"Women" by May Swenson

Women and poetry lends itself easily and often to the realm of social commentary. What better way to start off your Monday? Still in keeping with our Women’s History month theme-- women poets writing about women-- we look at a poem that not only uses complex imagery and makes a strong social commentary, but visually does some interesting things on the page. I want so badly to post the poem “Women” May Swenson right here but as a blogger novice, I can’t for the life of me figure out how to keep the layout of the poem intact. I believe what you see on the page in integral to the poem, especially when the poem layout is so distinct. So please don’t miss out on this poem but visit … http://www.poetryfoundation.org/archive/poem.html?id=178001 or just search "Women" by May Swenson. It should lead you right to the Poetry Foundation website. Maybe take a second and think about how breaking from the traditional down the page layout changes/ adds/ detracts from your reading. What does it mean in context with the content of the poem? Would the social commentary read differently if she adhered to the "rules" of traditional layout? I bet you can think of even more questions which is great because poems like this ask to be thought about. Enjoy!