The Lost Baby Poemby Lucille Clifton

Cope 1

Tonya J. Cope

English IV Honors

Tonya Cope

November 24, 2013

the lost baby poemby Lucille Clifton

the time i dropped your almost body down
down to meet the waters under the city
and run one with the sewage to the sea
what did i know about waters rushing back
what did i know about drowning
or being drowned
you would have been born in winter
in the year of the disconnected gas
and no car
we would have made the thin walk
over the genecy hill into the canada winds
to let you slip into a stranger's hands
if you were here i could tell you
these and some other things

and if i am ever less than a mountain
for your definite brothers and sisters
let the rivers wash over my head
let the sea take me for a spiller of seas
let black men call me stranger always
for your never named sake

Part I – Initial Response

I choose to work with “the lost baby poem” by Lucille Clifton for this project for several reasons. First, I wondered why she had not capitalized any of the words in the title. This lack of capitalization seemed weird to me. As a journalist, I know that writing everything in lower case can be used to make a page look graphically intriguing, but this was just the title of the poem, so it seemed odd. Another reason I decided to read this poem is because I question how a baby can be lost. That seems like the type of thing that you would definitely keep track of. Finally, I have heard Lucille Clifton speak in person before, so I knew that I would most likely enjoy working with this poem because I liked the others that I heard her recite when I was at Meredith.

As for the title’s meaning, I believe it has something to do with either an abortion or a miscarriage. Perhaps, she chose to lose the baby because of her situation and went to a clinic and had an abortion. She might also have really ‘lost’ the baby by having a miscarriage. A third choice for a plausible explanation to how a baby can be lost is that of a kidnapping. Was the child taken from her?

The language seen in “the lost baby poem” is very simple. None of the words are very difficult to understand. I would imagine that anyone over twelve would be able to read and comprehend the meaning of the words that are included. I wonder if there is a reason for such simplistic language.

There are two major figurative language devices used in this poem. The first is that the entire thing is an apostrophe because the persona is speaking to the infant that was never born. There is no way that the child will be able to talk back; however, this could be way the language is so simple. She is talking to a child. The second major device is imagery. Clifton uses visual,and tactile imagery to describe the conditions of the child’s birth (?) and the way the family was living during that pregnancy.

Clifton also emphasizes her ideas about the child and how the persona should be treated through the repeated use of repetition. Another sound device that she uses is alliteration. There really is no rhyme at all in the poem. While there are three stanzas, they do not fit a pattern. This poem is an example of free verse.

After reading the poem several times, I believe that Clifton is the persona. I think she is using this poem as a catharsis to get her emotions out and in public. I think it is an apology to the child that she was not really loved (“never named sake”), and I think it is also a promise that she will be a much better mother to the children who actually exist.

Part II – Paraphrase

When I miscarried and your body dropped out of me and into the water of the commode, it ran into the sewage and was carried out to the sea. At that time, I did not know anything about how the water can rush back. I did not know anything about what a drowning would feel like.

If you had actually been born, it would have been during that winter where our gas was shut off and our home was very cold. We did not even have a car at that point in our lives. If you had actually been born, we would have taken you over the mountain and into the cold winds of Canada. There, we would have given you to a stranger because we would have given you up for adoption. If you were alive, I could explain this to you. I could also tell you about other things.

If I am ever not strong enough or sturdy enough for your brothers and sisters that were actually born, then I, too, should experience drowning. The river should take me under. The sea should recognize me as someone that has wasted water. I should be called a stranger by every black man and never be known. I should not experience love. This should all happen to me if I cannot provide for your siblings. This should happen to me for your sake; however, it cannot happen in your name because we never did give you one.

Part III – Analysis of Style

Lucille Clifton uses “the lost baby poem” to apologize to the child that she lost and to make promises to those that she still has. While she uses a variety of figurative language and sound devices to construct the three stanzas, she relies heavily on imagery to create the poem. Clifton’s use of visual and tactile imagery allows the reader to envision not only the child’s “birth,” but to also understand what would have happened to the child if he or she survived.

To begin with, Clifton refers to the infant in line 1 as an “almost body.” This allows the reader to know that the baby was not fully developed when he or she was lost. This enables the reader to picture a fetus that is not fully developed and is extremely small.

In the same stanza, Clifton says that she “dropped” the child “down to meet the waters under the city/and run one with the sewage to the sea” (lines 1 to 3). The choice of the word drop makes the reader think of something that is done accidentally, and one can picture the fetus being dropped like someone would drop a pencil. This image makes one believe that the child was not yet valued which can add to the fact that it was a miscarriage since those tend to happen in the early weeks of a pregnancy. The mother (and possibly the father) has not yet developed strong feelings towards him or her. Since Clifton mentions “sewage” (line 3), the reader could imagine that the baby was lost while sitting on the commode and then perhaps flushed down with the other waste. This idea furthers the fact that baby was not loved when it was lost.

In the second stanza, Clifton begins to describe the conditions the mother was living in during the time of the pregnancy. The mother informs the child that he or she “would have been born in winter/ in the year of the disconnected gas” (lines 7 and 8). This tactile imagery makes the reader feel a sense of cold. The word ‘winter’ makes one think of snow, sleet, and other cold weather. If the family (or couple) did not have any gas, that means that their home (probably an apartment based on the fact that they could not afford gas) lacked heat. This makes the reader even colder because there is nothing left to warm them up. This cold could also apply to the mother’s feelings towards the pregnancy.

Another visual image is expressed in the second stanza, when the speaker informs the child that his or her parents would have crossed over mountains and into to Canada “to let you slip into a stranger’s hands” (line 12). This is a very strong visual image that can lead to a possible implied auditory image. The reader sees the couple with a young child (perhaps bundled up against the cold) handing it to someone they have never met before. One could imagine that this experience would be accompanied by tears. The couple knew that they would not be able to afford the food, diapers, clothing, and other necessities that the baby would need to survive, so their plan was to give him or her up for adoption. This could be why the mother had not grown excited or attached; she knew that she would not be able to keep the infant so she was protecting her own heart by being so cold.

This is NOT complete. . . however, it should be enough to show you what to do!

Part IV – Research Paper

Outline

Introduction
Attention Getter: After months of contemplation, Sherry had finally decided that signing the papers would be her best option. She knew that it would be better for the little boy that would soon be born to go to a loving couple that was desperate for children. She entered the adoption agency ready to make the biggest decision of her life official.
Thesis Statement: There are many different reasons why birth parents consider and finally choose adoption.
Definition of Adoption
Causes of Putting a Child up for Adoption
Lack funds to provide for a child
Lack maturity to take care of child
Cannot connect because child created by rape or molestation
Conclusion

After months of contemplation, Sherry had finally decided that signing the papers would be her best option. She knew that it would be better for the little boy that would soon be born to go to a loving couple that was desperate for children. She entered the adoption agency ready to make the biggest decision of her life official. Across the world, many people find themselves in the same situation as Sherry. They carefully review their options and make the final choice to give their child up for adoption. Birth parents share a variety of reasons for making the final call to sign their child over to adoptive parents.

This is where the body paragraphs go. . . There should be a definition paragraph and then three paragraphs that are the causes of giving a child up for adoption (Smith 173). Ms. Cope already has a high school diploma, so there is no need for her to actually write these paragraphs (quoted in Farrington par. 3). This information is going to make it look like they are here (“Adoption” par. 5). Random thought; there is a lot of noise coming from a plane or helicopter outside my window (“A Parent’s Love” 33). I wonder what the heck is going on (Zefferelli par. 32). This almost looks long enough to be a research body paragraph (quoted in Jeter 784). I need to throw in some fake citations now.

This is where the conclusion goes. It doesn’t need citations. It should not be all that long; however, it should make sense and it should not introduce new material. Make sure you look back at the notes on how to write a conclusion before you actually write yours. Remember that you should not be using all of these 1st and 2nd person pronouns like I’ve used here in this paragraph. You shouldn’t be using contractions either. This looks like it is long enough to represent a conclusion paragraph, so I’m going to stop now.

Part V --- Interview

On Friday, November 22nd, I sat down with Ms. Melissa Armbrester in her office to discuss “the lost baby poem” by Lucille Clifton. I was very excited that she agreed to work with me on this project since she is an English teacher, and I felt that she would be able to answer my questions easily and provide me with the information I needed to know.

I started the interview by asking her about what she thought the poem would be about based on its title. She replied “I feel like Clifton has experienced a loss . . .”

This is NOT COMPLETE. It is a starter to show you how to format your own interview part of this project.

Part VI --- Concluding Response

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Part VII --- Works Cited

Armbrester, Melissa. Personal interview. 22 Nov. 2014.

Clifton, Lucille. "the lost baby poem."

"Reasons Parents Give Their Babies Up for Adoption." LIVESTRONG.COM. LIVESTRONG.

COM, 12 Feb. 2014. Web. 24 Sept. 2014.

"You Are Not "Giving Up" by Choosing Adoption." Choosing Adoption. American Adoptions,

2014. Web. 24 Sept. 2014.