Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Anne Sexton’s poem "The Fish That Walked" is a rich, symbolic exploration of identity, transformation, and the human desire to transcend one’s own nature. The poem, through its surreal narrative and vivid imagery, captures the tension between the realms of the familiar and the unknown, the natural and the supernatural. It also delves into the existential longing that defines much of human experience, particularly the yearning to become something other than what one is, even if that transformation is fraught with challenges.

The poem begins with the introduction of a fish emerging "up from oysters / and the confused weeds, out from the tears of God, / the wounding tides." This imagery places the fish in a primordial context, suggesting a being that comes from the depths of creation, out of chaos and divine sorrow. The "tears of God" and "wounding tides" imply a world of both pain and creation, where life emerges from a mixture of divine sadness and the harshness of nature. The fish, stepping into this world, takes on a new role—"He became a hunter of roots / and breathed like a man." This transition from water to land, from a creature of the sea to one that breathes air, symbolizes a profound transformation, perhaps even an evolution.

As the fish adapts to this new environment, "he ruffled through the grasses / and became known to the sky." The act of becoming known to the sky suggests a newfound awareness or consciousness, as the fish, now a walker on land, is exposed to a broader reality. The speaker, who witnesses this transformation, stands "close and watched it all," serving as an observer to this miraculous change. The proximity of the speaker to this event indicates a deep interest, perhaps even envy or a sense of kinship with the fish.

The fish, acknowledging the strangeness of its new environment, speaks with a certain humility: "Beg pardon, he said / but you have skin divers, / you have hooks and nets, / so why shouldn't I / enter your element for a moment?" This statement reveals the fish’s awareness of the dangers and intrusions it faces from the human world, yet it asserts its right to explore and inhabit the human element, even if only temporarily. The fish’s comment about the awkwardness of walking on land—"It is without grace. / There is no rhythm / in this country of dirt"—highlights the difficulty and discomfort of existing in a world for which one is not naturally suited. This lack of rhythm contrasts with the fluid, graceful movements the fish would have in water, emphasizing the dissonance between different realms of existence.

The speaker’s response to the fish reveals a similar sense of displacement and longing. The speaker recalls fragments of memories from "some country / that I have misplaced," suggesting a lost connection to a past or an origin that has been forgotten or obscured by the mundane realities of life, represented by "the light of the kitchen." The mention of a dance while kneading bread and a song sung by the speaker’s mother evokes a sense of domesticity, tradition, and the rituals of daily life, which are contrasted with the primal, mysterious world from which the fish emerged. The speaker also references "the salt of God’s belly / where I floated in a cup of darkness," a likely metaphor for the womb, symbolizing the primal, nurturing environment from which life begins. This image suggests a deep yearning to return to a state of innocence or purity, a time before the complexities and disappointments of life took hold.

The speaker then expresses a longing for the fish’s world: "I long for your country, fish." This admission reveals the speaker’s desire to escape the constraints of their own life and experience the freedom and mystery of the fish’s existence. However, the fish’s reply is both a recognition of the speaker’s longing and a gentle rebuke: "You must be a poet, / a lady of evil luck desiring to be what you are not, / longing to be / what you can only visit." The fish identifies the speaker as a poet—someone who, by nature, is drawn to explore different realms of existence, to imagine and desire what lies beyond the ordinary. The phrase "lady of evil luck" suggests a sense of misfortune or curse, as if the speaker’s desire to be something else is a form of tragic destiny. The fish acknowledges the speaker’s yearning but also reminds them that this longing is futile, as they can only visit, not inhabit, the world of the fish.

In "The Fish That Walked," Anne Sexton masterfully weaves together themes of transformation, longing, and the limitations of human experience. The poem’s dialogue between the speaker and the fish serves as a meditation on the desire to transcend one’s own nature, the difficulties of inhabiting a world to which one does not belong, and the poignant realization that some realms of existence can only be glimpsed, not fully lived. Through its evocative imagery and existential themes, the poem captures the essence of the human condition—our perpetual yearning for the unattainable, and the beauty and tragedy inherent in that quest.

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