"Looking Back" by Ditoria Geddis

Wow. This is a really heavy poem. My response to it (which is not necessarily important) is very much “reader response.” Like, I’m having a difficult time trying to look at it from a formalist approach (which I find to be the easiest when it comes to peer review, because it uses the text and only the text as an analytical lens, rather than trying to talk about biographical information or possible cultural influences). Jeez, sorry. I didn’t mean to get all English majory there—I guess I should just try to get to the point. Okay, my point is that I am trying to look at the language, style, and purpose of the poem, but all I can think about is what I’ve learned in my Writing and Healing class about the power of telling. Anyway, because of this, I think the purpose of this poem is for the narrator (I say narrator, not author, because I don’t want to thrust this onto the writer of the poem if it is untrue,) to get something, a painful and haunting memory, off of her chest. The purpose feels like an attempt—through writing—to get past a traumatic situation.

For me, the poem is definitely powerful because it deals with such a difficult subject. Okay, now I’m just going to look at what is on the page (which I should have been doing before). One thing that I think is effective as it is, is the fact that certain words are emphasized by having their own lines: words like, “locks,” “problems,” and “MY UNCLE.” Actually, since I just brought that up, I’m not sure that placing “my uncle” in all caps really adds anything to the poem. It seems too obvious. What about playing around more with the style to bring it out even more, rather than resorting to something so mundane as capitalization. What about, rather than just giving it its own line, giving it its own little section, like:

Because it brings tears to my eyes
That someone so close could do this to me

My uncle

Whose [which should be who’s (who is)] supposed to be my protector,
From male invaders

That’s just an idea, of course. I’d also like to see some of the language tightened up. Some of the little words could be eliminated to keep the language more intense, which would (in turn) create more intensity overall in the poem.