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Summary Of The Possessive By Sharon Olds

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As I read the poem “The Possessive” by Sharon Olds I felt the building of a rivalry between a mother and her teenage daughter. I believe the mother is watching her daughter after getting a haircut and noticing the spike in her independence. The poem gives off a tone of bitterness from the mother’s point of view. She seems to be bitter because she is feeling like she can no longer control her daughter. I portrayed the daughter as an evolving young woman who is beginning to generate her ideas, appearance, and who she is becoming, based on what she wants. The mother seems demanding in which and bitter towards the idea of her daughter growing out of her adolescence. I also, sense fear from the mother that her daughter is growing up and will …show more content…

Throughout the poem the word “My” is repeated multiple times. I think the author repeated this word to show possession over her daughter. She is bothered because her daughter got a haircut that revolted against what the mother wanted. In the poem she repeats “My daughter” twice and also says “My body.” which I think represents her feeling that her daughter and her are one. By getting the haircut that the mother despised showed that her daughter is beginning to become independent. Also, the author makes multiple comparisons such as “The blade of new bangs hangs over her red-brown eyes like carbon steel” and “The curtain of dark paper-cute veils the face that started from next to nothing in my body”. I believe the comparison to carbon steel means the daughter believes her haircut is a bold message to her mother; while her mother knows that she may be acting bold she is not ready to stand completely alone. I feel this because although carbon steel looks strong it is known for not having the most toughness. The comparison of the curtain of dark paper tells me that the mother feels betrayed by her daughter’s decision to revolt against her. I think this because she feels she has created her daughter and her daughter should obey her opinion. It’s amazing how repetition of words and comparisons can create such vivid feelings in the

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