Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Marge Piercy's poem "Quarrel in the Berry Patch" vividly captures the tension and competition between humans and wildlife over the bounty of nature. Through playful and lively imagery, Piercy explores themes of ownership, coexistence, and the interconnectedness of all living beings.

The poem opens with the speaker addressing the birds directly: "I gave you the cherries this year, / the mulberries, you gorgeous beasties / orange and lemon like the bells / of St. Clemons, wherever that is, / Baltimore dashing orioles." Here, the speaker acknowledges the birds' enjoyment of the fruits, likening their colors to the bright and cheerful bells of St. Clemons, creating a vibrant and whimsical image.

However, the tone shifts as the speaker expresses frustration: "Why do you curse and torment / me, picking black currants? / You can’t have everything." The birds' relentless pursuit of the black currants becomes a point of contention, symbolizing the natural competition for resources. The description of the yellow female bird "squats over / my head, threatening" adds a humorous yet menacing touch to the scene.

The speaker continues to describe the aggressive behavior of the birds: "The male twitters and swoops. / Now the catbirds too mew / dire promises of revenge." This anthropomorphizing of the birds' actions infuses the poem with a sense of drama and conflict, as if the birds are plotting against the speaker. Despite the conflict, the speaker attempts to negotiate: "Okay, the black currants are mine, / but we’ll split the blueberries."

The poem then delves into the concept of land ownership: "This is my land, I say, no / different than the boast of Mr. / orange chest from his hanging / nest in the weeping beech / and whose tree is it?" This rhetorical question challenges the notion of human ownership of nature, drawing a parallel between the speaker's claim to the land and the bird's claim to its nest. The use of "Mr. orange chest" personifies the bird, further emphasizing the shared stakes in the natural world.

The closing lines of the poem reflect on the deeper connection to the land and its cycles: "I planted it, I water it, / the squirrels fuck in it, / always somebody has a nest / as it plunges deep in the earth: / its owner, its lover, its end." These lines acknowledge the multitude of relationships that coexist within the natural world. The tree, nurtured by the speaker and inhabited by various creatures, represents a communal space where life unfolds in a continuous cycle.

"Quarrel in the Berry Patch" by Marge Piercy uses lively imagery and playful language to explore the dynamics of human and wildlife interactions. Through the lens of a berry patch dispute, the poem reflects on broader themes of ownership, coexistence, and the interconnectedness of all living beings. Piercy's vivid descriptions and anthropomorphizing of the birds create a humorous yet thought-provoking meditation on our place in the natural world.

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