What is the first thing that comes to most people’s minds when they think of a sow? Typically, they just think of a pig on a farm and never think that they would have to read about it in a poem. Sylvia Plath followed an unusual path when she created an intriguing piece titled “Sow”. We all have our own unique opinions that we are able to express, for the most part, whenever and wherever we want. Through Plath’s poem, we are presented with two very different points of view on a pig. On one hand, the narrator views the subject as a great prized pig. On the other hand, the farmer, who most likely raised the sow, is more humble and thinks of it as any average pig. It is truly amazing how two people can have such differing standpoints on something as simple as an animal.
During her lifetime, Sylvia Plath created an incredibly large collection of assorted poems. Her wide range of topics makes it nearly impossible for people
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When describing another work of Plath’s known as “The Bell Jar,” ¬¬¬¬ Craig Morgan said that is not a “pot broiler, nor a series of ungrateful caricatures: it is literature. It is finding its audience, and will hold it” (Nuwer 2013). The same properties apply to “Sow” in the sense that some people may overlook its greatness at first because they see it is just about a farm animal, but the techniques used in it create an exceptional poem. Plath used diction, sound, imagery, and allusions to properly portray a sow in the differing viewpoints of two men: the humble farmer who thinks as the sow as an average pig, and the proud neighbor who believes the sow is strong and prize-worthy. Through the use of these techniques, we are able to fully understand the reasoning behind each men’s opinion while being presented with language that allowed us to create a detailed image of the