people may have positive concern on women they can easily see the clear original appearance
Invisibility?
You guys all have very interesting opinions. Anyways, the way I evaluated the poem was that there is a lady (although that one comment does have a point, it could be a man. Yet I imagined a lady). So Atwood says the picture was taken a long time ago at the beginning. The paper might be society. The blurred stuff is her. She is invisible, insignificant. Then Atwood talks about the branch. I imagined it kind of sprouting out of the photo, like hope. Maybe the drowning represents failure? Maybe it represents just how invisible she is?