Essay Questions

Why, in the poem "A Poet in a Shade of Jade", is the narrator saying she wants to be poor?

The narrator in the poem obviously comes from a richer background, and is not actually saying that she wants a sad way of life that may come with not having enough money to complete simple tasks. However, she wants the ideas that she sees in many poor families - a greater respect for the world, more care and compassion for their property, and, most importantly, love for their families.

What is the purpose of the line, "resist the butter cookie, submit to the butter cookie" in the poem "Resist"?

This line is intended to bring a bit of humor into the poem, by cancelling out the other tragic things that the author has listed as "submit" or "resist". Since butter cookies are generally craved by the public for their savory flavor, it is used as a simple example of something that the narrator later thinks is too hard to resist because it is too simple to resist.

Why is the title of the collection of poems "One Bedroom Solo"?

"One Bedroom Solo" is actually one of the poems in the collection, but the other poems included may be tied to the theme in another way. Perhaps the author wrote this simple collection in her bedroom, or the title is used to represent the common theme of hope and loneliness in the other poems. Typically, poem collections are named after their most dominant poem, but perhaps this collection used it for a deeper meaning.