Week #2—Sign Inventory

Elizabeth Bishop’s poem “The Fish”

The style is confessional spoken in first person, although it sounds almost like third person because of its report-like format. Colors and similes add dimension to the poem, making it seem bigger than life, like the fish.

The repetition of “He” in lines 5-7 and 16 imply that the fish has a personality. It also has human characteristics of “homely” and a “beard of wisdom.”

The speaker goes into relationship with the fish when she “looked into his eyes” in line 34 and “admired his sullen face” in line 45. Her descriptions reveal that she obtained intricate knowledge of her catch.

The length of the poem and all the descriptive details tell of the import of this fish to the speaker. Her admiration of it and respect for its ability to survive several captures make the last line satisfying.

The short lines and the use of enjambment make the poem jerky, like a fish jerks a fishing line. The switching back and forth from the speaker to the fish imitates the rocking of the boat.

Using flower references to describe body parts endows a feminine quality to the fish, but they contrast the grosser descriptions of it. What other significance could the flowers have? Do they correlate to the rainbow?