Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

In "High Heels and False Teeth", Janice Mirikitani delves into themes of loss, resilience, and the complex dynamics between mother and daughter in the face of trauma and hardship. The poem reflects on the experiences of Japanese American women after World War II, specifically the sacrifices made by Mirikitani’s mother, who is portrayed as a woman forced to navigate a world of abandonment, poverty, and societal expectations. Through deeply personal imagery, Mirikitani captures the struggles of immigrant women who clung to ideals of femininity and grace even as they endured painful losses, societal prejudice, and economic hardship.

The poem opens with a blunt recounting of displacement and abandonment: “After the war, we moved to Chicago, / the coldest city in the world in October.” This line sets the tone of desolation, both physical and emotional, as Chicago becomes symbolic of the isolating, harsh circumstances Mirikitani’s family faces in postwar America. The coldness of the city mirrors the emotional chill that pervades the poem, representing not only the literal environment but also the societal indifference toward the struggles of Japanese American families who, like Mirikitani’s, were forced to rebuild their lives after internment. The backdrop of war and internment is central, establishing the sense of alienation and vulnerability that underlies the family’s experiences.

The loss of Mirikitani’s father to “a red-lipped woman” introduces the theme of betrayal and abandonment. This departure leaves her mother to provide for the family alone, a reality that forces her into exhausting labor: “my mother worked two jobs, / took in piecework at night, crafting crepe-paper flowers / for American Legion postwar veterans.” The irony of crafting flowers for veterans, some of whom may have harbored the same prejudice that led to her family’s internment, underscores the bitter reality of their situation. The image of her mother “bending to the wire stems in dim light, / her tears like pink paper petals that she crushed into her palms” poignantly captures her quiet suffering and the emotional toll of relentless labor. These “paper petals” become symbols of both resilience and fragility, as her mother’s pain is interwoven with her work, physically and emotionally binding her to a history of sacrifice.

Her mother’s advice about femininity—“Wear high-heel shoes and hide your teeth behind your hand”—reflects the societal pressures placed on women to conform to ideals of beauty and submission. This advice speaks to a gendered expectation of docility and controlled appearance, as if maintaining a graceful, unobtrusive presence is the only way for a woman to secure stability or respect. The high heels become a symbol of her mother’s attempt to conform to these standards, despite the reality of their poverty and hardship. Yet, her “losing her teeth” and the tension it causes represent the erosion of these ideals under the weight of their lived struggles. The act of covering her mouth conveys both a literal self-consciousness and a metaphorical silencing, as her suffering is kept hidden behind a facade of propriety and grace.

The backstory of her mother’s deteriorating health reveals the compounded traumas of internment: “During the war, we were sent to prison camps. / In camp, there were no dentists, / No milk, no meat for three years.” The lack of basic necessities, including dental care, reflects the inhumane conditions faced by Japanese Americans during internment, where both their physical and emotional well-being were disregarded. The line “nursing me had taken the calcium from her bones” ties the deterioration of her mother’s body to her role as a caretaker, underscoring the sacrifices she has made. Her mother’s tooth loss is both literal and symbolic, representing the stripping away of dignity and health under the harsh realities of internment and postwar poverty.

Mirikitani’s repetition of “Chicago is the coldest city in the world” emphasizes the unrelenting nature of their hardship. Each mention of Chicago’s coldness underscores the sense of isolation, and the setting reflects the mother’s emotional pain and physical suffering. As Mirikitani describes her mother’s dental appointment with Dr. Etai, the experience becomes deeply invasive and vulnerable: “her vulnerable mouth raw and open / as he straddles her in the dentist chair.” The choice of words here—“raw,” “open,” “straddles”—suggests an uncomfortable intimacy and a sense of violation. The dentist’s straddling of both mother and daughter creates an unsettling image, blurring the line between care and exploitation, and reflects the powerlessness both mother and daughter feel in these moments of dependence.

The poem transitions to a scene of shopping for shoes, highlighting her mother’s longing for an unattainable past. Trying on “sling-back high heels with open toes, pumps, silk slippers,” her mother engages in a ritual that reconnects her to memories of elegance and romance. The salesman’s patronizing compliment—“these shoes make her look sexy even for an oriental woman”—is loaded with racial prejudice, reducing her beauty to a curiosity or novelty. Despite this, her mother “pirouettes, preens in the mirror,” lost in the memory of her wedding night. This memory, introduced by “O how we danced on the night we were wed,” is bittersweet, an idealized moment of happiness that starkly contrasts with her current reality. Her mother’s remembrance of “her lovely teeth” and the “high heels [that] swell her calves” reflects a longing for her former self, a woman who was once beautiful, strong, and desired. The wistful nostalgia highlights the loss of dignity and self-esteem that followed years of hardship and abandonment.

The poem closes on a somber note, as her mother “tries on many pairs of shoes. / She buys none.” This ending underscores the unfulfilled desires and the impossibility of reclaiming a past lost to poverty and trauma. Her mother’s “sore mouth is throbbing” and “Tears like petals are crushed into her palm” reflect the quiet, enduring pain that defines her life. The crushed petals mirror the fragility and beauty of her resilience, embodying both the persistence of memory and the painful reality that her dreams of grace and romance cannot be realized.

In "High Heels and False Teeth", Janice Mirikitani captures the complexities of immigrant womanhood, shaped by sacrifice, societal pressures, and a constant negotiation between identity and survival. Her mother’s experiences reveal the compounded challenges faced by Japanese American women after the war, who struggled to rebuild their lives amid racism, poverty, and gender expectations. Mirikitani’s use of symbolism—high heels, crepe-paper flowers, and lost teeth—illustrates the emotional and physical toll of these hardships, as her mother clings to ideals of beauty and femininity even as they erode.

The poem honors her mother’s resilience while also recognizing the generational trauma that lingers. Mirikitani offers a deeply personal yet universal portrayal of the immigrant experience, paying tribute to the endurance of women who bore the burdens of both family and society. "High Heels and False Teeth" is a testament to the quiet strength required to survive in a world that often denies dignity and care, capturing the bittersweet reality of lives defined by both beauty and hardship.

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