Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

In "Kind Sir: These Woods," Anne Sexton presents a deeply introspective exploration of loss, self-discovery, and the inevitable confrontation with one’s inner self. The poem uses the metaphor of getting lost in the woods, inspired by a quote from Thoreau’s "Walden", to delve into the psychological landscape of being lost, not just physically but spiritually and emotionally.

The poem opens with a reference to an "old game" played during childhood, setting a nostalgic yet ominous tone. The speaker recounts the experience of being on an island in Maine, where the familiar world becomes strange and disorienting as fog envelops the landscape. The imagery of the fog turning the forest "white and strange" serves as a metaphor for the confusion and alienation that can occur when one is lost, both in the physical world and in the more abstract realms of thought and emotion.

Sexton emphasizes the unsettling nature of this experience by describing how the forest, usually a place of natural beauty and familiarity, transforms into something unfamiliar and potentially threatening. The pine trees, once recognizable, now appear as "brown poles we did not know," suggesting that even the most familiar aspects of life can become alien when viewed through the lens of disorientation and fear. This is further amplified by the inversion of natural order—day rearranged into night, and bats flying in the sun—which symbolizes a disruption of the expected and the known.

The poem’s reference to "the crow’s horn crying in the dark" and the "bell buoy’s bell" evokes a sense of doom and the loss of security. The speaker recalls the anxiety of realizing that "supper would never come" and that the nursemaid is gone, emphasizing a child’s fear of abandonment and the profound sense of being lost. The childhood memory of these woods, tinged with fear and loss, sets the stage for the speaker’s later introspective journey.

The shift from childhood to adulthood is marked by the line "Kind Sir: Lost and of your same kind / I have turned around twice with my eyes sealed." Here, Sexton draws a parallel between the childhood game and the adult experience of being lost in one’s own mind. The "night mind" refers to the subconscious, where strange and unsettling thoughts emerge when one is alone and introspective. The woods, once external, now represent the internal landscape of the mind, where the speaker is lost and searching.

The fear of "this inward look that society scorns" highlights the societal taboo against deep self-reflection and the discomfort that often accompanies it. However, despite this fear, the speaker continues to search within the metaphorical woods, knowing that what she will find is nothing worse than herself. This conclusion suggests that the true fear lies not in external dangers but in confronting one’s own inner demons, the "grapes and the thorns" of personal experience and memory.

The poem encapsulates the duality of being lost and found. While getting lost is often seen as a negative experience, Sexton, inspired by Thoreau’s philosophy, suggests that it is through being lost that one begins to find oneself. The journey into the woods, both literal and metaphorical, is a necessary part of self-discovery, where the familiar is stripped away to reveal the deeper truths of the self.

In "Kind Sir: These Woods," Sexton masterfully weaves together the themes of childhood innocence, fear of the unknown, and the complex process of self-discovery. The poem’s imagery and language create a haunting atmosphere that reflects the inner turmoil of confronting one’s true self, ultimately revealing that the greatest challenge lies in facing the person we find when all external distractions are removed.

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