Poetry Analysis—TPCASTT

T / TITLE / The “Pathedy of Manners” probably is about a woman that follows the strict standards of society. It seems like the poem is going to be about a woman, and her struggle with composure in a world where she is alone.
P / PARAPHRASE / At the age of twenty, she was luminous and beautiful
She was a member of a sorority, wanted as a date for every dance
She captured men’s eyes without even giving a first glance
Of men, who’s priority was her inner being
She learned how to speak their language, adapt to that breed
She wore the gorgeous diamonds and pearls
Praised by the dancing Degas girls
And this is the opposite of what she thought
She framed her diploma and went abroad
Visited houses of tapestry and fashion
Rejected a noble, poor Duke
And she learned to tell real Wedgwood from a scam
Once back a home, she found a spouse
A stunning young man who was made of riches
They had an ideal marriage, and ideal
But friendless children in a ideal house
I saw her just yesterday, at age forty-three
Her husband had been dead for a year, the children gone
Figuring plots to kill the time and reminisce
Pictures of lost opportunity
But afraid to dream about what she might have had
With all the money and power she once had
She shuns her thinking, choosing to ponder
Beliefs of every other mind except her own
A hundred guests called her, but not one was a friend
To pass the time, talking to a hundred unfamiliar voices with nimble talk
Her meanings and true thoughts were trapped in manners of eloquence
She will continue to walk alone in circles to the end
C / CONNOTATION / -The observer’s subject begins the poem as a twenty year old woman who is “brilliant and adored”.
-The “brilliant and adored” lets the reader know that the woman may be wealthy and lives a life of luxury.
-Yet later she mentions living with an “ideal” husband in an “ideal” house with “ideal” children, leaving the reader to believe that she is lonely and unsatisfied with her life. Even though she may be surrounded by her family, she is alone, which resembles a paradox. --In the last stanza, she is the most critical, claiming that the woman’s “hundreds” of acquaintances are shallow and uncaring. With each of these observations, there is no reasoning as to how she arrived at such a melancholy profile.
A / ATTITUDE / The attitude of this poem shifts throughout the stanzas. At first, the attitude is optimistic. The speaker develops an outline of a wealthy, luxurious woman. The speaker goes on to develop details about her college life, speaking of all the dances she attended and men she dated. The attitude still remains positive as the speaker explains how the woman traveled abroad and came home to marry a rich, stunning young man. The attitude of the poem suddenly shifts as the speaker describes her marriage as “ideal” and her children as “ideal”. The fifth stanza reveals a hopeless, distressing attitude as the woman is left a widow because her husband had previously died a year ago and her children had moved out. During the last two stanzas, the attitude shifts to remorse. The speaker glooms on what the woman could have had in her life if she wasn’t so concerned with following society’s strict mannerisms.
S / SHIFTS / The first four four-line stanzas are primarily meant to describe the life of this young, wealthy girl. They are optimistic and flattering. In the last three, however, the observer begins to take a much more judgmental perspective. She begins to illustrate how the choices made early on have left the woman in a tragic, almost pathetic situation.
T / TITLE / “Pathedy of Manners” is about a woman that essentially has a perfect, yet artificial life. It is cliché though, as the woman is wrapped in society’s “pathedy” of manners, concerned with what is expected of her. From the title, one can infer that the woman derives all of her happiness from living up to the expectations of society. However, in the last few stanzas of the poem she realizes that there is more in life than wealth and living in high society.
T / THEME / The theme of “Pathedy of Manners” by Ellen Kay is remorse and the importance of self-worth. Throughout the poem, it is clear that the speaker believes that the woman does not value and appreciate her self-worth. However, by the last two stanzas of the poem, the woman in the poem is clearly upset and rattled by her life choices. The underlying theme of this poem is recognizing and appreciating your sense of self and aspiring to achieve.