Marge piercy to be of use. To Be of Use by Marge Piercy 2022-12-10

Marge piercy to be of use Rating: 5,2/10 1343 reviews

"To Be of Use" by Marge Piercy is a poem that celebrates the value of hard work and usefulness. The speaker in the poem asserts that it is fulfilling and satisfying to be able to use one's skills and abilities to make a difference in the world.

The speaker begins by describing people who are "of use" as those who "move stone and earth, who dig trenches" and engage in physical labor. These people are not glamorous or flashy, but they are essential to the functioning of society. They are the ones who build the infrastructure and create the resources that allow others to thrive.

However, the speaker also recognizes that there are many other ways to be of use. One can be of use through their artistic or intellectual pursuits, or through their compassion and care for others. The speaker notes that those who are "of use" are not necessarily the ones who are "seen and admired," but rather the ones who are "indispensable" and make a real difference in the world.

The speaker concludes by stating that it is a privilege to be of use and to have the opportunity to make a contribution. This is something that should be cherished and valued, rather than taken for granted.

Overall, "To Be of Use" is a powerful and inspiring poem that reminds us of the importance of hard work and usefulness. It encourages us to find ways to use our talents and abilities to make a positive impact on the world, regardless of whether we are recognized or celebrated for it.

To Be of Use by Marge Piercy

marge piercy to be of use

Retrieved May 8, 2020. Kind of made me roll my eyes at the end. Botched, it smears the hands, crumbles to dust. Retrieved June 21, 2017. I opened this anthology knowing only that "Barbie Doll" debuted in it.

Next

Marge Piercy

marge piercy to be of use

Winning a Hopwood Award for Poetry and Fiction 1957 enabled her to finish college and spend some time in France, and her formal schooling ended with an M. Second, that there really seems to be no way to sustain progressive protest against capitalist corruption I know, redundant. The second half became super political, in a sort of beat you over the head with a copy of "Das Kapital" way, and the imagery wasn't as effective. Other first impressions: This book seems very dated to me. This novel is considered a classic of utopian "speculative" science fiction as well as a feminist classic. Hush, the heart's drum, my life, my breath.

Next

To Be of Use: Poems by Marge Piercy

marge piercy to be of use

Who stand in the line and haul in their places, Who are not parlour generals and field deserters But move in a common rhythm When the food must come in or the fire be put out. To me, she seems to sometimes objectify the people she is fighting against and that's where she loses me. Not familiar with too much poetry, but my first impression is that wow, Marge Piercy is so different from Mary Oliver. . This novel is considered a classic of utopian "speculative" science fiction as well as a feminist classic. Blunt, angry, and impatient, To Be of Use reads as a collection of the early 1970s: its socially conscious feminist poems fuse together the personal and the political, the individual and the collective, in inventive and impassioned ways. She was the first in her family to attend college, studying at the University of Michigan.

Next

To Be of Use

marge piercy to be of use

She lives in Wellfleet on Cape Cod, Massachusetts with her husband, Ira Wood. More in-your-face political than the earth-mama 'The Moon is Always Female', I particularly liked the last cycle of 11 poems, grouped as a tarot reading. But the thing worth doing well done has a shape that satisfies, clean and evident. Retrieved March 5, 2019. Other of her novels, such as Summer People and The Longings of Women are set during the modern day. I want to be with people who submerge In the task, who go into the fields to harvest And work in a row and pass the bags along.

Next

To Be of Use: Poems by Marge Piercy

marge piercy to be of use

Botched, it smears the hands, crumbles to dust. As early as the 1970s people like Ms. All of her books share a focus on women's lives. I earmarked 8 poems for later reference. Many times her words made me feel like I was at a protest or a march and she was speaking to me and many others in the crowd with a megaphone.

Next

To be of use (Short 2020)

marge piercy to be of use

Her first book of poems, Breaking Camp, was published in 1968. Piercy is a novelist and poet, although I'm more familiar with her poetry and agree with the Time Magazine reviewer who writes that ". Retrieved December 11, 2020. This book by Piercy has asterisks beside dozens of her poems. Her novels and poetry often focus on feminist or social concerns, although her settings vary.

Next

marge piercy to be of use

But it was a very polarized time. Greek amphoras for wine or oil, Hopi vases that held corn, are put in museums but you know they were made to be used. The poem speaks to those who tirelessly, "without dallying," get up everyday and just do the work that needs to be done - over and over again. I remember that at the reception afterwards she stayed in the hallway because she was allergic to cigarette smoke - not a problem she'd have today. After she passed I rescued these books from destruction - as my father had plans to throw them all away. The first-person account in Gone To Soldiers is the diary of French teenager Jacqueline Levy-Monot, who is also followed in a third-person account after her capture by the Nazis. Piercy proves that modern poetry can be both passionate and perceptive, well-structured and inventive.

Next

marge piercy to be of use

Piercy was born in Detroit, Michigan, to a family deeply affected by the Great Depression. The collection strikes me as easily being Piercy's best, and while it is out of print, used copies aren't all that difficult to find. I can't express how weird it was. But the thing worth doing well done has a shape that satisfies, clean and evident. Woman on the Edge of Time 1976 mixes a time travel story with issues of social justice, feminism, and the treatment of the mentally ill.

Next