While reading this poem a thought occurred to me one in which I incorporated into my exercise but also wish to get further insight. When Bishop catches then studies the fish she receives a sort of epiphany at the end. I feel that what she described has an even deeper meaning. The fish was described as gruesome in physical appearance but also a warrior. He continued to struggle to live and be free despite many attempts to be caught. It made me think of society in general.
The "look" in society and what is deemed acceptable is always changing. In Greek times Women who had meat and would be considered heavy set by today's standards were once considered beautiful. They were good for bearing children and it showed off their social standing. They were rich enough to eat well. Yet today all we see in fashion is skinny women practically a size zero with no figure and many try to accomplish this look through sacrificing their health.Much like the fish being considered ugly. But by who's standards. The fish is shown to have beautiful aspects as well or so Bishop points out.
Then we have the fish's desire to break free, he had many hooks stuck within his lips and threads from fish lines hanging off. It reminds me of society's struggle today with the government and economy. We fight and struggle so hard everyday for simple things that should come to us for free such as food and shelter. Without these things we would die. Yet many people take on numerous jobs and sacrifice themselves and their families in order to gain such things. Just like the fish fought for his freedom which was given to him at birth so do we. We fight for freedom, equality, and basic necessities.
Much like this poem and Bishops view we consistently ignore the beauty of nature and the true meaning of life. Are we really here to feed our economy? Sacrifice ourselves for capitalism? Downgrade and judge others by appearances? My questions to these poems include not only this but one for everyone else as well. Do you see any other aspects in this poem that contribute to society and the struggles we face similar to the fish?
