Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Anne Sexton’s poem "The Fierceness of Female" is a passionate and intense exploration of female sexuality, identity, and the powerful, almost primal forces that govern both. Through rich, evocative imagery, Sexton delves into the complexities of the female experience, particularly focusing on the intersection of body and spirit, desire and divinity. The poem captures the essence of what it means to be both fiercely feminine and deeply connected to the natural and spiritual worlds.

The poem opens with the speaker in a state of spinning, a metaphor that suggests both movement and disorientation. The act of spinning on the lips is particularly striking, evoking the sensual and the physical, but also implying a kind of loss of control or identity—"they remove my shadow, / my phantom from my past." This line suggests that the speaker is being stripped of her former self, her past identity, perhaps by external forces or by the overwhelming power of her own desires and emotions. The "timetable of tongues" that consumes her attention further emphasizes the idea of being overwhelmed by the physical and the sensual, leaving no room for rest or stability—"Wherein there is no room. / No bed."

The absence of the ticking clock, replaced by the vibrations of "4000 pulses," suggests that time is measured not by conventional means but by the rhythm of the body, by the intense sensations that the speaker experiences. This pulse-driven existence contrasts with the earlier sense of absence, creating a duality where everything is "two," where touch is as delicate as "a choir of butterflies," yet as relentless and powerful as the ocean "pushing toward land / and receding." The ocean’s push and pull symbolize the cyclical nature of desire, the constant ebb and flow of need that the speaker experiences, a force that "gallops / all over my skin, / yelling at the reefs." This imagery highlights the physical intensity of the speaker’s emotions, which are both overwhelming and impossible to contain.

As the poem progresses, Sexton introduces the image of unknitting, where "Words fly out of place," symbolizing the disintegration of structured thought or identity in the face of these powerful emotions. The speaker is drawn to "the desert," a metaphor for both barrenness and a place of spiritual testing or revelation. Here, she "drink[s] and drink[s]"—a reference to both physical thirst and a deeper, more existential craving. The "meadow" that follows, with its "breast, the melon in it, and then the intoxicating flower of it," shifts the imagery back to fertility, life, and sensuality, suggesting that the speaker finds nourishment and fulfillment in the natural, feminine aspects of her being.

The poem then moves into a celebration of physical intimacy, with the speaker describing the hands that "stroke each other," and "nipples like baby starfish." The comparison of nipples to starfish is both tender and evocative, emphasizing the delicate, yet potent, nature of female sexuality. The act of sucking into "lunatic rings" that become "bubbles" suggests an ecstatic, almost otherworldly experience, where the boundaries between the physical and the spiritual blur. The fingers, "naked as petals," reinforce the natural and organic imagery, tying the speaker’s experience back to the earth, to life itself.

Sexton’s language crescendos as the speaker "raise[s] [her] pelvis to God," a powerful and provocative image that merges sexuality with spirituality. This act is not merely physical but is imbued with a sense of offering, of seeking truth through the body. The "truth of how / flowers smash through the long winter" is a potent metaphor for resilience, rebirth, and the inevitable triumph of life and desire over cold, barren periods. This final image encapsulates the poem’s themes of feminine strength, the cyclical nature of life, and the sacredness of the female experience.

"The Fierceness of Female" is a bold and unapologetic exploration of the complexities of female identity and sexuality. Anne Sexton uses rich, sensual imagery to convey the intensity of the female experience, highlighting the inseparable connection between the body and spirit, the natural and the divine. The poem is a celebration of the power, beauty, and resilience inherent in femininity, capturing the essence of what it means to be a woman who is both fiercely alive and deeply attuned to the rhythms of the earth and the cosmos.

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