Jeffrey Perez PEREZ J.
802 02 5213
Prof. S. Mongar
English 3141 Sec.141
May
Is it Good to Carry a Child?
ESSAY
Stevie Smith, the author of the poem “To Carry a Child,” was born in 1902 in Yorkshire, England and the end of her life was in 1971 in London Palmers. Every writer has her strong way of writing and Stevie’s was the poetry. Her particular style was a combination variety of voices, playful meter and deep sense of irony. She wrote with a lot of sense and some of her poems were based on real life. The poem “To carry the child” was written by Smith in 1966 and was part of a poem collection in her book “The Frog Prince.” In this case, Stevie Smith tried to expose in this deep poem the constant fight between our “inner child” and the adult, how the child can be more powerful than the adult and why is better to let the infant die before growing at all. In the poem the author uses metaphor and symbolism to create a conflict between an Individual’s "inner child” and his adult life.
The poem began with a deep question that invite the reader to reflection, is it good to carry a child? In this case she refer to the inside child that every person has in their self. She was very specific in her opinion; is not good and she made it clear. In the first stanza she exposed it quickly. “To carry the child into adult life Is good? I say not, To carry the child into adult life Is to be handicapped.” She started to say that some times, people fight with themselves; it’s a war that takes place in mind. She began the second stanza, talking that child is defenseless and it’s true because everyone knows that any child haven’t the capacity to face the real world. I believe, she refers how defenseless is being sensible and vulnerable as a child to compete in the aggressive, insensitive and in some occasions unconscious adult society. That’s why the adult part of her own despises the child part. The fear to be sensible, different and weak to be criticized and the feeling of inferiority. In addition, the children is free of responsibility and preoccupations and every one knows that adult life isn’t like that, may be the dislike to inside child is like a kind of jealous. When referred to jealousy I mean, that the adult in some way, want to be free of all preoccupations as the child, but he or she know that they can’t. In the third stanza, “The child too, despises the clever grown-up The man-of-the-world, the frozen, For the child has the tears alive on his cheek”And the man none of them.” The poet shows the opposite, the inside child also hates the adult for the frozen way that he or she thinks and act. They have no initiative to enjoy different things; as a result, they lose the magic way to see life and the capacity to express to others like a child will do.
The poem talks about how powerful the inner child can be. The children had a particular trait, the great capacity of convincing because they act moved by feelings that make them powerful; although, excess of power can also made them capricious. I think that everyone’s inner child can be erratic too. An example of this is something very interesting of the fifth stanza is the phrase “For instance, if you do not speak to the child he will make trouble.” (pag.144) Adults also have the wish to have what they want and when they didn’t find it, they become mad, as a bad-mannered child. Adults have to learn to accept circumstances how they happen, although they don’t want to. As the six stanzas say, the child traits, in some way, maintain people emotionally alive. That combination of innocence and maturity maintains a balance; in life don’t be too foolish neither too aggressive.
Stevie Smiths concludes saying that is better to let the child die in the infanthood. Stevie expressed that is unhappy and difficult to live exposing the inner child. The reason people always fight with themselves and doubting of everything, especially, in their actions. The inner child will try to talk to you that is better to be free of responsibilities, preoccupations; he or she (the inner child) will want to enjoy everything, love everyone and forget everyone’s opinions. That’s why she said that is better to let the child die because when he or she survives to the process of grown-up they become immortal. The person will fall with no capacity to compete in the aggressive way in adults’ world. The only thing that adults have to do is accept and controlled them.
This poem was very interesting Stevie Smith uses a lot of personification trough the whole poem to express the conflict of bringing the inner child into adulthood. She combines metaphor and personifications to turn a fictional character or just a type of personality (the inner child) into a real life character what she calls the “child”. I never visualize the life having an inner child in that angle, that poet’s bad angle. She showed how bad can be it and it’s better to not have one. Although she wrote about how bad can be keep the inner child, she also said that the inner child maintain people strong, so she tried to say that having an inside child is difficult, but is not too good to let him die at all, to keep a balance in our lives. In some way, I’m agree with her, in the way that is not good to act with fear and extreme sensibility as a child, but keeping the child spirit maintain people happy. I believe that we can’t let others cheat us like we can do to an infant; otherwise, people have to keep the eyes very open. But, maintaining the child alive, in some way, keep people out to be as peevish and bored. Although we don’t wanted the child, in some cases, controls the wild traits of adults.