Maternal Instinct
As a mother herself, Boland in her poetry naturally reflects on her experiences of motherhood. Her poems often deal with either maternal themes or demonstrate a maternal perspective. Consider "The Pomegranate" and "Domestic Violence." These are easy to interpret through the lens of maternal instinct because they both deal with family conflict. "The Pomegranate" is a modern take on the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, telling the story of her daughter Persephone's abduction in the Underworld and her eating of Hades' pomegranate which cursed her to remain there part of every year as his queen. Through Circe's (Demeter's) eyes, Boland examines her anxiety related to parenting a teenager daughter. She wants to protect the girl at all costs, but she's learning the patient, painful extent of love; maternal love sometimes allows the child to be hurt, to make mistakes, to choose its own destiny. Compare this take on maternal intuition with that of "Domestic Violence." The narrator lives next door to a couple which fights constantly and dirty. Once more, she resists her urge to interfere. Instead the narrator notes the feelings which hearing the fights stir in her and she gives thanks for the health she has earned in her relationship. In other words she accepts that she cannot control these people, but she remains hopeful for them because she's been in the same position before.
Revolution
Boland is participating in the tradition of Irish poets, although her very presence in the genre, as a female poet, is in and of itself revolutionary. Irish poetry reflects the longstanding oppression of the Irish people. It demonstrates a consistent yearning for unification and an outrage at political disenfranchisement. Boland both writes about the many revolutions in Ireland's history and leads her own mini-revolution just through her words. Paving the way for many female artists to come, she defies the tradition of silenced women in Irish poetry. She writes to end the suppression of the female perspective in Irish art, embodying the very Irish characteristic of rebellion.
Ireland, the Place
In addition to themes of cultural Irish tradition, Boland writes about the geographic landscape of Ireland. Her poems like "My Country in Darkness" and "The Harbour" rely upon local knowledge of Ireland. This barrier of geographic intimacy allows Boland to speak candidly with her audience, which at least for these texts is her countrymen. As is common in remote communities and island cultures, Boland demonstrates her trustworthiness to the reader by signalling her status as an "insider," as really Irish.
