Essay Questions

In “Freight,” why does the narrator liken herself to a freight ship?

In this short and ethereal poem, the narrator describes a journey that she takes or will take—presumably with a lover. She describes how she will serve as a vessel through which she will carry the man along and help them continue their tandem journey together. However, this journey together is not to last. The narrator describes how the man will be blinded by the brilliance and beauty of other, untethered ships and will be drawn to them and away from her. Therefore, the narrator chooses to describe herself as a freight ship, due to the fact that there is a very specific connotation associated with these types of charters. Freighters are not considered beautiful ships. Their use is utilitarian and, though they are integral to the shipping industry, they are not often valued. This reflects the narrator. She is in a relationship with a man who does not value her, despite her inner beauty and power. Instead, he is drawn in by more beautiful and sleek ships. In this way, the narrator views herself as a freighter—useful, utilitarian, but not beautiful.

In “Remark,” the narrator comments on the fact that making her husband laugh was “something I’d forgotten I could do.” What does the narrator mean by this?

Throughout the poem, the narrator hints that she has been in a relationship with her husband for many years and that their lust and love for each other has waned over that time. She explains that life had gotten busy and perhaps a bit sad and, as a result, they’d allowed their youthful yearnings for each other to falter. Then, without thinking, she makes a small, unassuming, and dry remark. For some reason, this remark catches her husband funny, and he laughs in a way that she has not heard him laugh in years. It’s rich, youthful, and full of life. It’s at this point in the poem that the narrator recalls that making her husband laugh this way was something she’d forgotten she was capable of doing. Therefore, this quote captures the fact that part of the reason the narrator’s relationship had waned with her husband was due to the fact that neither party devoted time or energy to cultivating the youthful spark that first ignited their love for each other. Therefore, the narrator meant in this quotation that she’d completely forgotten the power she had in this relationship to make her husband laugh and to make him happy.

What is the significance of the narrator describing the elevator at the beginning of “The Elevator” as an oyster?

The use of this metaphor at the opening of “The Elevator” is significant, as it is the first sign that the narrator has devolved into an obsessive state. She likens the elevator to an oyster after the fact because she is remembering the fact that this elevator held the object of her obsession and affections—musician Leonard Cohen. The narrator uses the oyster metaphor because oysters are unassuming containers for great beauty: a pearl. In this way, in the narrator’s mind, the elevator is an oyster because it contained a pearl/gem in the narrator’s mind: Leonard Cohen, himself. This comparison signifies how obsessed the narrator is with Cohen. She views him as a beautiful pearl, which is contained in the oyster of the elevator. This is a sign of her unfounded obsession with the musician.