Jane Wong

English 120
Essay 5
12/20/13

An Analysis of Hades Pitch in Mother Love

Hades Pitch is the first poem of Section VI (p.37) in Mother

Love. The poem is set in Paris during the daughters trip abroad,
where she, without her mothers constant protection for the first
time, is suddenly exposed to many aspects of the real world.
Through the seduction by the man who embodies Hades, readers
see a girls first probe into her sexual desires an erotic adventure
with an older man that symbolizes her coming of age.
The poem starts in the voice of the older man. He makes a
lustful plea to the young daughter,
If I could just touch your ankle, (line 1)
The fact that he whispers such a line evokes a sense of mystery,
immediately setting the scene for her seduction. The last word in
the line,
there (line 1),
is short and direct, making him sound more forceful. This is further
shown in the next line, as the man is very specific in describing her
body. The enjambment also creates a lingering feeling, making the
prospect of having sex with him seem more attractive. This shows

that he is experienced in his actions and masterful in his seduction

he knows exactly what to do and how to push her buttons. Then he
leans closer, (line 2)
and she could smell his
breath of lime and pepper (line 3)
presumably from the cocktails they were drinking together, as
mentioned in poem VI (p. 31) in Section III. The smell of margaritas
is a symbol of sophistication and adulthood. The blend of sour and
spicy is exotic, further exciting the young daughter as the sexual
tension increases both in physical and psychological terms.
The older man then says,
I know I could (line 3),
which is almost arrogant, domineering even, but also dangerously
attractive at the same time. The enjambment from this line to the
next, where he says
make love to you. (line 4)
also slows down the pace, adding to the suspense and tension
surrounding the seduction that has been building up throughout the
poem.
In the next line, the young daughter is described as secretly
thrilled at the prospect of the older man making love to her. Here,
sex is painted as a forbidden fruit, a part of adulthood that was
dangerous yet tantalizing. Even though a part of her mind is

cautioning her, telling her that this is wrong, another part is pushing
her to follow her burning desires, leading to a subconscious guilt on
her part. However, the next line says,
she wasnt quite sure what he meant (line 6),
which highlights her youth, innocence and naivety, as she fails to
fully grasp the full meaning and, perhaps, details of this sexual act.
The phrase
He was good (line 6),
at the end of the line, sounds almost as if it is taken from African
American speech, with a jazzy, slangy and slick touch to it, building
up the sexual attraction. The older mans words
went straight to the liver (line 7),
which draws a comparison with alcohol again referring to the
cocktails they were drinking earlier, indicating that his words, like
the drinks, got her drunk and left her craving for more. However,
like alcohol, these words might also be toxic and damaging. The
heavy use of enjambment from line 4 to line 7 gives the poem an
irregular, stuttering pace, which echoes with how the young girl is
drunk on the older mans attention, and also shows the
juxtaposition of her careful considerations, impulsive desires and
confused hesitations.

Line 8 shows a sudden enlightenment, a burst of selfawareness on the young daughters part, as she questions whether
she was
falling for him out of sheer boredom (line 8)
We dont get an answer to that question, likely because even the
young girl herself is not sure. Falling not only alludes to how
Persophone fell into the ground, the underworld, but can also refer
to a fall from grace as she give the older man her body and loses
her innocence.
Lines 9 and 10 are an allusion to hell. The vivid imagery,
in this anything-but-humble die, stone
gargoyles leering and brocade draped licked with fire (lines 910)
sets the scene, creating a dark, looming and intimidating setting. It
also foreshadows Lost Brilliance (p.51) in section V, which talks
about Persephones time in hell. Cooped up (line 9) juxtaposes
with the anything-but-humble (line 9) setting, echoing with the
confusing and dazzling feelings the daughter is experience on her
eye-opening trip to the real world.
Line 11 suddenly pulls the readers back to the ongoing action
of the story which is the physical discomfort the daughter is
experiencing. The burning sensation she is feeling at her ankle
refers to her sexual desire, and the abrupt change of subject, and

also the caesura in this line echoes with how desire is urgent and allconsuming, distracting her from all other thoughts. Then she
sighs (line 11) a sexual sound perhaps,
Just as her mother above ground stumbles, is caught
by the fetlock bereft in an instant (lines 12-13)
The enjambment makes the transition and flow from line 11 to line
12 smooth, which contrasts with how suddenly changes the scene
change, completely shifting readers attention to the mother. The
description relates back to The Search back in Section II, where
Demeter is called the old mare (p.10, line 14). This metaphor is
an allusion to the myth of the rape of Demeter by Poseidon, Lord of
the Sea, during her search for Persephone in Arcadia. She turns into
a mare to escape, but is caught by the fetlock and raped by
Poseidon.
The final line is strong and carries a sense of finality. The
phrase drives home (line 14) is very forceful, further
complemented by the capitalization of the Great Man (line 14).
This line is also very macho, since the focus placed on the man
driving home his desire there is. As a female poet, Dove might be
subtly exploring the themes of male dominance, sex and gender.
The Great Man here can be referring to both the characters of
Hades and Poseidon. In doing so, the poet creates a parallel
imagery of the moment of the mothers rape and the moment when
her daughter succumbs to the seduction of the older man in Paris.

Readers see two sexual acts happening at the same time: except
one is a violent violation while the other was a masterful (but
definitely consensual) seduction.
The choice of title Hades Pitch, directly alludes to the
myth of Persephone, Demeter and Hades. Throughout the poem,
allusions to Greek mythology are made, which shows the
timelessness and universality of the gradual process of sexual
awakening, the ritual of coming of age and also a mothers
protective love for her daughter. However, it is interesting how
Persephone is portrayed in this poem: she is not simply shown as a
weak, helpless girl, abducted from her home and raped; instead, we
see her enjoying every bit of Hades seduction, even taking an
active part in it. There is no doubt that her innocence was stolen
the question lies in whether the thief was Hades or Persephones
own coming of age.
With 14 lines, this poem, unlike some of the other poems
especially in Section III, is undoubtedly a sonnet. However, it is also
a betrayal of the sonnet form. Unlike the Petrarchan sonnet, it does
not have a clear structure comprising of an octet and a sestet;
instead it can be broken up into two even sections: Lines 1-7 is a
narration of the moment, while lines 8-14 are the young daughters
introspective thoughts. These two sections are both bound together
by an irregular but definite rhyme scheme. In the first section,
could (line 3) clearly rhymes with good (line 6); while closer

(line 2), considers (line 4) and liver (line 7) create a more subtle
rhyme. In the second section, the rhyme scheme is less visible, with
only fire (line 10) rhyming with desire (line 14), but it is a clear
rhyme. Such a violation of the traditional sonnet form not only
parallels with the violation of Persephone (and Demeter), but also
the violation of the original Greek myth where Persephone is
portrayed as the victim.
Rita Dove once expressed that one of the inspirations for her
poems was what out heart does all the timethat rhythm, that
push-and-pull, feels natural to us.1 This poem is a perfect example.
We see the young daughters rational, conscious thoughts weaving
in with her physical, immediate, sexual desires, reflecting her
confusion and how the young girl cannot separate the two. In this
interior monologue, soliloquy-like narration, the poet masterfully
gives a realistic and compelling portrayal of a girls sexual
awakening.

Works Cited
Dove, Rita. Mother Love: Poems. New York: W.W. Norton, 1995. Print.
"Rita Dove Talks to M. Wynn Thomas." Interview by M. Wynn Thomas
and Rita Dove.
N.p., 12 Aug. 1995. Web. 20 Dec. 2013.
<http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/dove/mwthom
as.htm>.

1 "Rita Dove Talks to M. Wynn Thomas". August 1995.

7