I Became Possible By Anna Barbauld Summary

In her poem “To a Little Invisible Being Who Is Expected Soon to Become Visible,” Anna Barbauld uses her perspective as a female poet to provide insight into feminine thoughts and experiences. Published by Barbauld’s niece after her death, “To a Little Invisible Being Who Is Expected Soon to Become Visible” contains a message from a mother awaiting the birth of her child. In the poem, the mother conveys first her excitement for the arrival of her child, then the uniqueness of her experience as a mother, and lastly the joy and connection to nature that this experience brings to women. Specifically, Barbauld uses characterization, repetition, imagery, capitalization, and word choice to set apart the feminine realm of society and the traits that are unique to the female population. This

Barbauld’s characterization in “To a Little Invisible Being Who is Expected Soon to Become Visible” establishes the feminine realm of society. The speaker is female because she is speaking about the feminine experiences of pregnancy and childbirth. The lines in the fourth stanza establish the other characters of the poem: the nurse and matrons. Barbauld purposefully establishes the nurse as female by using the pronoun her: “For thee the nurse prepares her lulling songs” (13). The next line conveys the other characters awaiting the child’s arrival: the “eager matrons” or married women (14). Then Barbauld makes an important point as the speaker refers to herself as the parent of the child: “But far the most thy anxious parent longs / On they soft cheek a mother’s kiss to lay” (15-16). At this point in the poem, the speaker could have easily mentioned both parents to include the father in the process of birth. Barbauld purposefully leaves