The Thing Is Personification in Bass's Poetry

"The Thing Is" is not the only poem written by Bass in which she personifies a feeling or experience. In "And What If I Spoke of Despair," published in the 2002 collection Mules of Love, Bass personifies despair as a baby that she chooses to hold in her arms. Grief and despair are often used interchangeably, but they have different meanings. Despair refers to a loss of hope and faith, which causes an overwhelming feeling of sadness. Grief is the complex emotional response to loss that can include feelings of sadness, anger, and guilt. By personifying these concepts, Bass gives them a presence in her poems. In comparison to grief, the way in which Bass personifies despair is much more unexpected. Grief is personified in "The Thing Is" as an extremely heavy presence, which is not surprising considering the emotional weight that affects grieving people. On the other hand, despair is personified in "And What If I Spoke of Despair" as a baby that the speaker chooses to nurture. This sheds a new light on the experience of despair, which is often thought of in solely negative terms. Overall, Bass's use of personification in these poems dignifies grief and despair without minimizing the respective difficulties that accompany these feelings.