Lesbos

The line I like the most in this poem is Cute decor closes on the poet like the fist of a baby. Zen heaven. The title of the poem is Lesbos. Lesbos means a Greek island off the coast of Asia Minor. It is in the Aegean sea. Although this poem is titled Lesbos there is no reference to a Greek island in the rest of the poem. The poem is about difficult marriages, raising children, the aftermath of fame and disappointment or disillusionment, lies, hate, love, glamor of hollywood, domesticity, cooking, decorating a home etc. I think the poem is about how a former hollywood star lives in a cutely decorated home, a haven of peace and beauty inspite of a struggling marriage and tantrum throwing children, and responsibility of a home. It is titled Lesbos because just as an island is a land mass surrounded by water the poet's home is a island of zen in a sea of problems. The poem begins in the kitchen. Cooking is going on. The potatoes hiss. It is all Hollywood--as in paper doors, flourescent lights that blink before lighting up. No windows which probably means there is a lot of hollywood style articial lights. You get the impression of a harried housewife with two kids. The older child is a girl. This child is born out of wedlock. The poet thinks the child is schizophrenic. The child appears to have kittens as pets. The poet puts the kittens in a cemented area outside the window. Here windows suddenly appear as though the poet is no longer in the kitchen. The second child is a baby. The first child is lying on the floor and the second child is also on the floor. The poet addresses someone else, as you. Perhaps she is addressing her friend, herself or her husband. Since one child is born out of wedlock only the poet considers herself as having two children. The children's father thinks that he has only one child. The person the poet is addressing has one child while the poet has two. There is reference to Hollywood. The person the poet addresses has been a Hollywood star. She has experienced fame and adulation. The hollywood star is very sickly. Everything makes them sick. The sun gives them ulcers and the wind gives them TB. She tries to maintain her marriage inspite of many problems. In her marriage she gets acid baths and skyfulls of her are pushed downhill. The poet compares her marriage to a "flogged trolley." The blue sparks have spilled and split like quartz into a million bits. The poet compares the marriage or her friend the hollywiod star to a valuable jewel. The moon dragged its blood bag, a sick animal up over the harbor lights. Then the moon grew normal. There were scale like things on the sand. The poet is silent due to the hate they feel so full of. Without speaking she packs potatoes, babies and cats. She wears potatoes as clothes. The poet says the person she is speaking to is full of love. The poet says the person she is speaking to knows whom she/he hates. Perhaps the hollywood stars husband hugs a ball and chain of the gate that opens to the sea. The sea is white and black and spews it? back. Everyday she fills her husband with soul stuff like a pitcher and is now exhausted by her efforts. She probably does this because she considers her marriage valuable inspite of the problems. Finally reaches the conclusion that every woman is a whore or a sad hag. The poet sees the hollywood stars cutely decorated home close on her friend like babies fingers close on something we place in their hands. The cutely decorated home can be like a anemone. There are two meanings for the word anemone. Anemone is a kind of flower. The home is as beautiful as an Anemone. Anemone is also a sea creature with tentacles that lives at the bottom of the sea. The home is also like a sea creature whose tentacles rob her happiness as the kleptomaniac. Next phrase is sea sweetheart and also kleptomaniac or one who steals. The poet says the poet is raw. The poet may be back. The poet says you should know what lies are for. The last line of the poem says even in your zen heaven we will not meet. Zen is the Japanese school of mahayana buddhism emphasising meditation and intuition. The hollywood star may be living in a home decorated according to zen principles but feels extremely pessimistic about the solution to her problems in life. There is reference to sleeping pills and cooking. Even through sleepless nights the chores of everyday life continue to be performed. The poet calls herself a pathological liar. In the beginning and towards the end says you know what lies are for? Lies are for continuing in the normalcy of a beautiful home even while experiencing severe problems such as dependence on sleeping pills, or a child with schizophrenia, TB or ulcers. This is the meaning I conjectured in the poem Lesbos by Sylvia Plath.